before i started my counselling practice, i worked as a trauma counsellor for an underfunded agency providing services to people dealing with often unthinkable histories of abuse. my workspace was an uncomfortable, dimly lit office, and i often saw as many clients as i could fit into my schedule. i was being overworked with little support, and this eventually began to wear on my emotional resilience.
working every day with clients who had been physically or sexually assaulted, and as a survivor of sexual assault myself, i began to experience symptoms of vicarious trauma, including extreme fear, anxiety, and nightmares. i started to think, “i’m not cut out for this work” or “i’m not strong enough to help these people.” i felt a great deal of shame about my trauma reactions at the time, which made it even harder to get support.
unfortunately, those in the helping professions are often exposed to stressful and chaotic work environments. nurses, for example, deal with severe staff shortages, high workloads, and emotionally taxing or even unsafe work environments. in fact, because of high-stress working conditions, vicarious trauma can often be misdiagnosed as burnout or psychological exhaustion.