Dr. Hillary Melchiors sits down with clinical
psychologist Dr. Kerry Makin-Byrd for a grounded, experience-led
conversation about burnout, moral injury, and the emotional weight
of long-term birth and mental health work. Dr. Makin-Byrd reflects
on moving from Colorado to New Zealand and how that shift reshaped
her clinical practice and her own recovery. Taking apart the myth
that burnout is a personal failing, they make the case that
systemic factors, not individual shortcomings, drive the exhaustion
so many birth workers carry. Covering boundary-setting in a field
that rarely rewards it, they directly and practically confront the
value of professional support for providers, and what "good enough"
care actually looks like when perfection stays just out of reach.
This one episode won't define burnout for you, but
speaks honestly about what to do when you're in it, why it is not
your fault, and what might actually help.