Do You Suffer From Empathy Attrition Syndrome?

Empathy is a quality that benefits our personal relationships. In addition to putting ourselves – in part – in the other person’s shoes, it also allows us to perceive and understand their emotions. However, too much empathy can also cause us to progressively end up suffering from empathy attrition syndrome, a definition proposed by psychologist Charles Figley.

According to the Professional Care and Palliative Mechanisms of Empathy Burnout study ,  empathy can be dangerous and disabling if not managed properly.

In case we are not able to stop the empathy wear in time, it can cause severe cases of secondary traumatization or become the beginning of Burnout syndrome.

Typically, empathy attrition syndrome affects those professionals who deal with patients or clients who are suffering, who feel discomfort or who live with great pain. We are talking about psychologists, social workers or doctors, among others.

Empathy is an important part of your job. However, without the right tools, what you get through it can end up becoming your own enemy.

the emotional pain of others

Although empathy attrition syndrome can affect individuals engaged in some of the professions mentioned above, we “ordinary” people can also suffer from it. This can happen because we are too empathetic and worry excessively about the emotional pain of others.

However, it is one thing to understand another’s pain and another to feel it. The latter is what happens to people who are very empathetic. It’s as if they absorb the pain of others and prolonged exposure (or very intense exposure) to them could generate empathy burnout syndrome.

We speak of  emotional exhaustion, often accompanied by feelings of isolation, confusion, and a tendency to repress/contain emotions.

Fortunately, as we pointed out, there is the possibility of having certain tools that allow us to deal with this syndrome and prevent it. Knowing them is important to avoid getting caught up in the emotions of others, keeping some psychological distance to protect our well-being, and regulating our moods.

Tools for coping with empathy attrition syndrome

Below, we’ll look at some tools we can put into practice if we have a job that requires being in contact with people who need help, or if we’re highly empathetic and this causes intrusive thoughts, loss of energy, increased anxiety, somatization of emotions or apathy. For this, we will use the following work:  Wear for empathy in family doctors .

• Interaction with friends : supposes a relief from emotional burden, in addition to an exchange of opinions that can be a great support for complex situations or cases.
• Family support : the family is an important element that allows us to talk, let off steam and let go of the problems we can, whether at work or on a personal level.
• Leisure activities: doing activities related to a sport or hobby, such as taking care of an organic garden, helps us to take care of ourselves and have time for reflection.

• Psychological therapy : essential not only to get to know this type of tool, but also to carry out exercises in the consultation that can help to address the empathy burnout syndrome.

Another series of tools that the aforementioned work tells us about is the need to know how to disconnect, as well as being informed and empowered to manage the strain caused by empathy.

All of this does not imply eliminating our capacity for empathy, but putting certain strategies into practice to protect our well-being.

Empathy burnout syndrome can make us feel guilty: we are so tired psychologically that we believe we have lost our capacity for empathy. This is a consequence of not knowing how to properly regulate and protect yourself.

We hope that the tools we’ve talked about can help you not only deal with empathy attrition, but also address other issues you may experience. After all, each one of them is just a recommendation that we should put into practice more often to feel better and have greater well-being.

In any case, if you think you have empathy attrition syndrome, don’t hesitate to ask for professional help. A psychologist will guide you to find what works for you and will walk you through the process. In this way, you will remain an empathetic person, but you will have the resources to protect your well-being.