Behind The Helping Role: Acknowledging Vicarious Trauma and Prioritizing Self-Care
Throughout this course, I have found myself thinking about how I could expand my idea of trauma, specifically when working with children in the hospital. I am currently studying to become a Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS), someone who supports children and their families throughout their hospitalization, and I hoped to learn more about how to treat or work with someone with trauma, but throughout this course, I have realized that trauma does not only apply to the patients I work with, but also to their care team as well. CCLS helps children understand their hospitalization, develop coping strategies, support children through procedures, support developmental milestones, support siblings, and support families through bereavement. While every hospitalization is different, and every child and family is different, CCLS often supports children and families through traumatic events.
As someone studying to be a CCLS who is particularly interested in working in an intensive care unit or emergency department, I find myself often asking other CCLS’s how they deal with dealing with emotional toll of supporting children through their hospitalization. While everyone’s approach is different, the common theme I have found CCLSs advise me on is ensuring I prioritize self-care, mental health, and recognize the impact of vicarious trauma in order to prevent burnout. Part of supporting children and families in the hospital is trying to see things from their perspective and being mindful of previous experiences they may have had that influence their current hospitalization. Trying to see things from the eyes of someone who has or is experiencing a trauma can be emotionally taxing on people.
Witnessing trauma can be difficult, especially if you are a witness to it every day, which can lead individuals to experience vicarious trauma (Rousseau, 2026). According to Perlman & Mac Ian (1995), vicarious trauma is the transformation that occurs due to empathic engagement with another person’s trauma experiences. While people often think of trauma workers as law enforcement workers or therapists, CCLS work alongside patients in the hospital, often being exposed to the trauma the child is enduring. Some hospital visits may be routine, while others may be due to an emergency. Regardless, hospital visits can be traumatizing for children, whether they have been to the hospital multiple times before or if it is their first admission.
Supporting children who are in pain, sick, or upset, as well as potentially distressed families, can be emotionally taxing. Since our role as CCLS is to listen, support, and try to understand our patients and families, it can be easy to allow the amount of empathetic engagement to take a toll on mental health. While it can feel amazing to help support a child and their family in the hospital, it can also be distressing to be surrounded by such intense negative emotions, such as pain or sadness, day after day. In departments like an intensive care unit or emergency department, CCLS are exposed to difficult and traumatic cases daily. This day-to-day exposure can lead to CCLS experiencing symptoms of vicarious trauma.
Some symptoms of vicarious trauma are behavioral changes in relation to work responsibilities, burnout, withdrawal, denial, PTSD symptoms, difficulty sleeping, exhaustion, nausea, headaches, and impaired self-care (Rousseau). As vicarious trauma can be common in those who work in the hospital, prioritizing self-care and mental health is crucial. Establishing a self-care routine can help develop a routine of acknowledging the trauma we witness, processing the emotions and experiences we have, and acknowledging the importance of mental health. Self-care is something enjoyable that allows us to engage in activities that help our mind, body, and soul, allowing us to take a step back and reset. While self-care cannot ensure that burnout will not happen, nor will those who engage in consistent self-care routines not be impacted by vicarious trauma, it can help one develop a way to “reset” themselves and distance others’ experiences from their own.
This course has allowed me to learn more about the impact trauma has on individuals, as well as acknowledge the exposure to potential vicarious trauma in my own field. Understanding how trauma influences people and the importance of learning how to work with those who have experienced trauma has allowed me to gain a better understanding of how to support patients and their families in the hospital. Additionally, I have found myself focusing on my own mental health and self-care activities to develop a sense of routine so that when I become a CCLS, I will already have developed a habit of prioritizing my mental and physical health.
References:
Pearlman, L. A., & Mac Ian, P. S. (1995). Vicarious traumatization: An empirical study of the effects of trauma work on trauma therapists. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 26(6), 558–565. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7028.26.6.558
Rousseau, D.(2026). MET CJ720-Module 1: Introduction to Trauma-Vicarious Trauma and Self-Care[Online Module] , Blackboard, Boston University