The Hidden Crisis in Mental Health Care: When the Helpers Need Help

The Paradox of Burnout in the Healing Profession

Imagine this: You're a successful therapist making $200,000 a year. Your practice is full. From the outside, everything looks perfect. But inside? You're locking your office door between sessions just to curl up on the couch and nap. You're waking up with clients' stories replaying in your mind. You're irritable with your family and can barely cook dinner without thinking about work.

This isn't a rare scenario—it's the silent epidemic affecting over 60% of healthcare professionals today.

Helen's Wake-Up Call

Helen, founder of Beacon of Hope and Brighter Beginnings by Kairos Counselings and the Somatic Integration Institute, found herself at this exact crossroads in 2019. As she candidly shared on the Smart Performance Podcast, she faced a decision that many clinicians believe is inevitable: continue on the path to burnout or leave the field entirely.

"It probably wasn't normal when a client canceled to shut the door, lock it, curl up on the couch, and take a nap," Helen recalls. "That was my 'something isn't sustainable' moment."

The Silent Killer: Cortisol and Chronic Stress

We talk endlessly about cholesterol, fats, and carbs as health killers. But the real silent assassin? Cortisol—the stress hormone that rises every time tension builds, affecting not just our mood but our entire physical health.

For women in helping professions, this is particularly insidious. While women may find it easier to ask for help, they're also more likely to deprioritize themselves, putting everyone else's needs first. This chronic suppression of what our nervous system is telling us can lead to autoimmune disorders and cardiovascular issues that are harder to diagnose and treat in women.

The First Step: Courageous Acknowledgment

Recovery begins with a simple but powerful admission: "I'm not at my best right now."

This isn't weakness—it's wisdom. Because here's the truth: when we're not at our best, our clients aren't getting the best of us either. Helen has witnessed too many clients negatively impacted by previous clinicians who were struggling with burnout—practitioners who left abruptly, went on sudden medical leave, or failed to maintain healthy boundaries because they were too exhausted.

The Two-Minute Reset That Changes Everything

Helen offers a practical tool anyone can implement today—what she calls the "between session protocol":

1. Stand up and move - Give your body permission to shift
2. Ground your feet - Feel the floor beneath you
3. Look around - Really see your environment, even if you've seen it a thousand times
4. Let your ears wander - Find a sound in the distance
5. Check in - Ask yourself: "Am I carrying something from that last session that doesn't belong to me?"

If you are carrying something—a story, an image, a feeling—visualize taking it out, acknowledging "this is not mine," and putting it away. Open a window and let it go. Brush it off your body. Put it in a drawer. Release it.

This simple ritual takes two minutes but creates crucial separation between sessions.

Beyond Quick Fixes: Building Sustainable Support

While the two-minute reset is powerful, sustainable recovery requires deeper commitment:

• Professional supervision - Even if you've been licensed for 40 years, have someone to consult with regularly
• Somatic resources - Learn to listen to what your body is telling you
• Community connection - Stop suffering alone; speak up about your struggles
• Medical support - Don't hesitate to talk with your primary care doctor

Helen discovered somatic therapy while seeking better tools for her trauma clients, but realized she was the one who needed it most. Learning to tune into her nervous system, recognize dysregulation, and implement grounding strategies brought her back from the brink.

The Glass Ball You Cannot Drop

We're all juggling multiple balls—work responsibilities, client needs, administrative tasks. But only one ball is made of glass and should never be dropped: the one containing you and your family.

You can recover from dropping things at work. But when you shatter that glass ball? Recovery becomes exponentially harder.

A Challenge Worth Taking

Helen leaves us with this powerful reminder: "We are human beings, not human doings. Our body has more information than we give it credit for."

This week, challenge yourself to spend even just a few moments truly inhabiting your body. Not thinking about it, analyzing it, or trying to fix it—just being in it.

Because the most important person you'll ever help is yourself. And the field needs you whole, not depleted.

The work of healing others is sacred. But it cannot come at the cost of your own wellbeing. If you're experiencing signs of burnout, remember: asking for help isn't admitting defeat—it's choosing life.