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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 21, 2025
Friday Nov 21, 2025
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In this episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I get real about one of the hardest parts of working in animal welfare and activism: intrusive thoughts. Whether it’s replaying images of suffering animals, obsessing over cases, or feeling stuck in grief, these thoughts can haunt you, especially at night.
I break down why our brains struggle with intrusive thoughts, especially when empathy and repeated trauma are involved. We explore how the nervous system reacts to ongoing secondary trauma and why traditional cognitive strategies may not always work when the suffering we witness is happening right now.
I share practical coping strategies to help you manage these thoughts without denying the reality of animal suffering. I divide them into bottom-up techniques (body-focused) and top-down techniques (mind-focused), including:
- Grounding in the present
- Redirecting with intention
- Extended exhale breathing
- Progressive muscle relaxation
- The STOP skill
- Postpone your worry
These tools are not about “fixing” the world or stopping the thoughts entirely—they’re about protecting your mental health, calming your nervous system, and building resilience so you can continue doing the work you care about without losing yourself to it.
Resources mentioned:
Jason Stephenson's Guided Sleep Meditations
Relax and Rejuvenate with Jason Stephenson
Reach out with your podcast ideas at jen@jenblough.com!
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Check out my Group Coaching Program for Compassion Fatigue here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
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