If you’re a community health worker (CHW), you probably got into this because you care. Likely, you’ve lived some of the experiences your clients have faced yourself. You know what it feels like to navigate systems, struggle to access care or benefits, and climb out of a difficult spot, and that’s exactly why people trust you.

But that same closeness to the work is what puts CHWs at higher risk for compassion fatigue than most. 

What is compassion fatigue?

Researchers describe it as what happens when secondary traumatic stress and burnout combine, and the slow buildup that comes from caring for people who are suffering, without enough space to recover (Figley, 1995) You’re not just doing a job. You’re carrying people’s stories home with you. You’re feeling it when the system lets someone down. That kind of work takes a toll, and sustainable practice requires both short-term recovery tools and long-term support structures (Cocker & Joss, 2016).

Compassion fatigue doesn’t always look like crying at your desk. It can look like feeling numb. Getting irritated more easily. Dreading calls you used to look forward to. Not sleeping. Feeling like nothing you do is ever enough. Sound familiar? You’re not alone, and it’s not a character flaw. Here’s what can actually help.

“You can’t pour from an empty cup,” a Pear Suite CHW said. “Taking care of yourself is part of taking care of everyone else.”

How can CHWs practice self-care to reduce provider burnout?

Intentional actions and routines throughout the day and after work can make a difference and help decompress from emotionally difficult client situations. The more you care for yourself, the fuller your cup, and the more capacity you have to care for others. 

Self-care in the middle of a hard day

Some interactions will hit you hard. A visit that didn’t go well. A family that reminds you of your own. A system that failed someone. You still have three more calls after this. Here’s how to reset without running on fumes.

Right after a tough moment

• Take 1–3 minutes to breathe before your next call or visit. Try box breathing: breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 4, breathe out for 4, hold for 4. Repeat.
• Step outside if you can, even just for five minutes. Fresh air and sunlight help more than you think.
• Try grounding: name 5 things you can see, 4 you can hear, 3 you can touch. It gets you out of your head and back in your body.
• Shake out your hands. Roll your shoulders. Unclench your jaw. Tension builds up in your body, releasing it physically helps.
• Drink some water. Eat something. Use the bathroom. Don’t skip the basics when you’re already running low.

During the work day

• Talk to a coworker or supervisor after a hard case, even for five minutes. Just saying it out loud stops it from replaying in your head all day.
• It’s okay to say no. If your plate is full, you don’t have to take on one more thing. Protecting your capacity now means you can actually show up for the people who need you.
• Before lunch, think of one thing that went okay this morning. It doesn’t have to be big. It just has to be real.
• Take your full lunch break. Away from your desk. Away from your phone. You’ve earned it.

When the workday is over

Here’s the thing about CHW work: it doesn’t automatically stop when you close your laptop. Your brain keeps going. The stories stick with you. Without some kind of transition, the work follows you everywhere.

You need to teach your mind and body that work is over. That takes practice, but it works.

Create a closing routine

• Pick something you do every day after work, such as a walk, washing your face, making tea, sweeping the floor. It doesn’t matter what it is. What matters is that you do it every time. Over time, it signals to your brain: we’re done for today.
• Turn off work notifications. You don’t have to be available all the time. Caring about your clients doesn’t mean being “on” 24/7.
• If something from the day is stuck in your head, write it down. Just a few sentences about what happened, how you feel. Getting it on paper helps you set it down.

Take care of yourself after work

• Move your body. Walk, dance, stretch, or whatever feels good to you. Exercise is one of the best things you can do to protect yourself from burnout.
• Sleep matters. A wind-down routine, even 20 minutes of something calming, makes a real difference over time.
• Write down three things you’re grateful for. Try to include at least one thing about yourself. It sounds small, but it actually works.
• Keep a folder of thank-you notes or kind messages from people you’ve helped. Read one on the hard nights.
• Talk to yourself like you’d talk to a friend who had the same kind of day you did. You deserve the same grace you give other people.
• If you need a mental health day, take it before you crash, not after.

“You are part of the support system,” said one Pear Suite community health worker. “You are not the whole system. That’s not giving up, that’s staying in it for the long run.”

Build self-care habits that last

The day-to-day tips help you get through tough moments. But if you want to do this work for years, and actually feel okay doing it, you need some bigger-picture habits too.

Change how you measure a good day

If your goal is to fix everything for every person, you will burn out. That’s not because you’re not good enough, but because no one can do that alone.

Try measuring your day by these questions instead:

• Did I show up?
• Did I connect this person to something that could help them?
• Did I treat them with respect?

If the answer is yes, that’s a good day. You’re one part of a bigger system. You don’t have to be all of it.

Protect your life outside of work

• Keep things in your life that have nothing to do with work — friends, family, hobbies, whatever brings you joy. Those things aren’t distractions. They’re what keeps you going.
• Set limits on how available you are outside of work hours. Stick to them.
• Use your vacation time. When you’re off, actually be off.

Grow in your role

• Learn about vicarious trauma and secondary traumatic stress to help you name what you’re going through, and stop blaming yourself for it.
• Find CHWs who have been doing this work for a long time and learn from them.
• Over time, try to mix up your role. If you’re doing high-intensity casework every day, see if there are ways to also do training, outreach, or mentoring newer CHWs.

Build up the people around you

• Talk openly with your coworkers about how you’re doing. Not just the logistics — how you’re actually feeling. Normalize it so newer CHWs feel safe doing it too.
• Join or start a peer support group with other CHWs. You are not the only one feeling this.
• Connect with the National Association of Community Health Workers (NACHW) — a professional community that gets what you do.

How can you practice self-compassion?

CHWs are some of the most generous people around. You give a lot to the people you serve. But when was the last time you gave that same care to yourself?

Self-compassion isn’t about letting yourself off the hook. It’s about being fair to yourself. It’s about saying: “This was hard. Of course I feel this way. I’m doing the best I can.”

• Notice when your inner voice says “I should have done more” — and gently push back on it.
• Keep track of the good moments too: the person who got housed, the family that finally got connected to care, the client who said thank you. Those moments are real. Write them down.
• Forgive yourself for the cases that didn’t go the way you hoped. The system is broken in a lot of ways. That’s not on you.
• Let people take care of you too. Accept the gratitude and say thank you when a colleague checks in. You don’t have to carry this alone.
• Come back to why you started this work. Write it down somewhere you’ll see it.

The people in your community need you, not just this week, but for a long time. That means taking care of yourself counts as part of the job.

You can’t pour from an empty cup, so be sure to fill yours.

This guide was developed by CHWs from the Pear Suite Provider Network.