When Stories Are Hard to Leave Behind — Journalists Find Ways to Cope

Over the past year, Janette Villafana has spent much of her time as a bilingual multimedia journalist. She has documented the immigration raids, arrests and protests across Orange County, Los Angeles and the Inland Empire. 

Her reporting onslaught has at times been so consuming that she has forgotten daily necessities, like eating.

Villafana is not alone. 

The Global Center for Journalism and Trauma highlighted research that shows “between 80 and 100% of journalists have been exposed to a work-related traumatic event.” 

Villafana has experienced burnout three times in the past six years, especially since covering immigration she said. 

Zoë Wong-Weissman is a psychotherapist in San Francisco. 

Burnout looks different for everyone, but common symptoms include feeling overwhelmingly exhausted even with rest and trouble with motivation and decision making. She noted there can also be feelings of numbness and irritability. 

“It’s a sort of trauma from over time being overworked,” Wong-Weissman said. 

While trying to prevent burnout, Wong-Weissman said its important to consider a person’s workload, the nature of their work and the structure of the organization one is working for.

Outside of work, it’s important to be proactive with quality sleep, body movement, hydration and nutrition. Wong-Weissman said people should consider whether they are getting enough social connection and engaging in activities outside of work that feel meaningful and fulfilling. 

Although Villafana admitted that she still struggles with work-life balance, she said that therapy has taught her boundaries and coping skills that help her decompress. 

The relationship journalists have with their editors is pivotal. Her current editor reaches out to Villafana and assigns her lighter stories after harder coverage, she said. 

Dr. Kortni Alston Lemon is a former news director and television reporter who uses her years of experience to help news professionals build healthy workplaces. 

Through her work at her non-profit, the KALM Institute for Workplace Wellbeing, she encourages news leaders to first start with themselves and lead by example by setting work boundaries and having open conversations about taking breaks. She said leaders can then better move forward in being mindful about their team, the stories their covering, and the impact it can have on the newsroom as a whole. 

Ignoring these topics can lead to retention issues. 

Alston Lemon said that responsibility extends beyond newsroom leadership. Through the KALM Institute, she also works to train journalists in Mental Health First Aid, a program designed to help people recognize and respond to someone experiencing a mental health or substance use challenge.

Mental health challenges in journalism aren’t limited to the stories reporters cover. Layoffs, smaller staffs and more journalists competing for fewer traditional newsroom jobs can create additional stress and rejection.

 At first rejection can be jarring. 

“You can very easily start the negative talk once you get rejected from somebody or you get a no,” Villafana said. “Whether it’s for a job or when you’re pitching, you’re trying to get a story out, especially if you’ve done the reporting already.” 

Over time, Villafana said she has learned how to cope with rejection through phrases like “todo a su tiempo,” which translates to everything is going to land at the right place at the right time. Now she asks for feedback, or quickly shifts gears as to where she’s going to pitch next. 

“There’s very little room and a lot of us trying to get a job,” she said.  

For now, Villafana said she sees rejection as a positive.  

“It forces you to keep going, to keep fighting for the story to get published or if the story is missing something, it helps to be a better reporter,” she said.  

Rejection itself is one pressure, but for journalists covering traumatic events, the stories can be difficult to leave behind. 

For Villafana, learning about the lives and families of those in detention centers can be heavy. She often visits those impacted and sees how they are physically and mentally changed. She said it can be hard to not feel emotional after interviewing someone who reminds her of her own family, and to fight the feeling that she can do more. 

“On the drive back home, I do cry,” Villafana said. “I have to. I have to let it out. I cry because we’re human at the end of the day.” 

Villafana’s experience illustrates why mental health can’t be treated as something journalists have to manage alone, or be seen as simply “part of the job.”

Various journalism organizations are starting to prioritize mental health resources, but Alston Lemon said there is still much work to be done.

Alston Lemon highlighted the Self Investigation Mental Health in Journalism Summit, and multiple organizations such as NABJ, AAJA NAHJ and SPJ for championing journalists’ mental health through various resources, conferences and governing boards. 

“Hopefully, what will happen is that more people will stop thinking, ‘pull yourself together,’” said Alston Lemon. “And some of them will start saying, ‘let’s pull together’ to create more caring organizations that serve our team.” 

JOUR•Ed Voices