The Power of Empathy

Compassion and empathy are relational, just like Dr. Brene Brown so aptly explains in her short video shared below.  As I reflect on Mental Health Awareness Month and the first theme of awareness leading to compassion, I cannot help but think about the power of empathy and what it can do to fuel connection between people as Dr. Brown states. 

Empathy and compassion are not only important in our work with others (clients, peers, co-workers, etc.), it is also a much needed resource for ourselves.  For nearly three years, I've been traveling around Ohio giving a talk on "Trauma as a Helping Professional: Understanding Compassion Fatigue" to try and combat some of the factors that I think are impacting our workforce .  For helping professionals like social workers, counselors, peer recovery supporters, community health workers, nurses, doctors, educators, EMS professionals, and many others, we are uniquely susceptible to compassion fatigue because of the nature of what we do: caring for others while bearing witness to their stories of traumatic experiences, difficult circumstances, and struggles with behavioral and physical health needs. 

Our brains and bodies absorb these stories and over time, these stories take a toll on us physically, mentally, socially, emotionally, and spiritually.  This constant absorption drains our compassion and makes some of us feel like we've lost our sense of purpose.  When we lose that sense of purpose, some of us walk away from the field.

  I know firsthand what compassion fatigue looks and feels like.  I've worked hard to understand it, help myself heal, and build a wellness practice that helps me prevent it from taking over again. I've learned that we desperately need to talk about compassion fatigue and educate our workforce so that we can help one another remain healthy and engaged.  This first weekly theme of "awareness" is exactly what we need as a field. Not just to be aware of what our clients need, but to also raise awarness about the mental health of our profession.  We need to activate our compassion for ourselves and our colleagues.  Together, we can support one another through difficult times and help prevent full-blown compassion fatigue.