8 Signs of Therapist Burnout That No One Taught You in Grad School

Have you ever heard of the phrase “You can’t pour from an empty cup?” 

You may have even said it to some of your clients. Its important to realize they need to meet their own needs, before meeting the needs of others. This same piece of advice applies to you as the therapist. If we aren’t filling our own “cups” so to speak, what value do we have to give to anyone else? 

Maybe you’ve done well and built up a steady roster of clients. Did you get lost somewhere in the hustle of building your practice? We hope that you’re thriving, but it’s possible you might be feeling like your well has run a bit dry. 

Have you had a chance to take a break and check whether your own essential desires are being met? 

Think about whether you're losing enthusiasm for your work and doing the bare minimum. Are you questioning, “I’m taking care of everyone else, who's taking care of me?” – These can be major red flags that you’re at risk of burnout. There’s no need to feel any shame or guilt about this, we’re human and it happens to the best of us. Take this time to look at the stressors in your professional and personal life making you feel this way. 

Let’s take a look at why burnout is so common in our profession. If you know how to spot the signs, you can begin to manage it. The goal is to prevent it from taking over our sense of balance.

Why Causes Therapist Burnout?

It's become more common to talk about burnout in the workplace. It's often discussed and researched among mental health professionals. Even the most experienced and skilled therapists can be the last to notice signs in themselves. 

A survey conducted on therapists found that most reported being happy in their roles. In a contradictory study, almost half of psychologists reported burnout. They attributed this burnout to the increased demand for therapy over the last few years. Healthcare workers are not superhuman. You can experience the same emotional distress as your clients. Vicarious traumatization is also common in therapists.

Therapists are highly susceptible to burnout. This is because of the prolonged stress and emotional demands of the profession. The responsibility of creating a safe and supportive environment for your clients can be taxing. When you're emotionally drained, it can hinder your ability to provide quality care. I could even argue that our mental health is more important. Our state of mind can affect our capacity to effectively and compassionately address the client's needs. When a therapist is meeting their own needs, the quality of care and the client’s outcome also improves. It sounds like a win-win situation to us.

Recognizing Therapist Burnout Symptoms

No matter how much you love your work, burnout can happen. Certain phases or circumstances can wear you down physically or emotionally. As a result you find yourself unable to perform your job at your best. 

You might be working with draining clients that aren’t a good fit for you. Or it could be doing paperwork for long hours, or balancing too much with personal obligations. If you’re struggling with balance in managing your practice and personal life, its a sign of burnout. Continue reading to see if you relate to these signs of burnout. 

1. Having Less Empathy

Loss of empathy is an unfortunate consequence of burnout. When we're constantly exposed to the pain and emotional suffering of others, we get used to it. It makes us prone to becoming numb or developing compassion fatigue. It’s possible you won’t even notice the decline in your ability to relate to clients. You might one day realize a sense of connection is missing.

Empathy can also be lost when you interact with people that idealize you. These clients are eager for your support and guidance. This phenomenon of transference in the medical system is given the name “God Syndrome.” It creates further division in relationships with clients. As you begin to feel superior, this comes across as cold and distant. 

Holding this jaded perspective as a therapist can affect the quality of the sessions. If you lose the ability to understand a client's feelings, they can begin to feel unheard. Even ignored and unimportant. They may begin to lose their feeling of safety in the session. If the client no longer discusses their thoughts – what is the purpose of coming to see you? 

As mental health providers, it's important to be able to relate on an emotional level. Without empathy, the perceived quality of care will likely decrease. Empathy is a vital skill for the success of your career and your patient’s as well. 

2. Feeling Relief When A Client Cancels

Have you ever looked at your appointment schedule for the week and gotten the “Sunday Scaries?” If so, it's time to evaluate how much you can actually handle. If you feel relief with cancellations, it's clear your workload has become too much. 

Some of us treat clients back-to-back with limited downtime. This workflow leaves no breaks for energy recovery between clients. It’s understandable if you find it challenging to emotionally recharge. Some interactions with clients are heavy and these contribute to burnout and exhaustion. 

Then there are those that work extremely long hours. Have you given up some of your own passions to accommodate your clients? If you find yourself in this situation, think about the number of cases a day you can reasonably manage. Now, consider how many you can mange while still being able to socialize with friends or pick up a new hobby.  

Cutting back on the number of clients you have right now can seem scary. There's a potential for a loss of income with a decreased workload. The good news is, we can help you figure out how to charge what you’re worth. Our calculator helps you meet your financial goals and attract your ideal clients. 

You don’t have to miss out on enjoying your own life to take on every client. A good therapist is one that can maintain boundaries and set a great example for your clients.

3. Difficulty Falling or Staying Asleep

If you’ve ever laid in bed feeling both completely fatigued and restless at the same time, you're not alone. You have cortisol to blame. When you're under a lot of stress, the hormone is released to help modulate your body’s “fight or flight” response. When it’s released in larger than normal amounts due to high stress, it can affect the quality of your sleep. 

People experiencing this often feel “wired but tired." This means they have difficulty winding down or shutting their minds off at night. This lack of sleep only perpetuates the issue in the long run. This deprivation of quality sleep only worsens symptoms of burnout. It can also exacerbate anxiety, irritability, and difficulty focusing. 

What could be keeping therapists up at night? 

Mental health professionals experience stressful events in life, just like their clients. They could be worrying about simple things like finding the time to do groceries. They also worry about the safety of their clients from self-harm or other situations. This is a pretty unique concern of the mental health field, and can be a major trigger for stress. 

There are plenty of other factors that can affect your sleep quality. If you had a slice of cake before bed, thats a pretty easy correlation. If you're tossing and turning for no reason, your stress is most likely causing this early sign of burnout. 

4. Mental or Physical Exhaustion

It doesn't matter if you're in private practice, working for someone else. There will be times where you feel like you have to take on more than you can handle. When therapists are unable to manage their caseload, they can become overwhelmed. This is a clear sign that you're doing too much and pushing beyond your limits. 

This extreme fatigue isn’t always recognized immediately as a symptom of burnout. It can show up in so many different ways. Even though our jobs as therapists isn't physical, the deep emotions of our field can take a toll. Emotions can show up in your body as physical symptoms. 

 Physically, it can show up as fatigue, muscle aches, headaches, and general weakness. Emotionally, if you're so drained, you could lose your ability to cope with even minor issues. You could become more easily irritated or angered. 

Are you waking up exhausted, emotional, or sick everytime you walk into your office? It seems your emotional capacity might be at its tipping point. This is why it's so important to recognize these symptoms. You can then evaluate how to manage your caseload to restore your sense of well-being. 

5. Zoning Out or Difficulty Focusing on Tasks

When you’re tired or have personal issues to deal with, those topics can be at the front of your thoughts. This can happen sometimes, but if it's a frequent occurrence, you could be missing out on what is going on around you. This is a sure sign that you're starting to check out. 

Zoning out might not be such a big deal if you’re re-watching an episode of Friends. But, in the mental health setting, it could turn problematic. If a therapist isn’t engaged with clients they could miss important details. The client can start to feel unheard and insecure. When a client is looking for a safe space to analyze their psyche, they expect you to be present. One way they know you're listening is that you're able to provide insightful feedback. 

If you’re losing focus during appointments with clients, there are a few things you can do to stay on task. The first is to examine your body language and posture, make eye contact, and actively listen. A counselor can also add some structure or plan to a session. You can include a short break if you need to recenter before continuing the conversation. 

Clarity Cooperative also offers a Progress Notes Generator. The tool helps you pick and choose pre-filled items for your chart. If you’re able to work on completing some of your notes while in discussion with a client, this can help keep you focused. 

6. Negative Emotions

As therapists, we’re not immune from the negative emotions our clients experience. It's normal and healthy to experience the normal ups and downs. However, you might start to feel stuck in sadness, anger, or frustration for longer than usual. When you start noticing this, it means it's time to start addressing what isn’t working for you anymore. 

If you get stuck in negativity or feel completely drained, your defenses are lower. As a result, you become more susceptible to developing mental health issues yourself. This is due to transference from your client. 

Vicarious trauma is a type of transference that occurs. Our profession exposes us to the painful experiences of others. Sometimes we become traumatized from the narrative of their experience, ourselves. This is an unfortunate side effect of being empathetic and talking with people that have suffered. Even though you didn't experience the trauma yourself, it can impact your own outlook on life. 

Depersonalization usually develops following emotional exhaustion that has reached an extreme. This can alter your view of the world and perception of self. Some might begin to view their clients as a source of anxiety. Therapists can become cynical, dehumanized, and distant towards them. Severe anxiety, depression, and even panic disorders can develop if this goes on for too long. 

7. Getting Sick

It’s already tough enough to recover from catching a simple cold. Throw burnout and a bad mood into the mix and it could take even longer to bounce back. 

Emotional distress can have a huge impact on the body. Positive emotions like happiness and joy, have been linked to a better immune system. Negative emotions like sadness, anxiety, and anger are linked to a decrease in immunity. 

The first sign you might notice is fatigue. If you aren’t giving yourself time to rest and recover, your body can't sick. Sometimes it's to the point where you have no choice but to rest. You might develop frequent headaches, gastrointestinal issues, or frequently catch colds. These don’t seem like a big deal, but over time these can turn into more serious conditions. Chronic stress causes inflammation in the body. Long-term inflammation can trigger autoimmune disorders, adrenal fatigue, heart disease, and more.

8. Losing Your Sense of Purpose

We’ve all been there –  Fresh faced and full of optimism that we’d help change the world and heal people. At one time we were beginning to enter the workforce. We studied hard, finished grad school, and got our licenses. We all have different reasons for pursuing a career in the mental health field, but there is one thing in common. We wanted to help others feel better. 

You might be a couple months or several decades into your practice now. It's common to feel like you’re not making a difference, or not know what purpose you serve anymore. The reward from this field isn't always instantaneous. Some clients take lots of work over years of sessions. Others might only come for a short period of time and each individual will have different goals. 

Working with clients that have psychological disorders can be challenging. They can show up in a great mood one day, and next week show up feeling negative. Some clients question if the therapy is doing anything. All this can leave you feeling confused about whether you're a skilled therapist in the right line of work. Clients can have unrealistic expectations. Trying to meet those can leave you doubting yourself and feeling inadequate. 

How To Manage Therapist Burnout

When you notice the signs of burnout start to creep in, it’s time to take a step back. Take a good look at your work and personal life. It's possible some adjustments will need to be made to bring some balance and well-being into your day to day. This isn’t only for the sake of your performance at work, but more for your happiness. 

Some of the practices listed here can help you maintain boundaries, and feel more self-fulfilled. For even more tips, check out our post about how therapists can beat burnout.  

Practice Self Care

Self-care can mean a lot of things, and look different from one person to the next. If you’re an introvert, you might want to recharge with a quiet night alone. Extroverts might need to hang out with friends. What it does mean though, is that you’re looking after your own needs and creating the space to meet those needs.

Self care can look like incorporating healthy habits. Regular exercise, going to bed at the same time every night, and eating a nutritious diet are a few ideas. 

Taking breaks throughout your work day to get up, go for a walk and catch some sunshine. This can give you the reset you need. Yes, this is your permission to take that long lunch, or better, that long vacation. 

Maybe you’ve had things on your bucket list like going scuba diving, or learning to make glass-blown art. The toughest part is that you have to create the space so you can have fun and enjoy your life outside of work. Once you realize how much value this adds, it’ll be easy to see how important this is for preventing burnout.

Leave Work at the Office

How often are you working on progress notes, responding to messages, or catching up on operational tasks while you’re at home? 

Boundaries are something that burned out therapists struggle with. This happens because we want people to feel good. People-pleasing can be detrimental and it's important to learn how to say no. An example of a boundary telling clients that messages will be checked only during business hours. You can even schedule fewer appointments so that you can finish progress notes at the office. 

By taking the time to unplug from work, you can separate your personal and professional life. You can create a healthy balance and prevent burnout from taking over. 

Seek Support From Others

Remember that you can always talk to others if you're feeling overwhelmed. Your colleagues, supervisors, or former classmates can be a great support system. You might even find that a lot of them have gone through similar situations. They can give you tips to help you get through a tough time. Seeking out counseling services can also be a great way to help you identify some of the stressors. If you can figure out whats bothering you, you can make a plan to better manage them. 

Whether you’re burnt out, on the edge, or have been through it and back – Clarity Cooperative is here for you. We are a supportive community of like minded practitioners. Sound-off, seek support, and create new friendships with others in the industry. 

Who could understand you better than another therapist who's been through the same struggles? 

You’re Not Alone: Clarity Cooperative is Here to Help Manage Therapist Burnout

Burnout can happen in any field of work, but it's especially common in the mental health environment because it can be so emotionally taxing. If you’ve noticed any of the 8 most common signs of burnout in yourself, please know you’re not alone. 

Clarity Cooperative is here to support you through every step of your journey. We have tons of resources and tools. Our Progress Notes Generator helps you save time while creating and updating client records for your practice. And don't forget, our community to look to for support during challenging times.