Months ago I listened to a webinar on burnout and how to alleviate this type of compassion fatigue.

Stress is the perceived threat to one’s mind, body, spirit, or emotions. The anticipation about a stressor often comes out of nowhere without an obvious trigger.

Pinpointing the root of the stress is the key to developing strategies to manage what’s going on.

The definition of burnout is:

“A state of physical, mental, or emotional exhaustion resulting from chronic stress. It is characterized by feelings of alienation, indifference, and low self-regard; a loss of interest in work, and an inability to perform one’s day-to-day job duties.”

Burnout is often caused by a feeling that work is out of control. This stress can affect you over the longer term.

How to prevent compassion fatigue and attendant burnout:

1. Take a break.

2. Say no to a request in a positive way: “Sorry my plate is full.”

3. Remember that you can’t answer every question. Sometimes you don’t have an answer.

4. Obtain skill training like listening to a burnout webinar.

5. Focus on proper rest and nutrition.

6. Remember that you alone don’t bear the brunt of “fixing” yourself or the situation. Empathic supervisors keeping the lines of communication open hold another key to alleviating burnout.

In the coming blog entry I’ll give my ideas for coping with stress and pressure on the job.