A Modern Nonprofit Podcast: Trauma & Mental Health in the Workplace

‘Being a human is messy; serving humanity is messier.’ 

These are the words of Dimple Dhabalia, our guest on today’s episode and founder of Roots in the Clouds (RITC). Dimple’s career started in Denver where she worked on abuse and neglect cases within the Department of Human Services. 

Story after story, testimony after testimony began to take a toll on our guest. A phrase that came to her over and again was the phrase, vicarious trauma. 

This is defined as an occupational challenge for people working and volunteering in the fields of victim services, law enforcement, emergency medical services, fire services, and other allied professions, due to their continuous exposure to victims of trauma and violence by the Office for Victims of Crime. 

The hardships of those Dimple was helping, also created hardships in her own life as well. In our society today, mental health is a rising issue and a topic not covered enough. Many deal with mental health concerns, but feel as if they have no one to talk to, or a lack of understanding of the help that is available to them. Of that many, Dimple was one of them, so she decided to bring awareness to health and well-being in the workplace. 

Her story took off when she recognized that many ‘solutions’ to the mental health problem, especially in the workplace, revolved around an individual and their own efforts. She felt as if organizations needed a deeper look at each person in order to help them effectively. 

Dimple is the author of Tell Me My Story – Challenging the Narrative of Service Before Self. 

A book written to ‘help the helpers’ as one reviewer writes, Dimple’s story is written from the perspective of a leader in the humanitarian field that addresses the issues of burnout, compassion fatigue, and vicarious trauma. 

In alignment with her book (and previously mentioned), she is the founder of RITC. An organization that seeks to  illustrate this thought: 

Imagine what might be possible if you could serve others without sacrificing your own mental health and well-being in the process. 

Examples of Mission Driven Occupational Trauma 

The most common term recognized when it comes to occupational trauma is burnout. Unfortunately, many other occupational trauma terms also get lumped together under the ‘burnout umbrella’. 

Dimple shares that burnout is a very specific type of occupational trauma. She defines it as, ‘a prolonged physical and psychological exhaustion that is specifically related to the work that individuals do.’  Although burnout is very real and in nearly every industry, Dimple likes to also focus on the areas that are specific to humanitarian work. Or those in the business of alleviating pain and suffering in the world. 

On top of burnout, these folks can also experience vicarious trauma and secondary traumatic stress. The two terms, used interchangeably, can have very diverse meanings. We mentioned vicarious trauma previously, and it’s important to understand that it is built up and happens over time. Secondary traumatic stress on the other hand, can occur from a single incident. 

Another example is compassion fatigue. Here is where many of those who are serving others hit their walls. The place in their work where they have nothing left to give, and like it sounds, a place where it is hard to feel compassionate for others due to the fatigue that is generated from the act. 

Finally, moral injury is the result of when an individual’s values don’t align with the organization’s values. Or an individual may be asked to go against their own deeply held morals and beliefs. Something Dimple says is very prominent in the world and culture today. 

This is an area that can actually be a large issue in the workplace. Dimple shares that many times businesses have a focus and mission to serve others, but that ethos is not reflected to those who are the ones actually doing the work. 

Further Understanding Moral Injury 

Tosha latches onto the idea of moral injury and wants to dig deeper into the topic with Dimple. The question arises, ‘How does this show up in the workplace? & How can the workplace and its employees begin to heal from this trauma? 

Simply put, moral injury is an internal conflict that is felt when professional duties don’t align with personal values. 

Dimple shares that this term was coined in the military, where acts like war can certainly create internal conflicts. Another example of this in the workplace seen most recently was the pandemic. The challenges of asking employees to come to work with insufficient PPE or deciding who goes on the last ventilators. These are extremely challenging and traumatic decisions that many leaders had to make. Not to mention the frustration coming from families who were unable to see their sick family members. So as an employee, this can certainly be experienced on all sides. 

Because of these difficult decisions and circumstances, Dimple believes that organizations need to create cultures that value open communication about ethical issues. Even more so, addressing the need for more transparency in how decisions are made and why they are made from the forefront. 

In essence, implementing practices in the workplace that address mental health complications are much needed. Not only initially, but consistently. The key with it all is the idea that people perceive that they are alone when in reality there are many cases when they are not. Most often than not, someone else experiences the same battle as the next. 

Perception is the clue. Everyone experiences things in their own way, so often the lens in which we view things becomes the powerful tool necessary for addressing some of these issues. 

How Can Leaders Help?

Tosha asks what might be the most important question of the interview, ‘How do leaders lean in to benefit or show support to their employees given the complexities of the workforce today? ‘

There is a line that is tip-toed here and Dimple addresses it head on. She shares that while businesses are cautious to bring up mental health assistance because of their ability to navigate it, mental health in itself is one of the biggest challenges that faces the workforce today. 

So again, back to Tosha’s point – how can it be addressed? 

Dimple tells us that if an organization doesn’t have the bandwidth to address these issues, then it’s extremely important to partner with those who can. 

On a more surface level though, simply addressing the issues out loud can prove to show significance. Dimple hits a key aspect of the realities of human interaction and data driven projects. There are quantitative aspects of business. Measurements & metrics typically drive business decisions and policies. The qualitative piece however can prove that by bringing mental health into the workforce and making it a pillar for decision making can be an excellent practice where leaders can assist. 

When it comes to questions like the amount of individuals needed for a project or the overall workload required, asking what the health and well-being consequences of those metrics will be, is a revolutionary aspect to the way business is done today. 

Dimple views these moves as an investment into the workforce, not a therapy session. It shows that people care about one another, and ultimately could result in staying power for the employees and retention for the employers. 

When it’s all said and done, Dimple has invested time and resources into expressing and teaching the ways that people are impacted by external circumstances. Even deeper, how those who are helping these individuals are impacted by the stories that are told. 

If you enjoyed Dimple & Tosha’s conversation be sure to look at Dimple’s website, Roots in the Clouds (RITC) or her book releasing in February of 2024, Tell Me My Story – Challenging the Narrative of Service Before Self. 

Please be sure to engage with the interview. Whether you enjoy listening to it, reading about it, or watching us on YouTube, make sure you review, share, and engage with A Modern Nonprofit Podcast. You can find Tosha and the Charity CFO team on Youtube or our website, thecharitycfo.com!

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