Author Archives: Alessandra Pigni
Mindfulness and Burnout at HHR Conference
I spoke at the People in Aid HHR Conference in Amsterdam in May 2012. Link contains conference report, a brief interview with me and a clip from my talk on mindfulness and burnout. Continue reading
Posted in Burnout
Tagged mindfulness for aid workers
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Mindfulness in less than 140 characters
Posted in Letters to the field
Tagged mindfulness for aid workers
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On compassion fatigue, vicarious trauma & burnout
Recently, I participated in an amazing training to become a domestic violence advocate for immigrant women in the D.C. area. One area which we focused on was burnout, compassion fatigue, and self-care. Continue reading
Burnout: The Exhaustion Funnel
Many frontline professionals and volunteers burnout without knowing it. There’s an urge to keep going, and a sense that our personal well-being and good mental health are not worth looking after. Let me tell you why this is plain wrong and short-sighted. Continue reading
PTSD is not the problem. Burnout is.
I remain convinced that if we want to change how aid works, we need to change ourselves. Psychological awareness becomes a tool for social and political awareness, but before we get there we need to find ways to manage stress and avoid getting to a place of burnout. Continue reading
Are you a boiled frog? Burnout and Awareness
The Story of the Boiled Frog and some thoughts on burnout
During a recent visit in Italy for some rest to prevent my own burnout, a good friend gave me a little book called ‘Invaluable Lessons from a Frog: Seven Life-Enhancing Metaphors’ by Oliver Clerc. I find the metaphor of the boiled frog contained in the book particularly fitting when it comes to giving us a vivid picture of how burnout wears people down.
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On Supporting Staff – My Interview with People in Aid
Staff care is way more than just counselling or stress management. Here’s my take. Interview with Alessandra Pigni by People In Aid, July 2012. Continue reading
Posted in Burnout
Tagged aid workers' burnout, organizational culture in aid
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Think Different: On post-traumatic growth
How trauma and difficulties can sometimes be the springboard to greater well-being *** I see it as part of my job to encourage the possibility of transformation that can arise from suffering, rather than pathologising life’s adversities. Though I originally … Continue reading
Posted in Letters to the field
Tagged aid workers' mental health, aid workers' wellbeing
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From humanitarian to ‘humane’
In May I attended the HHR People in Aid Conference in Amsterdam. I followed with much interest the intervention by the ex global editor at Reuters, Michael Lawrence. His story highlighted the involvement of Reuters’ senior management in bringing about a change in the organisational culture in relation to staff care. Continue reading
Posted in Burnout
Tagged aid workers' wellbeing, organizational culture in aid, reflection and action
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