Secondary Traumatic Stress, or commonly known as Compassion Fatigue, is understood as a “state of exhaustion and dysfunction, biologically, psychologically, and socially, as a result of exposure to compassion stress and all it [invokes].” The term was first coined by C. Joinson, a healthcare professional, in 1992, in an attempt to describe the “loss of the ability to nurture” observed in some Emergency Department nurses. It is frequently regarded as a health hazard, seen and studied among healthcare workers and first respondents, child protection workers, and mental health professionals. With the world being ravaged by the ongoing pandemic, the tension and workload has increased tenfold on our frontline heroes. Along with physical exhaustion, they also face mental and emotional fatigue induced by an inappropriate number of hours, difficult decisions of morality and rationality, and inadequate supplies and stigmatisation. Mental health is deteriorating among essential workers. With India under a strict 3-month lockdown, many of these workers were cut off from the rest of the world, which affected their normal coping mechanisms. Additionally, compassion fatigue has also become common among those who are stuck at home, and detecting its patterns in your and your close-ones’ lives is important.
In layperson’s terms, compassion fatigue is what happens when someone cares too much. Although some are generally more caring than others, the problem arises when this leads to a disruption in normal functionality. With people stuck at home, they have to often turn to the internet to distract themselves or make themselves feel more connected with the rest of the world.
More than 4.5 billion people worldwide have access to the internet and more than 3.8 billion on social media. The internet surprises us with every refresh, with updates and new information, and we fall further down this back-hole. The easy availability of news, often unsolicited and unfiltered, bombards us with negativity. The urge to want to know more results in hours of scrolling on the internet. We are exposed to the rawest form of news, which makes us uncomfortable and sad. We fear for the rising number of cases, or the injustice happening to a group of minorities. This exposure to trauma and suffering is exhausting, affecting us mentally, emotionally and physically.
Let’s paint a scenario:
You wake up in the morning, feeling tired as usual. Before the pandemic, you might have just followed your usual morning routine: brushing, showering and grooming, however, the first thing you now do is to check your phone. You spend some time checking all your social media and news outlets, scroll between the few apps, consuming content like your morning coffee. You see it all: the cute animal memes, messages from your friends and family, some political issue, celebrity drama, death of a famous personality, the ongoing Yemen crisis, the surging cases of Covid-19, the increasing recovery rate of your country, and so on. Then a “You’re all caught up!” pop-up appears and you realise that you spent most of your morning on your phone. You then decide to go on with the day. You work, eat, catch up with people, spend some more ungodly hours on the internet, catch up with your favourite shows. The internet black-hole engulfs some more of your time before the lights go off, and you feel annoyed by your inability to sleep, yet feel undeniably exhausted. Throughout the day, you may have felt so many emotions, ranging from unknown anxiety to irritability, to hopelessness and ephemeral joy. You might also feel detached and lonely, yearning for some real social interaction, or stressed and hopeless, with regard to the ongoing social outrage. You might have let out some of those emotions on your social media, along with so many others, or you might have chosen to keep it within you. You finally manage to sleep, and wake up to the same kind of morning.
To reiterate, some common symptoms of compassion fatigue include:
Anger and irritability
Anxiety and phobias
Increased or decreased sensitivity to emotional material
Negative coping behaviours
Diminishing sympathy and empathy for others
Abating or complete inability to feel enjoyment or satisfaction
Difficulty separating work life from personal life
Impaired ability to make decisions and care for patients and/or clients.
Whilst compassion fatigue is common among many individuals now, it is not difficult to relieve it. The most important step is to acknowledge this issue and educate yourself. Read articles and blogs, or watch YouTube videos from credible sources to gain information. You can also indulge in some self-care as well as self-maintenance, in order to protect yourself and ease some stress from your life. This includes finding time to do something you like, or maintaining a healthy skin-regime or balanced diet, or even some exercise on a regular basis. Distinguishing between work and home life is also important, as it sets some boundaries to filter out the problems on either side of life. This is extremely important if you have a job that demands a lot of emotional and mental energy. Journaling is a healthy outlet for emotions, as this not only increases self-awareness but also creates a safe-space to express yourself freely.
It is understandable that many dive in our phones to feel connected to the world. Some could be anxious to know what is happening around in the world, or be worried about their and their loved ones’ safety. We feel hapless and helpless, angry and sad. We want to advocate, and fight for those who cannot, and we do that well, on social media platforms. The internet gives us a peek into what is happening on the other side of the world, to connect and build a community we belong to. However, we must also recognise the times when we are wounded and when we need help. We must be selfless, but not in a way that is self-destructive. Taking some time off of the internet, to heal one’s soul, is not greedy or selfish; it is engaging in self-preservation.
Bhumi Gowda
