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A raw and authentic podcast for those who work or volunteer in animal care, welfare, or activism, who are struggling with compassion fatigue, burnout, grief and loss, secondary traumatic stress, and other mental health concerns. Through both solo and guest episodes, I blend science, psychology, spirituality, and even a touch of "woo woo" to help you manage compassion fatigue, build resilience, and make your passion for helping animals sustainable. If you're involved in animal caregiving, rescue, trap-neuter return (TNR), sheltering, animal control, cruelty investigations, veterinary medicine, fostering, wildlife or marine rehabilitation and conservation, animal law or lobbying, ethical veganism, or any other role in animal care, welfare, or activism, and struggling with the consequences of caring so much that it hurts, this podcast is for you!
The host, Jen Blough, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor, compassion fatigue coach and speaker, and author with more than 35 years of experience in animal welfare and activism. She is the author of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior and the upcoming book, Beyond Compassion Fatigue.
Episodes
Friday Nov 07, 2025
Friday Nov 07, 2025
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Are you ready to manage your compassion fatigue? In this episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I introduce you to the Stages of Change model, a therapeutic framework originally developed to help people quit smoking.
We’ll explore how these six stages: Precontemplation, Contemplation, Preparation, Action, Maintenance, and Relapse (or Reset!) show up in the lives of animal welfare workers and advocates. You’ll learn how to identify where you are right now, why every stage is valid, and how to use this awareness to take practical steps toward managing compassion fatigue, building resilience, and preventing burnout.
Whether you’re just beginning to notice the toll this work takes, or you’re actively putting new strategies into place, this episode will give you insight, encouragement, and concrete tools to keep going—without running on empty.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
- What the Stages of Change model is and how it applies to compassion fatigue.
- The six stages of change and how they show up in animal welfare and advocacy work.
- Why ambivalence and setbacks are a normal part of the change process.
- Practical examples of what each stage might look like for someone in rescue, shelter, or advocacy roles.
- How to reframe “relapse” as a reset instead of a failure.
Resources mentioned:
- Free Worksheet: Download your Stages of Change Reflection Worksheet here
- Group Coaching Program: Learn more here
Stay Connected:
- Subscribe to Beyond Compassion Fatigue so you never miss an episode.
- Share this podcast with a friend or colleague in animal welfare who might need encouragement today.
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