We’re in burnout too.
I closed my books several months ago. Yet I keep trying to squeeze in extra appointments because the daily calls for support break my heart. But my caseload is at capacity and I still have not recovered myself from 2020’s double whammy of supporting other families whilst not being available for my own. American therapists are openly discussing the burnout of the profession this year, yet Australia seems to want to perpetuate the myth that the healer is somehow not human. Somehow we’re a different species? We certainly merely human and we can’t support others when we are exhausted. I do not believe in sweeping it under the rug, pretending that we’re robots.
Families tell me that everywhere they call is full or has a long waitlist, so I have asked around and developed this list (link). I cannot personally endorse everyone on the list as I don’t know everyone. Please contact and ask the questions you need to ask to know if someone is a good fit for you. (I am linking some American and Canadian articles about therapist burnout during coivd in the comments.)Australians had one of the longest and strictest lockdowns. GPs and Allied Health workers had school-aged children at home too. We had partners working from home too as we scrambled for quiet corners in which to work.
Yet the caring professions dove into the new and initially complicated world of telehealth and gave our all. We are exhausted and struggling too. We’re just not allowed to talk about it or seek the community-care and self-care that we prescribe for our patients/clients. Personally, I think it is a disservice to our clients if we pretend that lockdown didn’t affect us. It is far more helpful to acknowledge that distress and exhaustion are NORMAL in times like this. My clients aren’t “failures” for not coping and neither am I or my colleagues who are struggling. As a mental health professional, I do have expertise and self-awareness that has accumulated over many years. It’s time I allowed myself to practice what I preach.
If you want to read about Therapist burnout during Covid please check out the links I have shared on my Facebook page.