Compassion fatigue review
Dietitians work with people, and so, we are at risk of experiencing compassion fatigue.
Compassion fatigue, at its core, is the cost of caring.
Anastasia Goussios
Thank you to the dietitians who last week attended the Education in Nutrition live event Compassion Fatigue presented by Anastasia Goussios from Compassion Fatigue Australia.
We learnt that, unlike burnout which has organisational or situational components, the etiology of compassion fatigue is relational. It’s the personal interactions, including exposure to client trauma, that contributes to the development of compassion fatigue in our workplaces.
We can protect ourselves from compassion fatigue:
- Professional and social supports make a difference
- Integrate daily rituals like Stop and Notice Practices
- Keep on top of foundational self-care: take the Self-Care Inventory
- The ProQol measures compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue.
Anastasia’s tip: take the ProQol at regular intervals, and notice how things change for you over time.
In helping professions, we need to take care of our capacity as we care for others.
Further reading recommendations from Anastasia:
Self-Compassion by Kristen Neff Ph.D.
The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook by Kristen Neff Ph.D. and Christopher Germer Ph.D.
Coming Through Trauma Wiser, Stronger, and More Resilient by Richard G, Tedeschi, PhD, Bret A. Moore