While empathy is generally an innate quality, it’s a quality many have to nurture and develop. In fact, studies show that some people are born with more empathy than others. One profound example can be found within a publication entitled The Science of Empathy at the National Library of Medicine, which states that empathy is a vital human competency.
It goes on to say that, “In the past, empathy was considered an inborn trait that could not be taught, but research has shown that this vital human competency is mutable and can be taught to health-care providers.”
To support this finding, the study demonstrated that the evidence for patient-rated empathy improved when health care professionals undergo training, especially when that training surrounds empathetic communication skills.
For Kim Fogah, who says caring for others is her true calling, empathy and compassion come naturally. Fogah recently returned to school to pursue her degree in nursing and is at the same time, working at a care facility to help the elderly in her spare time.
“It makes me happy to make their day just a little bit better, or just to see a smile on their face,” says Fogah.
Kim Fogah says her goal is to help others learn how to approach the people in their lives more empathetically. She says everyone is going through their own unique problems and circumstances and the least we can do is be kind to each other.
This is all for good reaon, because caring for others does a lot for your own emotional, spiritual and cognitive health, and this is supported by studies.
“There are remarkable benefits to caretaking that extend far beyond the patient you’re helping,” says Fogah.
There are several studies that explore and highlight the positive effects of caretaking on caretakers themselves.
One study entitled The Healthy Caregiver studies the positive cognitive benefits on the cognitive functions of caretakers over time in midlife. Conducted over a 10-year period, the study found that caregiving was associated with better performance in episodic memory.
In addition, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that while caregiving can be challenging, it also offers significant positive benefits. It can bring personal satisfaction and strengthen relationships, which ultimately has positive emotional and psychological effects.
Not only can caregiving enhance the quality of life for the caregiver, but it’s also innately satisfying for people like Kim Fogah, who have always naturally gravitated towards caregiving.
It’s important to note however that empathy fatigue and over caretaking is a dilemma that must be avoided, and that it’s becoming increasingly prevalent in our modern era of mental overload and competing responsibilities.
Gabor Maté, a world-renowned Canadian physician shared in his seminar called Self-Care for Caretakers that caregivers who are prone to over-caretaking for long periods of time experience an early shortening of their telomeres.
Telomeres are the region of repetitive DNA sequences at the end of a chromosome. Put simply, they look like the ends of a shoelace, and when you undergo significant stress, they can unravel prematurely, aging you faster. Telomeres are just one biomarker of aging affected by over caretaking, stress and burnout.
For Kim Fogah, she finds that caretaking is something she still enjoys and it all comes down to a few reasons: helping others is her true life calling, she ensures to balance time between work and family and she takes much needed time to recharge when necessary.
While Fogah is still completing her education in nursing, she’s excited for the future and to help as many people as possible.
“I love brightening the lives of others and bringing smiles to new faces.”
