Preventing Compassion Fatigue at Work

Our next question is from Natalie, and she's asking us about compassion fatigue. Hello, this is Natalie from Florida. I'm a public defender currently representing clients who have been sentenced to the death penalty. Obviously, this can be very trying work and heavy emotionally, sometimes it feels like climbing uphill. How can I still care for my clients, but also making sure that I care for myself and prevent burnout? Thank you. This is hard work that you are doing. I can imagine it's not only hard work, but possibly work that may not have outcomes that you are hoping for. You're not always able to name the impact or feel the value or worth. That's hard. That's really hard. As a helper, it feels like we should be able to jump in and do all the things and get all the wins, whatever a win might look like, but we don't. It doesn't always work out that way. How do you, first, check yourself if you are holding everything that's not your responsibility? Then, secondly, what do you need to do to take care of yourself? Truly, truly center yourself for a moment. Take a moment, close your eyes, take a couple deep breaths, and ask yourself, "What do I need to do to take care of myself?" If I'm not taking care of myself, it's like this cup, and it's empty. What am I really giving to the other person if it's empty? Nothing. Toxic fumes. It's nothing there. I know for sure I don't want the last of anybody's cup. Most times, we don't even know when someone else is giving us the last, especially when we are in our serving roles. They don't know what we're experiencing because we're not there to tell them. So whose responsibility is it to take stock of what's in your cup and making sure that you're pouring out something that is valuable, whole? You're pouring out of your overflow, not out of the emptiness at the bottom of the cup. Nobody wants what's at the bottom of your cup. At all times, you should be the one saying, "Ooh, cup looking a little light at the top. Pour it." Because there's never a problem with the overflow. My cup should always be in overflow, and I want every person I come in contact with, every person who sits across the desk from me, every person that is on the Zoom with me, every person that shakes my hand, gives me a hug, gives me with their story, I want them getting my overflow. So it is my responsibility to do the things that I need to do, and that might look like going to therapy. It might look like exploring the parts of me that need healing themselves. It might look like getting a new hobby, getting outside. It might look like taking less clients. And another thing that can be helpful is journaling. Journaling allows you to really get...