Self-compassion and burnout workshop with Chris Germer

The Sussex Mindfulness Centre are pleased to welcome Chris Germer to the UK to present the “Self-compassion and burnout” workshop in Brighton.

Many of us would say we’re burned out on the news or Zoom meetings. However, when burnout strikes, it’s hard to do much of anything. We feel drained, empty, irritable, or useless. We’re also likely to blame ourselves for feeling this way. Have you been there, perhaps during the pandemic, or do you know someone who has been burned out? That’s highly likely because studies show that 25-75% of workers around the world experience burnout symptoms.

Burnout happens when our work-life balance gets out of whack, usually through no fault of our own. We’re just doing the best we can. Common causes of burnout include excessive workload, lack of support, unfairness at the workplace, and moral distress. People who care deeply about their work are also more likely to get burned out, as are those who base their self-worth on their work, have a tendency to sacrifice themselves, or criticize themselves when things go wrong.

Fortunately, self-compassion is an antidote to burnout, and there are many research studies that support this claim. We also have an empirically-supported training for healthcare workers derived from the Mindful Self-compassion (MSC) programme—Self-Compassion for Healthcare Communities. Recently, Kristin Neff and Chris Germer wrote a new book, to be published in September 2024, titled The Mindful Self-Compassion Toolkit for Burnout. This book, written in an easy style for exhausted readers, adapts MSC concepts and practices specifically for burnout.

This experiential workshop consists of talks, meditation, exercises and discussion. It is designed for people with some familiarity with self-compassion concepts.

I am delighted to be returning to Brighton, UK to share with you the work Kristin Neff and I have been doing on burnout,Since COVID, burnout in healthcare and other occupations has become a major issue that threatens the wellbeing of staff who work in these ever-stretched systems as well as the ability of the systems themselves to function effectively.

Recent research shows that burnout among doctors is even increasing. Fortunately, the evidence is also clear that self-compassion is an antidote to burnout. Our new book on the self-compassion for burnout explores how individuals and systems facing burnout can resource themselves in these challenging times.

Chris Germer

Chris Germer, PhD is a clinical psychologist and lecturer on psychiatry (part-time) at Harvard Medical School. He co-developed the Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program with Dr. Kristin Neff in 2010, which has been taught to over 250,000 people worldwide. They co-authored two books on MSC, The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook and Teaching the Mindful Self-Compassion Programme.

Dr. Germer spends most of his time lecturing and leading workshops around the world on mindfulness and self-compassion. He is the author of The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion and he co-edited two influential volumes on therapy: Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, and Wisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy. Dr. Germer is a founding faculty member of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy, Cambridge MA, USA as well as the Center for Mindfulness and Compassion, Harvard Medical School. He maintains a small, online psychotherapy practice. www.chrisgermer.com www.centerformsc.org

You can book your ticket here.