Anxiety, burnout at work, chronic fatigue and disrupted interpersonal relationships are the most common reasons why journalists in Montenegro seek psychological help. Since work and private life often intertwine, they also seek help for problems that affect their daily lives as a whole.
However, they often ask for help too late, she told "Vijesti". Dragana Djokic, a psychotherapist who has been providing support to media employees for a long time through projects of a representative union.
"Most of them came to seek psychological support after years or even decades of exposure to various stressors, feeling that something was wrong and that they needed help."
He also points out that, unlike their older colleagues, young journalists today are more aware that stressful work can endanger their mental health and therefore make more efforts to protect it.
The Media Union of Montenegro (SMCG) said that journalists and media workers are suffering from a variety of pressures, and that unstable contracts and low salaries are affecting the psychological health of media employees. They are telling employers that they must systematically regulate working conditions, and not suppress the consequences when people are already "snapped".
Tomorrow, Montenegro marks Journalists' Day, marking January 23, 1871, when the first issue of the newspaper "Crnogorac" was published.
When even rest doesn't help
The Media Union said that journalists and media workers in Montenegro are exposed to a combination of pressures that build on each other:
"Overload and constant deadlines in newsrooms that are mostly understaffed, exposure to online attacks, threats and harassment that easily spill over into private life, various forms of pressure that encourage self-censorship and narrow professional autonomy, as well as emotionally demanding reporting on violence, accidents and tragedies, often without sufficient time and support for recovery," they state.
All of this, they said, is further exacerbated by job insecurity and constant uncertainty about contracts, payments, and professional futures.
The Union's allegations are confirmed by the experience of psychotherapist Dragana Đokić in working with journalists.
According to her, burnout at work is a very common occurrence, "especially among journalists who have been working for years in conditions of overload and insecure employment relationships."
"Psychological fatigue accumulates over time and is often manifested through loss of motivation, feelings of emotional exhaustion, and a reduced ability to recover from stress. Anxiety often occurs as a result of constant exposure to stressful and crisis topics, tight deadlines, public pressure, and the need to be constantly informed and available," she said.
The first sign of "burnout" in a media worker is not a complete collapse, says Đokić, but rather "a subtle but persistent exhaustion that doesn't go away even after a break."
“This often manifests itself through a feeling that every new task is too much effort, a loss of enthusiasm for work that previously had meaning, as well as increased irritability and cynicism.”
Many media employees at that stage, she said, also notice a drop in concentration, find it harder to make decisions, and feel emotionally "detached from the topics they report on."
Necessary editorial support
According to Dragana Đokić, it is necessary to take a different perspective and raise awareness of the importance of mental health, resources, capacities, as well as the conditions in which media workers find themselves.
A good start, she says, is setting boundaries, communicating your needs, and taking care of your own.
"Also, introducing new things and changing routines, physical activity above all, writing a diary, talking about your feelings, spending more time in nature, adequate hydration and nutrition, and a slightly slower pace," advises the interviewee of "Vijesti".
According to her, this can influence and make a change, but that change, she adds, must necessarily come from the system, the way work tasks are organized, and superiors must introduce some new policies.
"If that doesn't happen and if the newsrooms don't provide psychologists, all these individual efforts are very small and barely noticeable. It's like you're building and someone is tearing it down, only when you start building together will that common goal make sense," she said.
The Media Union believes that mental health is still not being taken into account sufficiently in most newsrooms and that this is done "without clear standards".
"Mental health is often left to the individual, instead of being part of organizational culture, human resource management, and occupational safety," they said, adding that the issue must be treated systematically, not ad hoc.
Employers to understand the seriousness of the situation
The issue of systemic changes in this regard must be taken seriously by employers, say the Media Union:
"Because it's not about 'comfort', but about the sustainability of the profession and the safety of people who do work in the public interest."
As they said, the formation of a national Mechanism for the Safety of Journalists can bring an important part of protection, including a faster and more coordinated response by institutions, monitoring of cases, and providing legal and psychological support, but, they believe, it cannot replace the responsibility of media outlets.
"And on the very path to the mechanism, it was clearly emphasized that it requires coordination and cooperation between media, owners, and editors, together with the police and prosecutor's office, through clear protocols," the Media Union said.
Therefore, they emphasized, the message to employers must be direct:
"If we want professional, free and stable media, you must systematically regulate working conditions, and not suppress the consequences when people have already 'snapped'. Our suggestions are that employers finally introduce more stable and dignified working conditions in the media, with salaries that match the responsibility of the job, because insecurity and low income directly feed chronic stress and push people out of the profession," they said.
At the same time, the Union adds, it is necessary to realistically organize work in editorial offices, with clear norms, a sufficient number of employees, less overtime, mandatory rest, and rotation on the most stressful tasks.
"Finally, psychological support must become standard, confidential and accessible, in a culture where seeking help is not a stigma but a normal part of caring for professional safety and health. The Media Union of Montenegro is here to be a partner, to help with advice, services and advocacy, but employers must take their share of responsibility in practice, every day," they said.
Support service through the Media Union
The Media Union of Montenegro, with the support of the Fojo Media Institute from Sweden, established a Psychological Support Service in 2023, which includes counseling, education and campaigns, as well as individual and group therapy, along with a permanent support group.
"In addition, we organized training with a special focus on psychological first aid, and some of the training participants were also defined as contact points in their media outlets to make support more available in practice," they told "Vijesti".
Over the past year, they said, the service provided around 120 individual consultations to SMCG members, which, they said, "speaks sufficiently about the need for this type of support for the media community."
"As an additional layer of protection, SMCG also provides a Legal Support Service (legal advice and representation) in the areas of safety threats, discrimination at work, and labor rights, because legal uncertainty and unregulated relationships often directly worsen the psychological state of employees."
Good working conditions are a prerequisite for good health
Uncertain contracts and low salaries have a strong and long-term impact on the psychological health of journalists, as they mean constant uncertainty and prolonged financial stress, said the Media Union.
"This leads to a feeling of constant vulnerability, reduces resistance to pressure, increases the risk of burnout and increases anxiety. In practice, people postpone rest, treatment and recovery, work on multiple jobs in parallel and enter chronic exhaustion. In the trainings we have conducted, we insist that 'psychological safety' is a standard that must be built through working conditions, not only through individual stress-coping techniques," they say.
Journalists have a life outside of work.
Media Bureau journalist Petar Klakor also believes that journalism is extremely stressful, especially under the influence of modern and new technologies.
For him, the biggest challenge of the profession is that preparing journalistic texts and press releases almost constantly occupies media workers, even in their free time.
"... that you have to be constantly available and that there is no possibility of planning private obligations, especially not in the long term. Due to sudden filming, you often have to cancel dates, socializing, trips, and even medical checkups. This is how family, friendship, and emotional relationships suffer, which certainly creates frustration," he said.
As he said, it would be ideal if there was strong support and empathy in every editorial office, "because everyone's goal is to inform the public as best as possible."
"I am lucky to work in a team where we help each other, strive to make each other's work easier, talk openly about problems, and do not see work as a competition, but as a shared mission. If there are tensions in the team, it makes the work even more difficult and creates greater pressure on mental health. In all the speed of work, we must not forget that colleagues working in the editorial office are people with emotions, different thoughts and complex lives outside of work," Klakor assessed.
Responding to a question from "Vijesti" about how he protects himself from professional "burnout", Klakor points out that he "tries to enjoy all the positive aspects of the profession."
"I draw new energy from conversations with colleagues and interlocutors in the field, and for each success I strive to reward myself with small pleasures. I strive to complete all my daily duties, and when I feel overwhelmed, I take breaks to walk, listen to music, or have a delicious meal. I often remember why I chose this profession and why I find myself in it. I try not to let the negative pressures on my mental health outweigh the positive aspects of this job."
Bonus video:
