Burnout is far too prevalent across the social care sector, but positive psychology can help.
If you’re in social work, psychology and/or other community work, the blog posts in this series will equip you with practical and effective tools to help prevent burnout.
Your work is so important, but it’s even more important to do it sustainably!
Read on to find out more.
Being mindful and present is easier said than done
Mindfulness – or “being present” – is all about focusing on one thing at a time.
Our last post explained how doing so can help slow down our brain activity, increasing calmness, focus, confidence and self-esteem. Check it out here if you haven’t already!
When we find ourselves becoming distracted quite regularly, this could be because we haven’t given enough airtime to whatever’s interrupting us.
Prevent burnout by giving your thoughts the recognition they deserve
For example, if we struggle be present with a client because we keep drifting off into thinking about what’s for dinner, that could be a sign that we need to give ‘dinner planning’ (or whatever it might be for you) more mental airtime.
By scheduling an allotted time in the routine to attend to whatever’s demanding our attention, it becomes easier to dismiss interrupting thoughts because we know we’ve set aside to deal with them properly.
Social care workers don’t have any other time, that’s the problem!
Managing and maintaining a sustainable mental load is vital to preventing burnout.
When choosing what to prioritise and what to let go of (whether it’s with our time, budget, energy, etc.), it’s important to step back and consider what matters most.
Could it be worth disappointing some people or not getting as much done in the short term, to be the best worker/colleague/parent/spouse/teammate/friend/all-of-the-above we can be in the long run?
Taking the time to manage our mental load can improve mood, sleep, work, health and relationships… Sounds pretty worth it to us!
How do you manage your mental load as a worker in the social care sector? Are there other strategies – from positive psychology or otherwise – you’ve seen that can help prevent burnout in social care? Share your tips and experiences below, or tag a friend from the sector to work on this together!
Be. Recruitment is a specialist recruitment agency for the social care sector. To discuss the next step in your career in social care, or to fill your organisation’s vacancies with capable, talented candidates, get in touch with our expert team today.
