ABSTRACT

Occupational stress arises from an imbalance between the demands of a job and workplace environment on the one hand, and the existing goals, expectations and capabilities of the people who need to meet these demands on the other. Particularly stressful jobs are those which involve working with people. But even among such occupations, there are vast differences. This chapter aims to draw attention to the effects that working with people in need has on the private and professional lives of helpers, to introduce several simple self-help techniques and to offer ideas to successfully safeguard the mental health of the professional helpers. Professional helpers, particularly those who work with children, are generally characterized by a very altruistic and humanistic value system, which was also the reason they chose a social profession. This value system sometimes leads to excessive identification with the profession, which ultimately overwhelms the professional helper’s private and family lives completely.