3 Key Takeaways : Lessons Learned as a Humanitarian Worker.

Browsing my LinkedIn feed, I noticed a post from an international organization happily sharing a Humanitarian Worker version of the Barbie doll. This brought me back to my personal experience in the humanitarian field, and here I'll share some basic points:

1. In my first experience as a humanitarian worker in a refugee camp, I started out with great enthusiasm, thinking I would be helping people. But the reality is

 that I didn't help anyone. It was all the immigrant and refugee families I met who helped me mature and grow as a person in all areas of my life.

2. I learned the importance of loving myself and not neglecting my own rest. When you work in constant emergency situations, you can develop Secondary Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. After my first burnout, I realized I had to give myself time, where I could not only process my experiences, but also give myself the opportunity to enjoy the simplicity of life. 

3. Being a humanitarian worker may be the dream job where you think you'll be able to help many people, but in reality, most of the time, the system and bureaucracy prevent you from responding as you should in emergency situations. This not only generates fatigue, which can become chronic, but also a conflict within yourself regarding your own values ​​about life and what it means to act with compassion for other human beings. The latter is a deeply affecting mental health and rarely discussed issue.