The weight of supporting others: understanding secondary trauma and compassion fatigue

Supporting people through grief, trauma and distress can be deeply rewarding, but it can also have a lasting impact on those providing support.

This interactive course explores the emotional and psychological effects of hearing about the experiences of others, helping participants recognise the signs of secondary trauma, vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue in themselves and their colleagues, and develop practical strategies to protect their wellbeing.

Who is this course aimed at?

This course is suitable for anyone whose role involves supporting people experiencing grief, trauma, loss or significant emotional distress, including health and social care professionals, counsellors, therapists, support workers, volunteers, education professionals, third sector staff, managers and anyone in an emotionally demanding helping role.

What will participants learn?

Participants will:

·       Understand trauma and how exposure to the experiences of others can affect wellbeing and professional practice.

·       Explore the differences between secondary trauma, vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, burnout and moral injury.

·       Recognise the emotional, behavioural, cognitive and physical signs of trauma exposure in themselves and others.

·       Consider the impact of compassion fatigue and secondary trauma on the quality of support provided to others.

·       Reflect on professional boundaries, supervision and sources of support.

·       Develop practical self-care and wellbeing strategies to help sustain effective and compassionate practice.  

Course Approach

This participative course combines trainer input, discussion, reflective activities and case studies to help participants consider the impact of supporting others while developing practical strategies to sustain their own wellbeing.

Health Warning

As you would anticipate, the content of our courses discuss themes of death, dying and bereavement.  Before registering for our training, we encourage all participants to consider their individual wellbeing needs, particularly those who have recently been bereaved or consider themselves as actively grieving.