Compassion fatigue

What It Means

Compassion fatigue is the emotional cost of helping people who are suffering, seen in nurses, doctors, first responders, social workers, therapists and family caregivers. Researchers describe it as an umbrella term with two parts: burnoutBurnout at workExhaustion, cynicism about your job and a drop in how effective you feel, which WHO links to chronic workplace stress that hasn't been managed. See more, which builds slowly from demanding work, and secondary traumatic stress, which comes from hearing about or witnessing other people's trauma. Its symptoms can echo those of the people being helped.

How People Say It

• "I've got nothing left to give my patients."
• "I keep seeing that call when I close my eyes."
• "Caring for Mom has worn me down to nothing."

The Breakdown

Signs

• Exhaustion that rest doesn't clear.
• Losing the enjoyment you used to get from helping.
• Irritability with coworkers or family.
• Trouble sleeping, or images of someone else's crisis that come back uninvited.
• Steering away from people, places or cases that remind you of it.
• Thinking about leaving the work.

A short self-check (Buhata's suggestion). For each sign above, ask whether it has been true most days for the last two weeks. Note whether it built up slowly, which points toward burnout, or arrived after a particular case or event, which points toward secondary traumatic stress. Take the list to a doctor or a licensed mental health professional.

Starting the conversation. "The last few months of cases are staying with me after work. Can we talk about my caseload and what support is available?"

Good to Know

Peer-reviewed reviews in PubMed Central link compassion fatigue with intention to leave the profession, poorer mental health and effects on the people being cared for. See a doctor or a licensed mental health professional when symptoms last or get in the way of daily life, and ask your employer what counseling it offers. If you're thinking about suicide or are in crisis, call or text 988 (the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline). Call 911 in an emergency.

Related Terms and Categories

• Burnout at work

  Exhaustion, cynicism about your job and a drop in how effective you feel, which WHO links to chronic workplace stress that hasn't been managed.

• Caregiver burnout

  Physical, emotional and mental exhaustion that can build when you spend your time and energy looking after someone else's health and safety.

• Parental burnout

  Exhaustion from the job of parenting that builds when its demands outweigh a parent's resources for a long time, often with emotional distance from the children.

• Self-compassion

  Treating yourself with the kindness you'd offer a friend when you struggle; researcher Kristin Neff describes three parts: self-kindness, common humanity and mindfulness.

• Self-care

  Taking time to do things that help you live well and look after your physical and mental health, such as moving, sleeping, resting and staying in touch.

• Mental health day

  A day off work taken to rest and recover from stress or strain, usually drawn from sick leave or PTO under the employer's own policy.

Wellbeing and habits