Burning Up While Burning Out: Stress Management for Professionals
Burnout and compassion fatigue are used as if they were the same condition. They are not, they come from different places, and what helps one does not reliably help the other. Howard Baumgarten’s starting point is that stress, fatigue and burnout sit on a continuum, that the further along it you are the less emotionally flexible you become, and that the loss of flexibility is what eventually shows up in the work.
He is a licensed professional counselor in Colorado who came to this through his own private practice and through consulting to workplaces on it. He is also clear that stress is not only a mental event. It is a bodily one, and the relationship between the two runs in both directions, which is why the course spends real time on the physical signs clinicians tend to explain away.
Six hours in three modules. The first covers what burnout and compassion fatigue actually are, the role of stress, the signs and symptoms across physical, emotional, mental and behavioural categories, and the beliefs underneath that keep people in it. The second is the theory and research, including compassion as something measurable and trainable, self-compassion, the conflict that arises inside compassion at work, and what happens in the brain and body. The third is the practical half: reframing, intervening when a colleague is fatigued, conflict resolution, mentoring, his own framework of mind and body care, and building compassion practices into a workplace. He works through case studies throughout and the whole course builds toward a plan you write for yourself.
You’ll walk away with
- Burnout and compassion fatigue told apart, with what distinguishes them and why it changes the response
- Where stress, fatigue and burnout sit on a continuum, and how to place yourself or a colleague on it
- Signs and symptoms across physical, emotional, mental and behavioural categories, including the physical ones people explain away
- The beliefs that keep people in compassion fatigue without them noticing
- Why emotional flexibility drops as stress rises, and what that costs clinically
- Compassion treated as trainable and measurable, rather than as a personal quality you either have or do not
- Self-compassion, and why it is the part most clinicians skip
- The brain and body relationship in the stress response, and what to do at each end of it
- Recognising fatigue in a colleague, and a way of intervening that does not make it worse
- Workplace conflict, mentoring, and building compassion practices into a team rather than an individual
- His mind and body care framework, including practical daily strategies
- An individual compassion fatigue management and burnout prevention plan, written by you during the course
Watch the course trailer
CPD Information For Mental Health Professionals
Enjoy complete flexibility with 100% self-paced learning you can access anytime, anywhere, and on any device. This course is included with your Tatra Training membership, along with every other course in the library.
Format: three modules with exercises and case studies, building toward a written plan of your own. Resources are provided throughout.
Where this sits: the longer and more organisational of the two burnout courses in the library. Daniel J. Fox’s The Burnout Solution is shorter and comes at it through emotional intelligence. The two have almost nothing in common beyond the subject.
Course Duration: 6 learning hours
Certificate and CPD hours: On completion you’ll receive a Certificate of Completion to support your CPD records. Your certificates are yours to keep.
Assessment: Complete a short quiz at the end (80% pass mark), which you can resit as many times as needed.
Revisit Anytime: Come back to the course as often as you like while your membership is active, whenever you want a refresher for practice.
CPD Eligibility: This program may be suitable for CPD for professionals such as:
- Psychologists
- Counsellors and Psychotherapists
- Social Workers
- Community Workers
- Mental Health Nurses
- General Practitioners (GPs)
- Occupational Therapists
CPD requirements vary between professional bodies, so please check with your association or credentialing body to confirm you can claim CPD hours/OPD points for this program and what evidence they require.
Course Content
Meet Your Instructor
Mental health professionals struggling to build thriving private practices - or those experiencing burnout from the business side of clinical work - often lack the practical tools and guidance needed to create both professional success and personal fulfillment. Howard Baumgarten has spent over 25 years mastering the intersection of clinical excellence and business acumen, becoming one of Colorado's leading experts in helping therapists build sustainable, profitable practices without sacrificing their passion for helping others.
As Founder and Director of Atomic Behavioral Care and author of Private Practice Essentials: Business Tools for Mental Health Professionals (2017), Baumgarten represents a unique blend of seasoned clinician and successful entrepreneur. His pioneering work at the University of Colorado, where he developed one of the first private practice business courses in a CACREP-approved graduate program, demonstrates his commitment to preparing therapists for real-world business challenges. As a practice builder who helped create one of Colorado's largest private practice group mental health practices, he brings proven strategies that have been tested in competitive markets.
Baumgarten's expertise spans individual, couples, and family therapy, business consulting for mental health professionals, private practice development, resilience training, and compassion fatigue prevention. His approach recognises that clinical skills alone aren't enough - practitioners need business literacy, self-care strategies, and systems thinking to create practices that serve both their clients and their own well-being. He specialises in helping clinicians who feel overwhelmed by the business aspects of practice, those experiencing burnout, or practitioners ready to scale their impact through group practices or consultation services.
What sets his training apart is integration of compassion-based principles with practical business strategies. Baumgarten doesn't just teach marketing tactics - he shows practitioners how to build practices aligned with their values while maintaining healthy boundaries and preventing burnout. His research on compassion fatigue leading to "Integrative Resilience Theory" development reflects his commitment to evidence-based approaches to professional sustainability.
For your practice, expect to gain specific tools for practice management, strategies for preventing compassion fatigue, and frameworks for building resilient professional systems. His approach particularly benefits clinicians transitioning to private practice, those struggling with business aspects of their work, or practitioners wanting to expand their impact through training or consultation.
Quick Win: Baumgarten's "compassion-based business model" helps clinicians align their marketing and service delivery with their core therapeutic values - often increasing both client satisfaction and practitioner fulfillment simultaneously.
Qualifications
- MA, Psychology and Counselor Education, University of Colorado, 1997
- Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Colorado
- Over 25 years clinical experience
- Private practice since 2000
- Member, American Counseling Association (since May 1995)
Authored Publications
- Private Practice Essentials: Business Tools for Mental Health Professionals (2017)
- Research on compassion fatigue and resilience leading to "Integrative Resilience Theory" development
Teaching & Leadership
- Founder & Director, Atomic Behavioral Care, LLC, Denver, CO, 2022–present
- Founder, Smart Practice Central, 2013–present
- Licensed Professional Counselor, Private Practice, Lakewood, CO, 2001–present
- Adjunct Professor, University of Colorado (developed one of first private practice business courses in CACREP-approved program)
- Practice Builder & Manager, one of Colorado's largest private practice group mental health practices
Clinical Background
- Neurobehavioral Counselor & Family Services Coordinator (early career)
- Traumatic brain injury patient and family therapy
- 25+ years experience in individual, couples, and family therapy
- Diverse client populations including adolescents and adults
Speaking & Training
- International lecturer on mental health, business, and wellness since 2008
- Healthcare training conferences and workshops
- Podcast guest: The Juniper Center ("Resilience in the Face of Adversity")
Business Consulting
- Small business consultant specialising in healthcare practices
- Owner of two successful small businesses
- Healthcare Training Leader expert
- Compliance and wellness training specialist
- Specialised in mental health and specialty practices
Ready to build a thriving practice that serves both your clients and your own well-being? Discover how Howard Baumgarten's compassion-based business strategies can help you create professional success without sacrificing the values that drew you to this calling.
Feedback & Reviews
This course includes:
- Lessons 4
- Topics 0
- Duration 6 hours
- Quizzes 1
- Language English