As we near the end of the year and Helping Hands Humane Society's whirlwind event season comes to a close, Gremi reflects on the stressful struggles of 2020 through the lenses of compassion fatigue and burnout. We define these terms and relate them to our experiences in animal welfare. We dip a toe into the sea of the topic of self-care, but there's so much more to the story. Every person in our shelter, our community, our nation, and the world is going through their own particular struggle in 2020. A decrease in resources and increase in stress make for difficult days. We'd be honored to hear from our listenership any thoughts or experiences you have regarding compassion fatigue, burnout, and self-care; feel free to email us at [email protected] or [email protected].

Remember that you are enough - you are valuable and worthwhile. Basic reminders like this feel more important than ever in the face of 2020. If you've felt the burden on your shoulders of trying to carry your small business, your non-profit, your family, etc. throughout this global pandemic, I hope you take a moment to stop and soak in the fact that you have been doing amazing things in the face of a difficulty we couldn't have imagined until it was here.

In this episode we also give you an office cat update and a humorous story of all the bad things Grace's pets did this week. We'd love to hear your naughty pet stories - send them to us! Have a safe week.