Processing Compassion Fatigue through Grief and Trauma

Wednesday, Aug 6, 2025 • 12 pm to 1 pm

Virtual

Training Sessions

Abstract

Compassion fatigue is an often silent and invisible cost of caring that impacts professionals across the helping fields. As caregivers bear witness to the pain, trauma, and grief of others, they may unknowingly internalize that emotional weight, leading to exhaustion, cynicism, and a loss of purpose. This presentation explores the intersection of compassion fatigue, unresolved grief, and trauma exposure, offering a holistic lens through which to process and transform these experiences.

Participants will gain insight into how secondary trauma and accumulated grief contribute to emotional depletion, as well as how personal trauma histories may intensify these effects. Through psychoeducation, experiential exercises, and reflective practice, attendees will learn practical strategies to recognize signs of compassion fatigue, restore emotional boundaries, and reconnect with their inner resilience and sense of purpose in their work.

This session fosters a space of empathy, honesty, and healing—inviting participants not only to understand compassion fatigue but to begin metabolizing the grief and trauma it often carries.

Objectives

  • Define compassion fatigue and differentiate it from burnout, vicarious trauma, and moral injury.
  • Identify the emotional and physiological signs of compassion fatigue and how it manifests in the body and behavior.
  • Understand the role of unresolved grief and trauma in the development and exacerbation of compassion fatigue.
  • Explore the impact of personal trauma histories and emotional transference in helping relationships.
  • Practice evidence-based tools for emotional regulation, boundary setting, and nervous system support.
  • Develop a personalized strategy for sustainable emotional care and ongoing resilience in professional roles.

Accreditation

PHYSICIAN (CME)

The University of Pittsburgh designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

NURSING (CNE)

A maximum of 1.0 nursing contact hours will be awarded. Participants will be able to claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the program.

SOCIAL WORK

As a Jointly Accredited Organization, University of Pittsburgh is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. University of Pittsburgh maintains responsibility for this course. Social workers completing this course receive 1.0 continuing education credits.

Psychologist (APA)

Continuing Education (CE) credits for psychologists are provided through the co-sponsorship of the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of Continuing Education in Psychology (CEP). The APA CEP Office maintains responsibility for the content of the programs.

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