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How do therapists cope with emotional trauma from their patients?
I am an emotional person who has the urge to help others deal with their problems. I often struggle with letting the people I help issues go to and tend to care more about theproblem at hand than they do. #psychology #healthcare
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Priya’s Answer
Hi Jalen,
One big part of my training while I was getting my Master in Counseling (and even when I had minored in Counseling during my undergraduate years) was the encouragement (and requirement) of our program to seek out counseling ourselves. We are people. Your desire to help others is beautiful. One big thing is to continue to go to counseling with a trusted/good/right fit counselor for you and to keep up your own self-care. Personally, I try (try!) to keep work at work as much as I can as well, and the advice from many more experienced counselors: Don't work harder than your clients. The more you practice counseling with clients, the more all of this will make sense. You are doing a great job right now seeking out tips from those with experience! If you are able to get support from other clinicians/colleagues, your own personal counseling, and as much of a work-life balance as you can, I think it can help!
One big part of my training while I was getting my Master in Counseling (and even when I had minored in Counseling during my undergraduate years) was the encouragement (and requirement) of our program to seek out counseling ourselves. We are people. Your desire to help others is beautiful. One big thing is to continue to go to counseling with a trusted/good/right fit counselor for you and to keep up your own self-care. Personally, I try (try!) to keep work at work as much as I can as well, and the advice from many more experienced counselors: Don't work harder than your clients. The more you practice counseling with clients, the more all of this will make sense. You are doing a great job right now seeking out tips from those with experience! If you are able to get support from other clinicians/colleagues, your own personal counseling, and as much of a work-life balance as you can, I think it can help!
Updated
Carmene’s Answer
Hello Jalen,
This is a great question. My background is in Counseling Student Affairs so, I've worked with mostly high school and college students. What you are expressing here is what we like to call empathy. According to Google empathy is "the ability to understand and share the feelings of another." This is an important quality to have as a therapist. Empathy will help you develop a rapport with your client and assist you in creating appropriate treatment plans for them. To answer your question, Therapists cope with emotional trauma from their patients by ensuring to complete the counseling process. The counseling process is a planned and structured dialogue between client and counselor (Krishnan, n.d.). The counselor is a trained and qualified professional who helps the client identify the source of their concerns or difficulties; then, together, they find counseling approaches to help deal with the problems faced (Krishnan, n.d.).
According to (Krishnan), the following consultation process is described by Hackney and Cormier (1987) as a series of steps
The stages of the counseling process include:
Stage one: (Initial disclosure) Relationship building
Stage two: (In-depth exploration) Problem assessment
Stage three: (Commitment to action) Goal setting
Stage four: Counseling intervention
Stage five: Evaluation, termination, or referral,
By effectively utilizing the 7 stage process, Counselors can ensure they are providing high-quality treatment to their clients and developing the skills needed to manage their feelings and avoid being overwhelmed.
References
Google. (n.d.). Empathy. Google search. http://www.google.com/search?q=empathy&sxsrf=ALeKk01MzpanasYB7ZsFrfwR8uF19aXIPQ%3A1628012989355&source=hp&ei=vYEJYZGzEcPi5NoP5Nu56AQ&iflsig=AINFCbYAA.
Sutton Ph.D, J. (2021, July 9). Defining the counseling process and its stages. PositivePsychology.com. https://positivepsychology.com/counseling-process/.
Krishnan, S. (n.d.). Stages of Counseling. The counselling process: Stages of Counseling. http://www.dspmuranchi.ac.in/pdf/Blog/stages%20of%20counselling.pdf.
Visit the occupational handbook to learn more information about the Counseling field. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/substance-abuse-behavioral-disorder-and-mental-health-counselors.htm#tab-2
Learn how current therapist within the field manage burnout by reading this article on therapist burnout. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/in-therapy/200811/therapist-burnout
This is a great question. My background is in Counseling Student Affairs so, I've worked with mostly high school and college students. What you are expressing here is what we like to call empathy. According to Google empathy is "the ability to understand and share the feelings of another." This is an important quality to have as a therapist. Empathy will help you develop a rapport with your client and assist you in creating appropriate treatment plans for them. To answer your question, Therapists cope with emotional trauma from their patients by ensuring to complete the counseling process. The counseling process is a planned and structured dialogue between client and counselor (Krishnan, n.d.). The counselor is a trained and qualified professional who helps the client identify the source of their concerns or difficulties; then, together, they find counseling approaches to help deal with the problems faced (Krishnan, n.d.).
According to (Krishnan), the following consultation process is described by Hackney and Cormier (1987) as a series of steps
The stages of the counseling process include:
Stage one: (Initial disclosure) Relationship building
Stage two: (In-depth exploration) Problem assessment
Stage three: (Commitment to action) Goal setting
Stage four: Counseling intervention
Stage five: Evaluation, termination, or referral,
By effectively utilizing the 7 stage process, Counselors can ensure they are providing high-quality treatment to their clients and developing the skills needed to manage their feelings and avoid being overwhelmed.
References
Google. (n.d.). Empathy. Google search. http://www.google.com/search?q=empathy&sxsrf=ALeKk01MzpanasYB7ZsFrfwR8uF19aXIPQ%3A1628012989355&source=hp&ei=vYEJYZGzEcPi5NoP5Nu56AQ&iflsig=AINFCbYAA.
Sutton Ph.D, J. (2021, July 9). Defining the counseling process and its stages. PositivePsychology.com. https://positivepsychology.com/counseling-process/.
Krishnan, S. (n.d.). Stages of Counseling. The counselling process: Stages of Counseling. http://www.dspmuranchi.ac.in/pdf/Blog/stages%20of%20counselling.pdf.
Carmene recommends the following next steps:
Updated
Kartik’s Answer
Hey Jalen,
Hope you doing well ! you seems like an empathetic person . Seeing clients situation from their shoes is an amazing ability. Problem arises when thoughts from these conversations keep lingering in your mind and start effecting you emotionally ,later normal life. Best thing is to understand that you are not responsible for making client happy instead you are responsible for helping client to be happy. Personally I believe in individuals ability to make decision for themselves. Even if I know something can make client better if client doesn't want to do, it is alright . Therapeutic relationship is mutual relationship were client takes control of his life and take action. So understanding client responsibility towards own life you can maintain personal state of Zen understanding your range of power. Another thing, as therapist is human too it is okay to talk to another therapist , sticking to faith or engaging in hobbies to have an outlet for emotional release. It depends on you what makes you calm . For example I enjoy nature walk without any music or other outer distraction I am able to find time to release those thoughts by chatting/singing out loud whatever maycome to my mind . Same thing is with meditation. Remember, When you will be surrounded by supportive people be sure to find your own medicine like your client will do.
Hope you doing well ! you seems like an empathetic person . Seeing clients situation from their shoes is an amazing ability. Problem arises when thoughts from these conversations keep lingering in your mind and start effecting you emotionally ,later normal life. Best thing is to understand that you are not responsible for making client happy instead you are responsible for helping client to be happy. Personally I believe in individuals ability to make decision for themselves. Even if I know something can make client better if client doesn't want to do, it is alright . Therapeutic relationship is mutual relationship were client takes control of his life and take action. So understanding client responsibility towards own life you can maintain personal state of Zen understanding your range of power. Another thing, as therapist is human too it is okay to talk to another therapist , sticking to faith or engaging in hobbies to have an outlet for emotional release. It depends on you what makes you calm . For example I enjoy nature walk without any music or other outer distraction I am able to find time to release those thoughts by chatting/singing out loud whatever maycome to my mind . Same thing is with meditation. Remember, When you will be surrounded by supportive people be sure to find your own medicine like your client will do.
Updated
Jason’s Answer
This is a great question. As a therapist and someone who started off their career working in a crisis setting, this is an extremely important subject. A good therapist should always practice wellness and self-care. If you do not, you will not be very good to your patients. Vicarious trauma is a legit issue for therapists(experiencing the trauma from a secondary perspective) that continues to be the subject of self care. MANY therapists practice what is known as "supervision" which is exactly as it sounds with some emotional components. It is not therapy per se for you, but it is a way to work out thoughts and the like with another professional. It is a sounding board and a way to ensure there is a check. Even the most seasoned therapists continue to participate in supervision, typically in a group setting.
Everyone is different and depending on the types of patient's you are seeking to work with will have a major impact on your need to care for yourself as well. It can also change as time goes on. for example, when my children were infants, I was personally having difficulty working with any parents that were accused of being negligent. I had to work through that with assistance as it was potentially affecting my ability to treat this person sitting in front of me.
I wish you the best of luck.
Everyone is different and depending on the types of patient's you are seeking to work with will have a major impact on your need to care for yourself as well. It can also change as time goes on. for example, when my children were infants, I was personally having difficulty working with any parents that were accused of being negligent. I had to work through that with assistance as it was potentially affecting my ability to treat this person sitting in front of me.
I wish you the best of luck.