The work of psychotherapists is quite arduous , tiring and above all charged with varied emotions that are expressed within the consultation. For these reasons it is important to take care of yourself emotionally. Each therapist has different rituals to download all this content, but there are some that do not, especially those who take their first steps.

Ideally, you should be able to identify when you are beginning to experience burnout from this emotional flow caused by interaction with patients. Don’t worry, it’s not uncommon; in fact, it’s very common for psychotherapists to stay in touch with their patients without stopping or taking a vacation. In order to regulate this phenomenon, it is desirable to resort to strategies of self-regulation and emotional care , which involve maintaining a balance in what each psychotherapist feels after attending to several patients in a day, week or month on a continuous basis.

Some Emotional Care Strategies for Psychotherapists

I will give you some examples of emotional self-regulation strategies that you can use as anchors or small “rituals”.

1. Use emotional journaling

A powerful tool that you can use every day is the emotional journal. In it you can write down how you have felt, what emotions you have experienced in each session and how you have dealt with them or how you would like to deal with them. This tool is very useful for those who like writing or drawing.

2. Positive Memory Notebook

Positive thoughts are powerful, but they are more powerful when they are accompanied by images, especially if they are from some experience that evokes feelings and sensations of love, gratitude, joy, etc. You can prepare a notebook full of these memories and go to it when you feel this type of emotional conflict.

3. A break between sessions

When we are in the middle of a session we often go into a state of alert, especially if our patient goes into crisis. The sympathetic nervous system, which is in charge of survival, is activated in these cases in order to regulate the situation. You have probably felt it; you have become nervous and have no idea what to do or say . For this reason, at the end of the session, I recommend drinking some water and taking a break for 10 to 15 minutes before receiving the next patient. This way you will give time for your nervous system to return to its normal state.

4. Mindfulness

The practice of mindfulness is very powerful. Doing it at least 3 times a week, at the time you have available, will help you to be more aware of your emotions and to regulate them . In addition, I recommend several related practices: Vipassana Meditation, Tonglen or Metta bhavana.

5. Seeks supervision

When we attend to a variety of patients, conflicting emotions cause a loss of therapeutic precision . It is very useful to seek supervision from trusted colleagues, with whom you can share your concerns, sensations, worries and feelings about your patients. In this way we will be preventing being subdued by the accumulated conflictive emotional flow.

6. Betting on leisure activities

It sounds trite, but, performing activities that are not related to your clinical practice is one of the best strategies to take care of your emotional regulation and, of course, your health in general. Going jogging in the morning, taking walks in places that make you feel comfortable, going out to parties with friends or family, going to the movies, singing, going to dance or zumba practice, going to the gym often, or doing art, among many other activities, all serve to help.

The important thing is that you do activities that generate positive, rewarding and uplifting feelings and emotions for your life .