Early Signs of Therapist Burnout and how to Cope

Early Signs of Therapist Burnout and how to Cope
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What’s up everybody! So for all my upbeat videos, it can seem like all of life as a therapist in private practice is complete bliss.
But when it comes to the type of work that we do, compassion fatigue and burnout are rather common.
And burnout can quickly spiral into serious mental health concerns.
So in this video, I name a few early signs of therapist burnout and offer some tools for how to cope.
This video is geared for therapists of all kinds, including psychologists, MFTs, LPCCs, social workers, and others in the clinical counseling field.
Welcome to Private Practice Skills! I’m Dr. Marie Fang, psychologist in private practice. I post videos offering tools I learned the hard way about starting and growing private practice so that you don’t have to.
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This video is not intended as professional or legal advice. Be sure to seek the services of a professional if you are in need of them.
First, let’s answer the question of what IS burnout? In the article’s literature review, they define burnout as “a syndrome of physical and emotional exhaustion resulting from the development of negative self-concept, negative job attitudes, and a loss of concern or feeling for clients,” and describe burnout as “a process, rather than the experience of isolated symptoms otherwise correlated with the syndrome.”
Fortunately, one of the findings of this study is that of the therapists the researchers assessed, those in private practice experienced higher levels of personal accomplishment and lower levels of burnout overall, based on results from the Maslach Burnout Inventory, or MBI.
But that doesn’t mean that those of us in private practice are exempt from burnout. Here are a few signs of burnout to watch for, falling into three major categories:
Physical signs:
Chronic Fatigue
gastrointestinal problems
insomnia
headaches
hypertension
Emotional Indicators:
feelings of hopelessness, futility, and despair
boredom and cynicism
anxiety, withdrawal, and irritability
loss of morale, feelings of isolation, and depression and suicidal ideation
The third dimension reflects signs of exhaustion:
lowered self-concept
increasing inflexibility
distancing from clients
treating clients as cases rather than as people
disbelief in effectiveness
increased family and social conflict
I hope you found this video to help you watch for signs of burnout, or possibly to address burnout that’s already been creeping up on you. Let me know in the comments if you would add any tools to cope with burnout beyond what I’ve listed here. And until next time, from one therapist to another: I wish you well!
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Пікірлер: 27

  • @Enchanteralle
    @Enchanteralle4 жыл бұрын

    I burned out after working a few yrs at a community clinic working with high risk and underserved population. Moved on from that to take care of myself mentally and financially. Thanks for sharing.

  • @terseandtiny1746
    @terseandtiny17464 жыл бұрын

    I just bought a course to become certified in compassion fatigue. It's important.

  • @PrivatePracticeSkills

    @PrivatePracticeSkills

    4 жыл бұрын

    That's amazing, I didn't know that certification existed, but it's so needed!

  • @theawakenedheart8783
    @theawakenedheart87834 жыл бұрын

    Wishing you well. Thanks again 🙏🏼

  • @TherapyToThePoint
    @TherapyToThePoint3 жыл бұрын

    This was so helpful, thank you!

  • @laurad3417
    @laurad34174 жыл бұрын

    Very helpful!

  • @babyboylovesmusic
    @babyboylovesmusic4 жыл бұрын

    I have been burnout as a therapist for a year. I am in my 5th job since 2016 because of such instability with job options. 3 of 5 were complete company closures. I've changed jobs and now taking a pay cut due to the pandemic. Group private practice has been my avenue now, but insurance companies have slashed rates or prevented some clients at this time. I want go back the school the very moment colleges are accepting new students. I am just about done with this!

  • @charly5336
    @charly5336 Жыл бұрын

    TLC thank you🥰

  • @k.ambriz9789
    @k.ambriz97894 жыл бұрын

    Great video. Super Important topic. I burned out at my first agency job and found that caring for my body, mind and soul was helpful then and now in reducing stress and improving overall well-being.

  • @PrivatePracticeSkills

    @PrivatePracticeSkills

    4 жыл бұрын

    I completely agree!

  • @courbynebufford3550
    @courbynebufford35502 жыл бұрын

    I am defnintley in burnout and trying to figure out what to do. But it feels like swimming against a tide The harder I try to address it the harder it is to work it out. just started doing counseling every day between two different agencies while also being in school for it. This was very helpful. thank you

  • @jackiesmalley3339
    @jackiesmalley3339 Жыл бұрын

    Holy crap. Watching your video helped me realize that what I'm experiencing is therapist burnout. I will definitely be exploring this further. Thank you!

  • @legionofzoom8471
    @legionofzoom84714 жыл бұрын

    I really enjoy watching your videos. Your content is relevant for me as a clinical psych grad school student. Everything is always presented in a manner that allows learning about tools and tips I can put into my toolbox for my future career as a psychologist!

  • @PrivatePracticeSkills

    @PrivatePracticeSkills

    4 жыл бұрын

    I'm so glad! Best wishes as you continue your journey!

  • @fairmountmentalwellness3301
    @fairmountmentalwellness33014 жыл бұрын

    Thank you. You bring a good mix of knowledge to your channel! Keep going!

  • @PrivatePracticeSkills

    @PrivatePracticeSkills

    4 жыл бұрын

    Thank you!

  • @enatp6448
    @enatp64484 жыл бұрын

    Excellent info. :) I definitely spent the better part of my career working with high risk clients and it did take its toll. If I were to do things differently, I would have gotten into private practice sooner and I would have specialized sooner. Thanks!

  • @PrivatePracticeSkills

    @PrivatePracticeSkills

    4 жыл бұрын

    That's a great tip, I'm glad it worked out for you in the end!

  • @wealthyasamindframe1946
    @wealthyasamindframe19463 жыл бұрын

    Im experiencing this with agency work.

  • @patrickmiller4877
    @patrickmiller48772 жыл бұрын

    I was a case worker for the state for 5 years before pursuing my MA and becoming a counselor. Made great money as a state employee and had outstanding pay, benefits and pension plan, amongst other things. Those things were the only reason I stayed so long. I realized how much my family and friends suffered from me being in this work. Worst decision I ever made, sincerely. I was burnt out before graduation and realized this work is soul sucking in a way people do not understand. I would highly recommend staying away from high utilizing populations such as homeless, low income, mentally ill..give it a year or two for public service then get away. Honestly, the only way to not be miserable in this field is to go into private practice and meter your case load, or stick to assessment and evaluation. I don't ever want to sit in a therapy room across from a client again. UGH!

  • @arleepryor5683
    @arleepryor56834 жыл бұрын

    What qualifies as a lower needs client vs at risk? Love your videos!

  • @PrivatePracticeSkills

    @PrivatePracticeSkills

    4 жыл бұрын

    Great question! When I referenced that, I meant it rather subjectively. If you are noticing signs of burnout, you might consider temporarily transitioning to serving clients who are less in need of your services in order to maintain their mental health or to sustain their daily functioning. If you're feeling burdened by how much your clients depend on you to sustain their health, this could be worth considering.

  • @jeffking6590
    @jeffking65902 жыл бұрын

    I was hoping to get feedback from some fellow therapists. I’m relatively new in the field, finished grad school about two years ago at start of pandemic and was hired with a large healthcare organization for community mental health. I average a caseload of 70 to 100 people, I see anywhere from 5 to 10 people a day which on the busiest days leaves me completely exhausted mentally after having spent 6 to 7 hours of therapy with high risk clients. I have been experiencing headaches behind eyes, horrible fatigue, seeing floaters and brain fog. I thought I was having sinus issues and that ended up not being the case. I even thought I was having neurological issues and saw a neurologist but MRI and EEG’s were all normal. I’m left thinking this has to be my job, it’s been like this for past year. Any feedback is appreciated.

  • @sarahbauerlein4353

    @sarahbauerlein4353

    2 жыл бұрын

    Oh my goodness. I'm a new grad too (only had about 10 months of counselling experience, including my practicum) and I work in public health. I see roughly 4 clients per day but if I'm seeing less, it's because I'm also co-facilitating group therapy. I would burn out SO fast if I saw 5-10 clients per day. To me that's nuts! As it is, I'm already feeling some burnout in my job since I am also a new mom to a 5 month old and due to financial situation had to jump into my career earlier than I wanted/before I was ready. My advice to you is RUN. Your job is no doubt doing so much harm to your body, I'm not surprised at all that you've been having so many physical and mental ailments. Hope you can find a job that provides a better balance for you!

  • @kyhoney

    @kyhoney

    2 жыл бұрын

    That's a ridiculous caseload, you need to get out as soon as you can. Find somewhere that recognizes your worth and not just another cog in the machine. No one should see that many peoplel

  • @thattimestampguy
    @thattimestampguy Жыл бұрын

    0:55 Exhaustion

  • @angelo7217
    @angelo72174 жыл бұрын

    "sustain current income levels" is a trap!!! Make sure you do not keep increasing your overheads.

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