Slowing Down And Removing Obligations Is Self Care
Is your life filled with multiple work-life responsibilities and obligations? Do you try to keep up, only to let your self care slide? I bet this is an endless cycle filled with stress and overwhelm.
I get it! I used to push back my self care, by adding on more obligations, only to push the edges of burnout. As clinicians, we often find ourselves deeply immersed in the lives of our clients. The weight of their struggles, the emotional toll of our work, and the constant push to keep up with administrative demands can leave us feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, and disconnected from our own well-being. It’s easy to overlook one essential aspect of self-care: slowing down and removing unnecessary obligations.
Slowing down and simplifying our schedules aren’t just luxuries—they are critical components of sustainable mental health care, both for our clients and for ourselves. This is why I enjoy helping Clinicians, so you too can make these changes to support your career.
Here’s three reasons why slowing down and removing obligations is important for clinicians:
Preventing burnout. The fast-paced nature of clinical work, with its emotional demands and high caseloads, increases the risk of burnout. When we feel the pressure to always be “on,” we can neglect our own needs, leading to emotional exhaustion and compassion fatigue.
Improving Therapeutic Presence. Clients benefit when we are fully present, calm, and grounded in each session. When we rush from one session to the next, we can lose the quality of mindfulness that makes our work impactful.
Supporting Emotional Regulation. The intensity of clinical work can sometimes cause us to experience our own emotional turbulence, which, can affect our ability to manage our emotions effectively. Slowing down offers space to process our feelings, making it easier to maintain emotional balance.
Slowing down and removing unnecessary obligations is an important form of self-care for clinicians. It requires shifting our mindset from the constant hustle to valuing restoration, emotional well-being, and sustainable practice. By creating space for ourselves, we not only ensure our own mental health but also improve our ability to be present and effective for our clients. Let us remember that taking care of ourselves is not a luxury—it is a professional responsibility.