Ever heard of “compassion fatigue”? Neither had I, until very recently. But now that I know what it is, I know I have expe­rienced it. You may have, too, especially if you’re involved in ministry or care-giving.

Compassion fatigue is a condition characterized by a gradual lessening of compassion over time. Common among caregivers, it was first diagnosed in nurses in the 1950s. Sufferers can exhibit several symptoms, including hopelessness, a decrease in experiences of pleasure, constant stress and anxiety, and a pervasive negative attitude. Det­rimental effects include decrease in productivity, inability to focus, and development of new feelings of incompetency and self-doubt.

Media Saturation⤒🔗

Some argue that the media share a large part of the blame for the current prevalence of compassion fatigue “by satu­rating newspapers and news shows with tragic stories and images of suffering, causing the public to become cynical, or become resistant to helping people who are suffering.” In extreme cases, it can lead to such a hardening of the heart that caregivers turn into abusers.

Contrary to what you might think, it’s the most sensi­tive and sympathetic who are most likely to suffer from this. Charles R. Figley, co-author of Compassion Fatigue, says,

There is a cost to caring. Professionals who listen to clients’ stories of fear, pain, and suffering may feel similar fear, pain, and suffering because they care. Those who have enormous capacity for feeling and expressing empathy tend to be more at risk of compassion stress.

And yes, there’s a website. At the Compassion Fatigue Awareness Project, you can even take a Compassion Fatigue Self-Test! Apart from education and raising self-awareness, the path to wellness includes the old faithfuls of exercise, eat­ing healthy foods, drinking plenty of water, saying no, being proactive instead of reactive, cultivating friendships, etc.

Christ’s Compassion←⤒🔗

But I’d like to add another remedy, and that’s the consider­ation and experience of Christ’s compassion. “He took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses” (Matt. 8:17). That does not mean that He suffered all the weaknesses and sicknesses that we endure. It does mean that He felt them as if He endured them. That’s what compassion is, isn’t it? It’s an ability to enter into another person’s life and to so imagine the agony of their suffering that we feel the pain ourselves.

Jesus was able to enter every painful situation – leprosy, blindness, deafness, bereavement – and feel it as if He was the leper, as if He was blind, deaf, or bereaved. In fact, with His perfect human sensitivity, He was able to feel the pain of these conditions even more excruciatingly than the actual sufferers themselves!

No one was surrounded by so many sick and sorrow­ful people as Jesus; hundreds and thousands and tens of thousands were brought to Him for healing. Yet He never once suffered from compassion fatigue. Fatigue, yes; but not compassion fatigue.

He was so shattered at times that He needed to with­draw and recharge His batteries. However, though tired out by compassion, He never tired of compassion. Though it exhausted Him, He never stopped extending it. If anyone ever felt the cost of caring, He did; yet He continued to pay the price even when the objects of His compassion returned the favor with cruel ingratitude.

Pastors, caregivers, and sympathetic souls, bring your compassion fatigue to the ever and always compassionate Christ. Envelop yourselves in His refreshing care, recharge your batteries by connecting to His tender love, and re-sensitize your hearts with His kind grace.