Therapist Friends...Are We Giving Our All?

The other day I was on Twitter and ran across these tweets that got me thinking about how we’re really doing. How is our mental health eighteen months into this pandemic?

Y’all have got to go read some of these responses, but if you don't get a chance to, I’ve done the work for you… a quick list:

• Therapists falling asleep during session

• Telling clients to “stop” doing something

• Telling clients to “just get over it” as if it were just that easy

Some of the “worst advice” was extremely upsetting to read, because most therapists I know are trying their damndest to meet their clients’ needs while providing the highest quality of clinical care. All while managing waitlists and building practices at the same time.

I questioned how some of these offenses could happen in session, and of course, the mental health of the offending clinician. It also made me sad, because I know how hard we try, and how hard it can be to balance the load when our own lives can be a dumpster fire. I came to the conclusion that burnout had to be a major culprit.

But that’s just it-burnout is a slippery slope that doesn’t just happen overnight. Of course it's normal to get distracted during session, or to get lost in our own thoughts because something a client said was triggering. And we can all recall times when we’d rather be anywhere else, but in session. At some point, we will all experience compassion fatigue, the question is, how can we truly care for ourselves, while caring for others?

You don’t have to drive yourself so hard. It’s ok to take a break and take your foot off the gas. In our pursuit of success, or all our efforts at helping, we can lose sight of ourselves. When I decided to stop and take inventory of how I was mistreating myself, my life became much more manageable. Now I’m much more gentle with myself and give myself permission to pause and enjoy the present moments in my life.