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Self Care

There is a widespread feeling among U.S. workers that their job performance and advancement offers are largely judged in terms of hours spent working. In fact, by some measures U.S. workers are among the hardest-working employees on the planet, spending an average of 1,804 work hours in 2006. Although these employees yearn to work fewer hours, experts say they are often reluctant to ask for a decrease in hours for fear they’ll be branded as lazy or uncommitted.38

No matter where you work, there is a certain amount of stress which can not be avoided. However, if not properly managed, it can lead to many problems, including burnout, low morale, health problems, turnover, low productivity and much more. Identifying stressors and learning ways to address these challenges can help reduce stress and promote the health and well-being of each employee. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of each supervisor, manager and worker to assume responsibility for their own self-care.

Common stressors an employee may experience: 39

• Poor management practices – examples include lack of supervision, unclear or no guidance on job performance, no established processes or procedures, and favoritism.
• Co-workers – dealing with multiple personalities in a workplace setting is often challenging and stressful.
• Bureaucracy/Red Tape – sometimes procedures and processes complicate, lengthen, and don’t make sense. Employees have no input.
• Performance demands – standards either become impossible to achieve or are too low, creating another set of problems.
• Balance in Personal/Professional Life – overlapping of jobs with personal lives can have a huge impact on health and personal relationships.

Addiction treatment professionals have a unique set of stressors and challenges due to the many complicated issues currently facing the workforce and the nature of the job itself. All of these have led to tremendous addiction practitioner burnout and turnover rates. Some of these issues are highlighted below and for further details on the field’s workforce crisis, click Workforce Development Overview.

 

Let's examine Burnout and Compassion Fatigue.

Click on the following links for:
Definitions
Compassion Stress and Burnout Signs
Case Studies
Trauma
Steps for Care and the specifics