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Staying Grounded in the Work

When clinical work overlaps with our personal experiences, clinicians may notice shifts in emotional reactions, boundaries, or internal dialogue. Self-awareness, boundaries, and support act as anchors, helping clinicians stay steady and effective when the work feels close to home. This page highlights common concerns and practical ways to navigate them.

Practicing with self-awareness is a continuum

All clinicians move along this continuum depending on context, support, and stress. 
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Common Areas of Vulnerability and How to Respond Skillfully

The examples below reflect some common areas of vulnerability. Approaching them with curiosity rather than judgment supports thoughtful, skillful responses.

Common Concern
Over identification
Feeling overwhelmed by the work
Risk of relapse or increased vulnerability
Feeling overprotective of clients
Boundaries when clients learn about your DBT history
Working with clients that are too activating
What it Can Look Like

  • Feeling certain you know what the client “needs”

  • Recommending what worked for you rather than what fits the client

  • Difficulty tolerating a client’s different pace or choices

  • Emotional exhaustion after sessions

  • Reduced capacity for validation

  • Avoidance or dread around certain clients

  • Old urges, thoughts, or behaviors resurfacing

  • Increased emotional reactivity

  • Pull toward overworking or self-neglect

  • Difficulty allowing clients to experience distress

  • Softening limits or rescuing

  • Avoiding rupture or hard conversations

  • Pressure to disclose more than intended

  • Fear of losing credibility or authority

  • Uncertainty about how much is “too much”

  • Strong emotional or physical reactions during or after sessions

  • Difficulty staying grounded or maintaining boundaries

  • Ongoing rumination about the client

What Might Help

  • Regular consultation team check-ins

  • Explicitly asking: “Is this for the client, or for me?”

  • Using chain analysis on therapist reactions, not just client behavior

  • Adjusting caseload balance when possible

  • Naming burnout early in consultation

  • Building intentional recovery rituals after sessions

  • Personal therapy or outside support

  • Clear plans for stepping back if needed

  • Viewing self-care as ethical practice, not indulgence

  • Returning to DBT principles (autonomy, responsibility)

  • Checking assumptions in team

  • Practicing radical acceptance of different paths to recovery

  • Pre-deciding disclosure boundaries

  • Practicing neutral, brief responses

  • Using team consultation to process reactions

  • Naming activation early in consultation

  • Using team support to assess fit or adjust coverage

  • Returning to the treatment model

  • Viewing stepping back as a skillful, ethical choice

Staying grounded in the work is an ongoing practice, especially when your clinical work overlaps with lived experience. Questions about disclosure are often part of that process, and deciding if, when, and how to disclose deserves thoughtful consideration. Click here to learn more about deciding to disclose.

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