The demands placed upon lawyers and that lawyers place upon themselves to excel and win can lead to professional fulfillment and, when pressure mounts, can become overwhelming and depleting. For many lawyers, the intellectual rigors of practice, which involve reading, analyzing, strategizing, drafting, reviewing, and arguing make up much of the landscape of law practice. It is, however, but a partial view. For the heart of our work as legal professionals often touches the heart of who we are as human beings in ways we may not always appreciate, owing to the relentless drive to do well, win, and help solve other people’s problems.

Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., reminds us that the life of the law is not logic, but experience — an insight that runs deeper than even he may have realized. As systemic concerns over lawyer health and well-being take center stage, we are all encouraged to take stock and take action to attend to self-care and the quality of our emotional lives.

Compassion Fatigue