I am very fortunate, I have not experienced burnout. Yes, my experience in the mental health profession has been stressful at times. I am passionate about the work that I'm doing. I still believe that I'm living my dream to become a mental health counselor. I am passionate about the mental health profession, its people, and my clients that I have had the privilege to walk alongside them as they try to seek personal change.
I do recognize however that one day that I may have the experience of burnout. Recently, I saw a statistic that said 70% of at one time or another will experience some type of burnout. I need to recognize that I might actually experience burnout at times. I have developed my own routines so that I don't experience a high degree of burnout. This is only a list of ideas.
I am involved in other activities besides mental health counseling. As I have mentioned before, I am actively involved with the disability rights movement in the state of Florida. This is a way to do something besides counseling.'s. I'm also a writer. I keep up with this blog on a regular basis. I also have a trusted group of colleagues that I talked to about professional issues. Also active in the area of counseling and disability research. All of these activities are very important to me. I'm also actively involved in my church.
All of these diversifies my life. I consider myself a mental health counseling student, with interests in mental health counseling, and self-determination for individuals with disabilities. What have been some ways that you have perverted burnout?
Richard- so glad you are talking about burnout. It is true we as counselors give so much of ourselves we often have our personal lives suffer. I am am excited to see what other great blogs you do about issues that do impact this profession.
ReplyDeleteI prevent burnout by getting massages, or going to the gym. Sometimes I just need to run a little bit or I need to hit a punching bag. I also find it important to have a good support system who understands that this profession is hard.