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The Cost of Caring – Overcoming Compassion Fatigue · RiseUp - Live Joy Your Way

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Today's episode is produced by my friends at Walk West.
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  SPEAKER_00: If you're looking to grow your brand and generate leads through podcast or video production, head over to walkwest.com.
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  SPEAKER_00: Okay, let's start the show.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_01: Rise up, live joy your way.
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  SPEAKER_01: From emotional intelligence through cognitive distortions, certified life and wellness coach Comedy Wood is on a mission to help people see the magnificence of their own unique human spirit.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_01: Through these small bites of self-visualization and self-confidence, you can have healthy relationships, success in business and career, and live the life you want to live.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_01: Rise up, live joy your way.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: Hi there, welcome to another episode of Rise Up, Live Joy Your Way, whether it's morning, afternoon, or evening.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for taking some time out of your day to spend with me.
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  SPEAKER_00: And so today I want to talk to the leaders, leaders, therapists, uh, human resource professionals, anyone who is showing up for others.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: I want to talk about compassion fatigue.
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  SPEAKER_00: Uh, sometimes when you're in those roles, you find yourself exhausted, not just physically, but you feel drained and you feel like you're running on fumes.
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  SPEAKER_00: And you do care and you want to be there for people, but your emotional bandwidth just isn't there anymore.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what really is compassion fatigue.
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  SPEAKER_00: It's the cost of constantly holding space for others while also juggling your own stressors and your own challenges in life.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: And so right now, human resource teams, leaders, mental health professionals, they are being hit really hard.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: We've got a lot of changes that are happening in the world right now, work-life balance struggles.
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  SPEAKER_00: There are some layoffs happening, there's some calls to bring people back into the office, and all of that is creating a lot of stress.
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  SPEAKER_00: So I really want to talk about what compassion fatigue is, why it's showing up for people who are in the human resources field or just leaders in general, for therapists and health professionals, and how we can move through it.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: So, first let's just talk about the cost of when we do lead with empathy.
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  SPEAKER_00: Like I'm a huge proponent of leading with empathy, but when we lean too far into it, it can really be draining.
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  SPEAKER_00: And so when people come to us with their emotions and their struggles and what their expectations are and their needs, it is a lot to carry and that weight can feel really heavy.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: You know, with layoffs, you know, delivering the news that impacts an entire family, or we would have, you know, we have an employee burnout when we're trying to meet these increasing demands in the workplace, but then how do we balance our own lives?
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there we could have the pressure of demanding executives uh on us.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: There's personal struggles that we're dealing with.
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  SPEAKER_00: And you in your role have signed up to help people, but it's also to help them and to be with them, but not necessarily carry all of that load.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: And when we don't know how to process our own emotions or how to process what we're carrying, that can really lead to this idea of compassion fatigue.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: One thing that I want to just touch base on again is that burnout is the chronic stress from workload, pressure, and exhaustion.
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  SPEAKER_00: Compassion fatigue is the emotional depletion from constantly supporting others without refueling.
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  SPEAKER_00: So the difference between the two, or the difference between physically being tired and emotionally being empty is the fact that, you know, we can physically feel tired and we can rest and we feel replenished.
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  SPEAKER_00: But when we're emotionally tired, it's really difficult to just rest and feel like we're replenished.
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  SPEAKER_00: It takes a lot more.
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  SPEAKER_00: So when you're starting to feel detached, um, that could be an indication that maybe something's going on, or empathy feels like a chore, or maybe your ill irritability or cynicism start to creep in.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: Those are signs that you might be running on empty.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_00: If you overextend yourself but don't recharge, or you start neglecting your own needs, like for instance, you're not sleeping well, or you're not doing the things that used to be fun, that could be an indication that you are depleted and you might be on the track of burnout andor compassion fatigue.
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  SPEAKER_00: So if you find yourselves kind of, if you feel like maybe this could be me, you know, we have to talk about what do we do?
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  SPEAKER_00: How do we break this cycle?
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  SPEAKER_00: And what can you do in in order to kind of heal from your compassion fatigue?
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  SPEAKER_00: The very first thing that I'll say is you got to recognize it.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: You got to recognize it and you have to name it because awareness is the first step of anything.
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  SPEAKER_00: You've heard me say that before.
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  SPEAKER_00: We can't address anything if we're not even aware that it's happening.
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  SPEAKER_00: So being able to notice a name and recognize that something needs to shift.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: And then the second thing is we've got to start setting some emotional boundaries.
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  SPEAKER_00: Empathy doesn't mean absorbing everyone's struggles.
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  SPEAKER_00: It so we do need to create a buffer between your work and what you're doing for others.
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  SPEAKER_00: There has to be some boundaries.
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  SPEAKER_00: And there is a call to shift from a mindset of fixer into facilitator.
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  SPEAKER_00: So often we'll take on some personal responsibility to really fix the problems.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: And we really need to recognize that our job isn't to fix, but it's to be with and to help guide.
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  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to have all the answers and you don't have to carry it for people.
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  SPEAKER_00: What we do is we set healthy boundaries and then we model those healthy boundaries and we offer that space for somebody to feel safe and to figure out what it is that they need without us fixing it for them.
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  SPEAKER_00: And then you need to build in your own recovery time.
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  SPEAKER_00: Just like athletes do, you need to have your recovery time.
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  SPEAKER_00: Microbreaks throughout the day, even if it's five minutes to step away, journaling, you know, to process your own emotions, schedule time off when you can unplug, setting aside time for mindfulness for yourself or for meditation.
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  SPEAKER_00: And then for your own self, it is important to have support.
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  SPEAKER_00: You know, you can only carry so much.
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  SPEAKER_00: And just as you're supporting people, you need support too.
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  SPEAKER_00: Coaches have coaches, therapists have coaches.
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  SPEAKER_00: You know, having somebody in your corner that you get to process what's coming up for you is so vitally important.
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  SPEAKER_00: Now, I personally work with a bunch of high achievers.
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  SPEAKER_00: I work with leaders, I work with therapists, uh, human resource professionals, people just like you where this is resonating.
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  SPEAKER_00: Because here's the thing you can't lose yourself in the process because if you lose yourself, you're not going to be there for the people that you're trying to be there for.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_00: And so when you work with me one-on-one, we actually work on things like how to set boundaries and we work on how to become aware of what's happening for you and then putting strategies in place because your work absolutely matters.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_00: What you do in this world matters, but you matter too.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's important to take care of yourself.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: If you'd like to talk to me about how coaching could support you, feel free at any time to contact me at coachwithcomedy.com.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: And if it's not through coaching, please take some time to figure out what boundaries you need and also just figuring out what support would be the most helpful for you.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_00: Because compassion fatigue is real and it's also manageable.
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  SPEAKER_00: And it's really important that you're able to learn how to navigate it so you can continue to be the leader that you're meant to be.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, stay well.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for listening to Rise Up, Live Joy Your Way.
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  SPEAKER_01: For more information, book a chat with comedy at www.chatwithcomedy.com.
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  SPEAKER_01: Or visit her website at www.comedywood.com.
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  SPEAKER_01: You can also find comedy on Facebook or Instagram.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_01: Username It's Authentic Me.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for listening.