Therapist Burnout Symptoms and Solutions Part 1- What is burnout?

Learn the most common therapist burnout symptoms, causes, and practical recovery strategies for mental health professionals, social workers, and clinicians.

We, as therapists, spend our days supporting others through stress, trauma, grief, and emotional challenges. But constantly caring for others without enough recovery can lead to therapist burnout. We hear the phrase but what exactly does it mean and what does it look like day to day?

Burnout can impact emotional wellbeing, work performance, relationships, and physical health. Recognizing the signs early is important for long term sustainability in our field.

It often develops gradually and may include:

~emotional exhaustion (this shows up as not having the bandwith for anything outside of work like wanting to call your friend back but not having the energy to)

~compassion fatigue (when you do muster the energy to calling your friend back you find yourself not as interested in their current dilemma)

~reduced motivation

~detachment from clients (there is a fine line between empathetic and truly feeling everything they’re experiencing)

~chronic stress (feeling like there’s not a real break)

~decreased job satisfaction (stuck in a loop about the negative things about your job)

Many therapists enter the profession with deep empathy and commitment, which can make it difficult to recognize burnout until symptoms become severe. Keep an eye out for these signs!