Self-care is a critical component of professional practice, because avoiding burnout benefits both the clinician as well as their clients. In this training, we will explore the challenges that mental health workers face in their field that make self-care difficult. We will examine how professionals can recognize symptoms of burnout, and then engage in preventative and restorative measures to avoid becoming impaired. This course will include journaling and small group discussions, as you design a roadmap to becoming the best version of your professional self.
Upon completion of this training, participants will be able to:
- Identify the signs of burnout
- Describe at least five causes of burnout
- Identify at least five barriers to self-care
- Describe at least five strategies for preventing burnout
- Design a personal strategy for incorporating self-care into their lives
Syllabus:
Objective #1: Understanding Burnout in Mental Health Practice
- Define burnout as a state of emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual exhaustion
- Recognize how burnout leads to professional impairment and impacts clients, colleagues, and personal relationships
- Identify ethical dimensions of self-care as a professional responsibility
- Recognize clinical signs of burnout: decreased empathy, distraction, dread, physical symptoms, addictive behaviors
Objective #2: Causes of Burnout
- Secondary trauma and compassion fatigue
- Administrative and systemic stressors: insurance issues, on-call duties, excessive paperwork
- Impact of COVID-19 and sociopolitical stressors
- Personal struggles such as student debt and imposter syndrome
- Emotional toll of overidentification with the helper role
Objective #3: Barriers to Self-Care
- Lack of time for basic needs during the workday
- Financial pressures and overwork
- Difficulty maintaining personal boundaries
- Balancing personal mental health with professional responsibilities
- The “second shift” at home and chronic lack of rest or restoration
Objective #4: Burnout Prevention Strategies
- Practice mindfulness of internal states and external demands
- Maintain balance and realistic expectations in personal and professional spheres
- Attend to physical health and energy cycles
- Strengthen boundaries and streamline administrative burdens
- Create support systems: peer support, supervision, mentorship, spiritual connection
- Use scheduling tools, policies, and time management systems like the Eisenhower Matrix or Pomodoro Technique
- Identify ideal clients, preferred modalities, and work hours to align practice with personal values
Objective #5: Designing a Personalized Self-Care Plan
- Reflect on changes needed in both personal and professional life
- Identify practices to start, stop, do more of, and do less of
- Make incremental, time-based plans for implementing self-care strategies
- Prioritize self-compassion and allow space for imperfection in self-improvement
- Reframe “selfishness” as healthy and ethical responsibility to self and clients
Objective #6: Integrating Burnout Prevention into Daily Practice
- Use your calendar as a tool for boundary setting and scheduling self-care
- Establish clear policies on client communication, fees, and session management
- Develop rituals for work–home transition, especially in remote work settings
- Build in regular breaks: daily, weekly, seasonal, and annual resets
- Reflect on family-of-origin influences on boundaries and perfectionism
Resources for Continued Growth
- Recommended books on therapist burnout and self-care
- Research on the causes, implications, and remediation of burnout
- Emphasis on ongoing education, reflection, and supervision for sustainable practice
Social workers completing this course receive 2 Ethics asynchronous continuing education credits.
For other board approvals, this course qualifies for 2 Ethics continuing education training.
Instructor: Dreya Blume, LCSW
Recording Date: October 15, 2024
CEUS On-Demand, LLC, provider #2274, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 08/7/2026 - 08/6/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 2hrs Ethics continuing education credits.
CEUs On-Demand, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7091. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. CEUs On-Demand, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
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Request for Special Accommodations: Learners can request special accommodations by contacting the administrative team at admin@ceus-ondemand.com