Burnout, Self-Care and Compassion Fatigue

Therapist Cognitive Strategies

During and after your session with a client/patient how you think about and perceive the session.

As you know, mental interpretations determine your emotional reaction...
--so dwelling on problems,
--thinking of the worst case scenarios,
--and berating yourself over mistakes will all increase your levels of stress.

Alternatively, allowing yourself to...
--make mistakes and move on,
--thinking of the best possible scenarios,
--and interpreting mistakes as necessary growth opportunities
will reduce your stress load.

Below are 8 Cognitive Strategies to Reduce Stress

1. Reframe the problem:
Burnout Management Question…
Do you need to reframe the problem related to your client/patient or related to yourself?

2. Choose positive thoughts:
Burnout Management Question…
Either during or following your session ask yourself…
-what thoughts are in my self-talk?
-if you are labeling your thoughts as “negative” thoughts would it be helpful do you need to consciously change them?

3. Meditate on positive words:
During or following a session which word would be beneficial to repeat to yourself...

--balanced --calm, --caring --composed –confident --equanimity --ease
--harmony --I can --in tune --relaxed --well-being --wellness

4. Practice positive affirmations
Use a word above from #3 to start your affirmation “I am balanced.” “I am calm”. etc.

5. Take responsibility for your thoughts
To take responsibility for your thoughts use a Safety, Present Moment Exercise
-- “In this moment I am safe”
--Notice something visually about your present surroundings. “I am sitting at my desk in my office by myself.”
--Recall to take responsibility for my thoughts. “What is the most stressful thought I have about this client/patient?”
--Decide if you need to release that stressful feeling further, or you need to reframe it by using #2, #3, and/or #4 above.

6. Have realistic expectations
Did I have expectations prior to, during, or after the client/patient session?
Do I need to re-adjust, change, or alter this self-talk in some way to decrease my stress?

7. Visualize the outcome you desire
Ideally, if you could accomplish a state of mind related to one of the words listed in #3 as a “positive meditation word” visualize how you would look, feel, breath, and so on…
Focused visualization: Sample exercise “Wide Smile”
--focus specifically on the corners of your mouth
--not pursing your lips together
--can you gently move the corners of your mouth wider, out towards your ears?
--To envision a smile for positive energy think of a rainbow inside of your mouth at the roof and ending at the outside corners

The idea behind the “visualized outcome you desire” is to combine a positive word, like "ease”, with a physical change in your body like the preceding “Wide Smile” exercise, deep-breathing, progressive relations, etc.

8. Post affirmations on a mirror
On a mirror or your computer monitor, use a post-it note as a reminder of your positive word, etc.

Thomas, D. A. (2011). 100 ways to reduce stress: Making the balancing act more manageable. Retrieved from http://counselingoutfitters.com/ vistas/vistas11/Article_27.pdf

Online Continuing Education QUESTION 2
What cognitive strategies can a therapist use to reduce stress and prevent burnout? To select and enter your answer go to CE Test..

Update
The Effects of Perfectionism and Dispositional Self‑focused Attention
of Novice Counselor on Psychological Burnout:
Moderated Mediating Effects of Cognitive Emotion Regulation Strategies

- Kwon, W., Ha, J. H., Jang, H., & Lee, D. (2022). The Effects of Perfectionism and Dispositional Self-focused Attention of Novice Counselor on Psychological Burnout: Moderated Mediating Effects of Cognitive Emotion Regulation Strategies. International journal for the advancement of counseling, 44(2), 283–297. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10447-021-09460-y

Peer-Reviewed Journal Article References:
Dyar, C. (2024). Prospective examination of mechanisms linking minority stress and anxious/depressed affect at the event level: The roles of emotion regulation strategies and proximal minority stressors. Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science, 133(2), 178–191. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000882

Guassi Moreira, J. F., Sahi, R. S., Calderon Leon, M. D., Saragosa-Harris, N. M., Waizman, Y. H., Sedykin, A. E., Ninova, E., Peris, T. S., Gross, J. J., & Silvers, J. A. (2024). A data-driven typology of emotion regulation profiles. Emotion. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0001306

Liu, X., Lao, C. K., Shi, H., & Zhou, G. (2023). Stigma and emotional distress in Chinese mental health professionals: Moderating role of cognitive fusion. Stigma and Health. https://doi.org/10.1037/sah0000479

Lopez, R. B., Courtney, A. L., Liang, D., Swinchoski, A., Goodson, P., & Denny, B. T. (2024). Social support and adaptive emotion regulation: Links between social network measures, emotion regulation strategy use, and health. Emotion, 24(1), 130–138. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0001242

Munroe, M., Al-Refae, M., Chan, H. W., & Ferrari, M. (2022). Using self-compassion to grow in the face of trauma: The role of positive reframing and problem-focused coping strategies. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 14(S1), S157–S164. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0001164

Renaud, C., & Lacroix, A. (2023). Systematic review of occupational burnout in relation to cognitive functions: Current issues and treatments. International Journal of Stress Management, 30(2), 109–127. https://doi.org/10.1037/str0000279