Psychologist Heidi Allespach, PhD, of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, knows that the big hearts that drive people toward psychology and other caring careers also put them at risk of developing compassion fatigue . Ironically, she explains, caregivers can become so empathetic that they find themselves insensitive to their patients’ suffering. That’s why she urges the medical residents she teaches to develop what she calls a “semi-permeable membrane” around their hearts. “Without sufficient protection, everything comes into play,” explains Allespach. “And being overwhelmed by other people’s feelings can feel like you’re drowning.”
Now, Allespach and other psychologists worry that psychologists face increased risks of compassion fatigue as the COVID-19 pandemic drags on.
Compassion fatigue occurs when psychologists or others take on the suffering of patients who have experienced extreme stress or trauma, says Charles R. Figley, PhD, founder of the Tulane University Trauma Institute. It’s an occupational hazard for “any professional who uses their emotions, their heart,” he says, and it represents the psychological cost of healing others. “It’s like a dark cloud that hovers over your head, follows you wherever you go and invades your thoughts,” he says.
Compassion fatigue doesn’t just make it difficult to feel empathetic toward your patients, says Kerry A. Schwanz, PhD, of Coastal Carolina University. One component of this disease is burnout, which is associated with too much work and a lack of resources to do that job well. Burnout can lead to depression and anxiety, physical and emotional exhaustion, loss of enjoyment at work, and more arguments. Another component of compassion fatigue is secondary traumatic stress, or indirect exposure to trauma through helping others. “I sometimes refer to this component as ’empathy overload,'” says Schwanz, adding that symptoms include anxiety, intrusive thoughts, hypervigilance, numbness, or feeling like you have nothing left to give.
To prevent compassion fatigue from developing or to address it if it does occur, compassion fatigue experts suggest psychologists do the following.
