How to Get Your Spark Back as a Therapist

Most of the therapists I know went into the field from a deep desire to serve and help others. Professiors even joke with us in grad school, saying “I hope you’re not here for the money!” That’s an awful joke by the way, because this is indeed our profession and income source but that’s a post for another day.

This post is about how to get your spark back when you are feeling burned out and beaten down by this profession that you once felt so passionate about.

What causes therapists to lose their passion and spark?

• Burnout
• External factors like productivity requirements, billing hassles, workplace culture and time/ energy constraints.
• Compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma
• Too high of a caseload
• Clients who aren’t a good fit, or the inability to choose which clients a therapist works with
• Years of sitting for hours every day
• A lack of variety in the work
• Mental and physical health factors
• Personal life stressors

So what can a therapist do to get their spark back?

1. Reflect on the past: What did you love to do before you started to lose your spark? Think about past hobbies, interests, and friends. What do you miss? Thinking back on past experiences can remind you of what you used to love to do, so you can start bringing some of those things back into your life.
2. Explore new experiences: Try new things! Get out of your comfort zone. Is there anything that you’ve always wanted to try? Something that sounds fun but you’ve been too scared? Seeking out novel experiences can be a great way to bring some joy and excitement back into your life.
3. Seek out role models: Look for people who inspire you and have the life you want. Listen to and read their stories. What can you learn from them?
4. Set goals and challenge yourself: Setting and achieving goals can not only help you level up in your career and life, but it can give you a great boost of accomplishment. What would you like to achieve this week? This month? This year?
5. Follow your intuition: What if you just trusted your gut? We all have a quiet, small voice within. It might give you a little nudge, ask a question or just give you a “gut feeling”. Follow it and see where it goes!
6. Surround yourself with supportive people: Having a supportive community can help you stay motivated and encouraged as you pursue your passions. You want to have a tribe of people who root for you and have your back.
7. Always keep learning and growing! Learn new skills, add additional income streams, explore new modalities, and always be leveling up. This will keep things interesting and challenging and help you continue to grow your confidence and skills!

Being a therapist is a tough, magical, grueling, rewarding job. Emotionally, it can be draining but it can also be invigorating. You deserve to rediscover your passion and spark! I hope that this post gives you a few ideas. Just pick one and start, and I’d love to hear how it goes.