The Hidden Cost of Human-Centred Design: Burnout and Emotional Fatigue of Empathetic Designers
The Emotional Weight of Empathy
Human-centred design asks us, Designers, Researchers, Program Managers, and Community Leaders a lot. It invites us to listen deeply, notice pain points, and put ourselves in other people’s shoes.
We came into this field wanting to help others improve their lives. Especially if they’re in a vulnerable situation. So we take on projects involving sensitive areas like healthcare, housing, equality, legal, and human rights.
That level of empathy has a cost.
Designers and Researchers absorb what they witness. Listening to personal stories of hardship, exclusion, or trauma can quietly overload the nervous system. And, we all carry our own personal experiences and stories that can get triggered, too. Over time, many experience emotional fatigue, disconnection, or burnout.
This isn’t a personal failure. It’s a sign of unprocessed emotional load in a system that rarely makes space for regulation and recovery.
The Impact on Empathetic Designers
Empathy is crucial to good design, but empathy without grounding can become unsustainable.
In the famous book on trauma, “The Body Keeps the Score”, Bessel van der Kolk says:
“Repeated exposure to the stories of traumatized people can activate the brain’s stress response, altering the clinician’s or researcher’s nervous system.”
When we are overwhelmed, even small moments can feel too much:
A participant’s distress triggers your own stress response.
A difficult conversation lingers long after the session ends.
You take it home with you, impacting your personal life.
Your productivity suffers; it becomes hard to focus, keep the project moving, and collaborate with the team.
You start to question if this is the career you want to keep working in.
You are burning out. Your nervous system is out of control.
The Organizational Cost of Emotional Fatigue
When individuals burn out, teams and organizations feel it too.
Lower-quality research outcomes.
Distressed researchers and participants.
Reduced collaboration and psychological safety.
Fatigue spreading across team members.
High turnover and disengagement among skilled staff.
Client and sponsor dissatisfaction.
A design practice that ignores the emotional labour of its people risks compromising both well-being and impact.
Grounded designers create better systems. They can stay regulated, think clearly, and connect with participants authentically.
Quick check-in and mini reset
Sit quietly.
Notice where your body feels tight or heavy.
Breathe in for 4 seconds, pause for 4 seconds, out for 6 seconds. Notice what shifts.
➡️ This mini‑reset gives you a moment of regulation before the next session.
Building Capacity for Sustainable Design
Sustainable, ethical design starts with self-awareness and emotional regulation. As changemakers engaging with emotionally draining work, we need to be able to notice when our nervous system is starting to get dysregulated or when we may be getting triggered, and to be able to stay grounded through difficult topics.
This requires internal work, knowledge, and community.
Grounded People Create Grounded Systems
This is why I started Cocoro Colab. I have been a Service Designer/Design Researcher for over 11 years; I am also a licensed Psychotherapist specializing in trauma.
I am creating workshops and programs to help changemakers and design teams:
Recognize the signs of stress and emotional fatigue
Develop nervous system regulation tools to stay grounded
Build capacity for empathy, focus, and resilience
Create psychologically safe, sustainable design environments
Connect with like-minded folks
Let’s build a foundation for doing meaningful, ethical work without losing yourself in the process.
Join the waitlist for upcoming workshops.
Or, if you want to book a workshop, grounding session, or speaking engagement for your team, contact me.
