Introduction
Terminology
Secondary Traumatic Stress (STS) “encompasses the negative physical, emotional, and cognitive reassocations that can occur in response to indirect exposure to trauma, such as working with trauma survivors” (Kulkarni, Bell, Hartman, & Herman-Smith, 2013, 115). It is often used as an umbrella term to include: burnout, compassion fatigue, vicarious trauma (VT) and traumatic countertransference, (Salston & Figley, 2003). STS can include numbing symptoms, intrusive symptoms, avoidance, and depressive symptoms (Kulkarni et al., 2013). Although secondary traumatic stress can be defined to include all of these things, each of these terms carries it’s own specific definition and presents with different symptoms depending on …show more content…
122). Symptoms of vicarious trauma can include: hypervigilance in one’s personal life, feelings of hopelessness, overprotection of friends and family, and feelings of loneliness and guilt about enjoying one’s life, (Hunter & Schofield, 2006). This term is differentiated from the other terms by the experience of traumatic symptoms of the clinician, similar to those symptoms experienced by the victims themselves.
Compassion fatigue has been described as “the convergence of traumatic stress, secondary traumatic stress, and cumulative stress/burnout in the lives of helping professionals and care providers,” (Hernandez, Gangsel, & Engstrom, 2007, p. 231). This concept can also be seen through the symptoms of “mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion and feelings of hopelessness and disconnect from others” (Radey & Figley, 2007, p.207). This concept is differentiated from the other stresses due to its emphasis on the lack of compassion or empathy that a professional may develop as an experience of compassion …show more content…
Some of these factors include: personal experiences of trauma, the current stress level of the provider, the attachment styles of the client and professional, and the workload of the professional (Hunter & Schofield, 2006). Knowing that these individual factors and the effort that is put into an individual’s self-care routine have a great impact of the effectiveness of a professional in the helping relationship, it is important to continue to maintain awareness and regularly reassess for any changes that may be necessary in order to avoid the negative outcomes that many people encounter in helping
Terminology
Secondary Traumatic Stress (STS) “encompasses the negative physical, emotional, and cognitive reassocations that can occur in response to indirect exposure to trauma, such as working with trauma survivors” (Kulkarni, Bell, Hartman, & Herman-Smith, 2013, 115). It is often used as an umbrella term to include: burnout, compassion fatigue, vicarious trauma (VT) and traumatic countertransference, (Salston & Figley, 2003). STS can include numbing symptoms, intrusive symptoms, avoidance, and depressive symptoms (Kulkarni et al., 2013). Although secondary traumatic stress can be defined to include all of these things, each of these terms carries it’s own specific definition and presents with different symptoms depending on …show more content…
122). Symptoms of vicarious trauma can include: hypervigilance in one’s personal life, feelings of hopelessness, overprotection of friends and family, and feelings of loneliness and guilt about enjoying one’s life, (Hunter & Schofield, 2006). This term is differentiated from the other terms by the experience of traumatic symptoms of the clinician, similar to those symptoms experienced by the victims themselves.
Compassion fatigue has been described as “the convergence of traumatic stress, secondary traumatic stress, and cumulative stress/burnout in the lives of helping professionals and care providers,” (Hernandez, Gangsel, & Engstrom, 2007, p. 231). This concept can also be seen through the symptoms of “mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion and feelings of hopelessness and disconnect from others” (Radey & Figley, 2007, p.207). This concept is differentiated from the other stresses due to its emphasis on the lack of compassion or empathy that a professional may develop as an experience of compassion …show more content…
Some of these factors include: personal experiences of trauma, the current stress level of the provider, the attachment styles of the client and professional, and the workload of the professional (Hunter & Schofield, 2006). Knowing that these individual factors and the effort that is put into an individual’s self-care routine have a great impact of the effectiveness of a professional in the helping relationship, it is important to continue to maintain awareness and regularly reassess for any changes that may be necessary in order to avoid the negative outcomes that many people encounter in helping