Workshop Description
Compassion fatigue has been called “the common cold of the helping profession”; no one is immune and the prevalence is high. Some even say that the question is not if a helping professional will develop it, but when. The demands of the job, overwhelming caseloads, and witnessing suffering regularly are often cited as factors that contribute to compassion fatigue - a chronic state of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion.
Over the past year these risk factors have increased exponentially. Helpers have supported their clients and patients through a global pandemic, economic instability, racial injustice, political divide and ongoing uncertainty – all while dealing with many of the same circumstances, uncertainty, stressors, losses, and worries themselves. Many are feeling the repercussions, reporting that they are overwhelmed, emotionally drained and unsure if they will be able to continue to meet the constant demands.
While it’s undeniable that circumstances play a role in compassion fatigue and it’s understandable that helpers are feeling exhausted, Dr. Gabor Maté states that there is a deeper source of compassion fatigue that is often overlooked. According to him, the term “compassion fatigue” is not exactly accurate as the fatigue doesn't just come from feeling, expressing, or manifesting compassion. Instead, he asserts that the deeper source is to be found in the personal history of the individual and his or her relationship to the work, not merely in the nature of the work itself. Once we understand this, we can more effectively address it.
In this 3-hour interactive workshop, based on the book, When the Body Says No, Dr. Maté will present this different view of the condition known as compassion fatigue. He will also teach practices to prevent it, and to restore our energies if we have been affected by it.
Who Should Attend?
Any helping professional including (but not limited to) mental health professionals, health-care professionals, first responders, chaplains and direct service workers.
About the Presenter
Gabor Maté (pronunciation: GAH-bor MAH-tay) is a retired physician who, after 20 years of family practice and palliative care experience, worked for over a decade in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side with patients challenged by drug addiction and mental illness.
The bestselling author of four books published in twenty-five languages, Gabor is an internationally renowned speaker highly sought after for his expertise on addiction, trauma, childhood development, and the relationship of stress and illness. His book on addiction received the Hubert Evans Prize for literary non-fiction. For his groundbreaking medical work and writing he has been awarded the Order of Canada, his country’s highest civilian distinction, and the Civic Merit Award from his hometown, Vancouver.
His books include In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction; When the Body Says No; The Cost of Hidden Stress; Scattered Minds: The Origins and Healing of Attention Deficit Disorder; and (with Gordon Neufeld) Hold on to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers.
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