Compassion Fatigue... Yes, Again

Recently I stood on the front steps of our headquarters. I had just finished a 12 hour shift as a street medic, my second in 48 hours. I hadn’t done anything particularly physical but I felt weary, bone weary. I replayed several calls in my head thinking about the emotional toll it took to be present with people who are in crisis. I stared off into space looking forward to just crawling into bed, closing my eyes and shutting out the immense world of people who need help. This was not a new feeling to me. In fact, I learned what it was and how to address it while I was working in 9-1-1/dispatch. Compassion fatigue hits all of us. Maybe in different ways, but it’s something that we face day in and day out as we try to make sense of the chaos that faces the people that turn to us for help. The good thing is there are ways to take care of ourselves so that we don’t get dragged down.

Compassion fatigue can feel like a million things and it has a wide degree of severity. For me, it often presents as dissociation. I just don’t feel present completely. It can continue to cumulate and eventually turn someone completely indifferent to the suffering of others. Literally, you’ve taken so much pain from others filling your glass to empty there’s that you can no longer fit any more in. It’s overflowing. It’s described as, “physical and emotional exhaustion and a profound decrease in the ability to empathize.” It’s a secondary traumatic stress created from wanting to help and caring for others. It is not the same as burnout. Here are a few of the common signs and symptoms:

• Chronic exhaustion (emotional, physical, or both)
• Reduced feelings of sympathy or empathy
• Feelings of irritability
• Dreading working for or taking care of another and feeling guilty as a result
• Trouble sleeping
• Headaches

The first step to fighting compassion fatigue is to acknowledge it. Getting overwhelmed by the amount of caring we do as 9-1-1 Dispatchers is normal and should be expected. It does not mean that you are weak or that you cannot do your job well. It means that you came in to a profession dedicated to helping others and that helping others has a cost. Self-awareness can help us prevent and manage this normal part of our job. Here are five tips:

1. Breath-It always sounds so simple…because it is. Focusing on breathing deeply in, hold, and out fills the body with more oxygen which helps clear the brain when it’s feeling foggy and invigorates. When we intentionally focus on our breathing it helps take our minds away from the problems and relaxes us. This is something that can be done whenever you need it even sitting at the console. Try to do it frequently and with intention.
2. Breaks-Make sure that you grabbing time away from the radio/phones. Being able to close your eyes and know that in the next few seconds nothing and nobody is going to be in your ear asking for anything is a beautiful thing. Get outside if you can. Take a short walk. Do some stretching. Take a break from helping just for a moment.
3. Bonding-What sounds like a bunch of old biddies complaining to each other often is a necessary part of keeping our sanity. Of course, it needs to be done right. Venting to others who understand what it feels like to wear the weight of the world can help lift some right off your shoulders. If you have a tough call or a tough night or just need to decompress, grab a couple buddies and a lemonade and share your thoughts.
4. Boost-Resiliency is one of those abstract concepts. Everybody knows that it makes a huge difference in the way people deal with stress but it’s hard to pinpoint exactly how it gets developed and why some people seem to have so much more of it than others. Having a good support network, taking care of yourself physically by eating well, drinking lots of water and exercising regularly and getting enough sleep all seem to be keys to resilience. Boost this in yourself and you’ll feel less compassion fatigue.
5. Balance-To often today’s public safety telecommunication centers are understaffed with too much overtime. The problem seems to be getting worse and worse. In the midst of this, operators are trying to keep some semblance of a work-life balance and it’s getting extremely tough to do so. Which is unfortunate because it’s so important. You can’t be a carer every second of your life. You need to be able to step away to care for yourself and just go have some fun. Sometimes you need to remind your supervisors that when they fill the current holes by overworking their people they will have even more holes when that person ends up too sick to work.

Compassion fatigue is all too common in this line of work. It’s easy to just go, go, go, constantly helping and not stopping to think about what you need to continue being able to do your job well and in good health. Try using some of these strategies and remember to be kind to yourself. You’re so worth it.