Healer burnout: are you suffering from “compassion fatigue”?
By Jena Griffiths | November 29, 2010
“Healing is more about being, and less about doing”. Prit Gill MD
I’m just off the call with Dr Prit Gill MD on the topic healer burnout.
He made some profound points on the nature of healing and the role of the healer in society.
Dr Gill gave useful advice to help healers from all traditions avoid the natural danger of healer burnout.
Gill said all healers experience burnout at some point in their career
We discussed high risk personality traits for burnout such as
- feelings of uniqueness
- an unyielding sense of conviction
- and visions of grandiosity
As well as behavioural risk factors such as:
- isolation from peers and society
- a singular life focus
- a failure to transition from life mission to vocation with a passion.
Cures discussed included
- developing and nurturing friendships with peers,
- the importance of balance and having other interests
- setting healthy boundaries and
- the need to let go and allow clients to be in charge of their own life process.
We also discussed compassion, deeksha, spiral meditation and how healing occurs.
Dr Gill said that healing is more about being and less about doing. The healer enables the patient to heal themselves by by “holding the fears of the patient at bay.”
We discussed the appropriateness of letting go versus holding clients.
Sometimes by scheduling the next appointment the client feels held. It’s a simple way of creating a “space” for healing to take place.
To listen to the replay of this call
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Topics: Burnout cures | 2 Comments »
December 2nd, 2010 at 2:07 pm
Dear Jena,
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Just finished listening to your interview with Dr. Gill. Brilliant!
XXX C
December 2nd, 2010 at 5:03 pm
Thanks Charmaine for your feedback.
I learnt an enormous amount too.