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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 Feb 27, 2026
Friday Feb 27, 2026
In this episode, I put on my therapist hat and tackle the complexities of communication in the animal care, rescue, welfare, and activism fields. Recognizing that interactions with colleagues, volunteers, and the public can often become challenging, I draw upon John Gottman's Four Horsemen of Communication. It's a framework originally designed for couples counseling, to illustrate universal communication pitfalls and provide strategies for improvement.
We'll explore:
- The importance of effective communication
- The four horsemen of communication adapted to animal work
- Strategies for dealing with the four horsemen
- Bonus communication tips
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: jen@jenblough.com.
Follow on social media:
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Check out my Compassion Fatigue Skills and Support Circle here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
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