With so much suffering going on in the world that’s worthy of our compassion and engagement, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by it even as we have the desire to remain engaged. Secondary traumatic stress is the stress we are exposed to when we interact with other people’s stress, and it manifests at both an individual and societal level. When not managed effectively, it wears us down and diminishes our ability to contribute in a positive way.On this episode of Being Well, Forrest talks with trauma expert Laura van Dernoot Lipsy about how we can better manage secondary traumatic stress, how to avoid burnout and overwhelm, and what it looks like to stay hopeful and live fully in the face of daunting societal challenges.About Our Guest: Laura van Dernoot Lipsky is the founder and director of The Trauma Stewardship Institute and author of Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others and The Age of Overwhelm. She is a widely recognized pioneer in the field of trauma exposure and has worked locally, nationally, and internationally for more than three decades.  Laura is also the host of Future Tripping, a podcast about navigating overwhelm.Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:35: Laura’s personal experience4:10: How secondary trauma shows up for people6:45: Martyrdom and the responsibility of organizations to create sustainable environments10:30: Concern with how trauma is normalized within communities14:10: Internalized oppression and overwhelm in the broader culture17:40: The broader systemic context and the ineffectiveness of burning yourself out21:50: The necessity of taking breaks26:40: How to feel okay taking time to unplug from discourse on charged topics33:35: Differentiating between spheres of control and acknowledging grief37:45: Finding ways to stay hopeful40:35: What Laura is grateful for and stressed about44:35: RecapSupport the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link.Have a question for us? Email: contact@beingwellpodcast.com to submit questions or potential topics you'd like us to explore in future episodes.Sponsors:Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription.Try Splendid Spoon today and take meal-planning off your plate. Just go to SplendidSpoon.com/BEINGWELL for $50 off your first boxConnect with the show:Subscribe on iTunesFollow Forrest on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow Forrest on InstagramFollow Rick on FacebookFollow Forrest on FacebookVisit Forrest's website