{"id":2491,"date":"2012-10-10T12:00:25","date_gmt":"2012-10-10T16:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ccpa.scottbuckingham.ca\/blog\/?p=2491"},"modified":"2012-10-10T12:00:25","modified_gmt":"2012-10-10T16:00:25","slug":"avoiding-compassion-fatigue-3-strategies-for-taking-back-control-of-your-counselling-sessions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ccpa-accp.ca\/fr\/avoiding-compassion-fatigue-3-strategies-for-taking-back-control-of-your-counselling-sessions\/","title":{"rendered":"Avoiding Compassion Fatigue: 3 Strategies for Taking Back Control of Your Counselling Sessions"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I first started counselling, I was of the belief that my clients, above all, needed a place to be heard<\/em>.\u00a0 So, being the good counselor I was, I listened.\u00a0 And listened.\u00a0 And reflected.\u00a0 And recognized resilience and strengths.\u00a0 And, when I could, tried to instill \u201chope\u201d.\u00a0 And my clients left satisfied, having vented, and most of all, having felt heard<\/em>.\u00a0 It was rogerian counselling all the way.<\/p>\n

But then I started to burn out.\u00a0 I was drained; began dreading certain clients\u2019 appointments, and felt sucked into the trauma, pain, hopelessness and despair that accompanied many of those who came to me for help.\u00a0 I knew, from what I\u2019d learned in graduate school, that I was not just \u201cmeeting the client where they were at\u201d, but joining them in those feelings.\u00a0 I was a bandaid, not a healer.\u00a0 And I was at a loss of what to do.<\/p>\n

After several stress leaves, I began to seriously reconsider my counselling approach.\u00a0 Yes, I could listen, yes I could empathisize, but was I actually helping my clients get better?\u00a0 I realized that perhaps for me, the more passive, non-directive approach was not the best fit.\u00a0 But what was?\u00a0 I reflected on those clients that I did seem to help move forward, and also on my own experiences in therapy.\u00a0 I began to take risks, set boundaries, and be more directive in sessions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The results were amazing!\u00a0\u00a0 My clients became more empowered and started to take responsibility for their own healing.\u00a0 I noticed a shift in not only their energy, but my own.\u00a0 My previous attempts at instilling hope, made through summarizing statements at the end of sessions, were replaced by pointed questions throughout our time together.\u00a0 Below are three of the key ways that I found I was able to integrate a more directive helping style into my practice:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Immediacy.\u00a0 <\/strong>When you are feeling the client\u2019s pain, \u201cstuckness\u201d or frustration, address it IN THE MOMENT.\u00a0 Don\u2019t make a mental note of it to be addressed in supervision later \u2013 step up, take a risk, and explore it.\u00a0 Your clients are looking to you to model an honest, authentic, way of being.\u00a0 Provide it.<\/strong><\/li>\n
  2. Mind\/body techniques.<\/strong>\u00a0 Whether you are highly trained in the wide variety of mind\/body approaches out there or are just operating from the understanding that the mind and body are connected, use what you know to help your client make that connection.\u00a0\u00a0 Don\u2019t of course operate outside your realm of competency, but, at the same time, have faith that you can work with your clients\u2019 physical and physiological experiences.\u00a0 It is all connected.<\/strong><\/li>\n
  3. Boundaries.<\/strong>\u00a0 If a client is abusive, threatens you, is sexually suggestive or tries to manipulate you, set your boundaries!\u00a0 I found this one of the MOST effective tools in preventing Compassion Fatigue.\u00a0 I used to see all clients, thinking or hoping I could help them all; I was wrong.\u00a0 We are not the best fit for everyone and it is okay to refer.\u00a0 It is also okay to end sessions on time, limit phone call support, and even end counselling if you are not feeling safe.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    We are helpers, and pride ourselves on doing it well.\u00a0 There is nothing wrong with that!\u00a0 The problems arise when we sacrifice our own safety, self-respect, and well-being.\u00a0 Modeling self-care is never a wrong move.\u00a0 Plus, it will help you maintain your ability to continue helping others, which is, of course, what you were meant to do!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    When I first started counselling, I was of the belief that my clients, above all, needed a place to be heard.\u00a0 So, being the good counselor I was, I listened.\u00a0 And listened.\u00a0 And reflected.\u00a0 And recognized resilience and strengths.\u00a0 And, when I could, tried to instill \u201chope\u201d.\u00a0 And my clients left satisfied, having vented, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1001019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,118],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-counsellingandpsychotherapyincanada","category-selfcareforcounsellors"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAvoiding Compassion Fatigue: 3 Strategies for Taking Back Control of Your Counselling Sessions - L'Association canadienne de counseling et de psychoth\u00e9rapie<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ccpa-accp.ca\/avoiding-compassion-fatigue-3-strategies-for-taking-back-control-of-your-counselling-sessions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Avoiding Compassion Fatigue: 3 Strategies for Taking Back Control of Your Counselling Sessions - 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