With the strain of our job as
consultants or counselors, health and fitness or wellness is very vital to how
we communicate, share our time, listen and take care of our clients, or even
our friends and family besides our success in counseling or consulting.
Vicarious traumatization (VT) also known as compassion fatigue or in mild
cases, burnout - could be a result if counselors do not have an appropriate
personal wellness plan. As counselors (or consultant), we have to be
empathetic, and this kindhearted engagement with disturbed clients and their
reports of unpleasant experiences (job loss, bankruptcy, trauma, death, health
issues, etc) sometimes drains us. Here
are acronyms I created to make it easier for you to remember: Prime Safe:
As a prior military Navy
career counselor, physical exercise is mandatory considering the
remarkable amount of pressure of deployments, combat and everyday duty at an
average of 12 hours/day. Research has
shown that regular physical training or exercise serves to protect the immune
system. Physical activities (workout,
yoga, breathing) serves as an acceptable way to express anxiety, anger,
frustration, feeling out of control, and helplessness (Culligan &
Sedlacek, 1980; DeBenedette, 1988; Kirkcaldy & Shephard, 1990; Rosato,
1990; Sutherland & Cooper, 1990).
So for the first proactive measure, a physically strenuous
workout twice or thrice a week is essential
including a healthy regimen diet. Being said is different from being done. With this hands-on practice of
good daily habits, it needs a robust and
disciplined control to do it. Being on a
team (being in the military is much more
accessible, speaking from my 23-year experience)
makes it more manageable compared
to be an independent counselor because of groupthink
accountability. Without accountability or a partner, wavering of this plan is
imminent.
Effective counseling is not
doable when our wellbeing is out of shape: physically or mentally. Moreover, so mental condition should also be
kept in a way by meditation, journal, yoga, proper breathing or merely reading
a great book (I do all of them and journal seems to be the most effective for me
second to prayer). As a second
proactive measure, I have tried most of them and prayer including journaling is
the one that made a good effect on me for my wellness.
Praying is a dialogue between you and an unseen counselor.
The expression in voice or mind aids the counselor to profess issues or anxiety including VT or compassion fatigue. It goes along with journaling, and the only difference is written scripts
maybe read interchangeably as counselor or counselee while praying is unwritten
yet speaking to an “imaginary” counselor depending on counselors’ religious
conviction.
SAFE: Social, Abilities, Financial & Environmental
Every year from 2005 to 2013, I attended the Navy Counselors
Association held in different parts of
the country with almost 700 Navy
Counselors networking for a one week conference learning new methods, ideas, regulations
about the profession in career counseling. The network of contacts adds or
gives each counselor new perspective on how individual counselors do their
particular job even though they have the career counseling standards posted
online or publicized in instructions. This type of events, as well as local
monthly gathering with like-minded people
at least week, can build confidence, improve work attitude and personal wellness.
A more affordable alternative is proper use of social media or networking groups that can also help us get the right connection. Clean your social media “environment” by filtering all negative clutter in your Facebook pages and try using LinkedIn connections to get you an online mentor. Counselors cannot work all
the time single-handedly. We all need reinforcement from those who have been through the practice of counseling.
Their experience will help sustain both our physical and mental capacity. Joining a social media group and be active on
its benefits
as well as face to face networking.
Write a blog, share your experience and don’t be afraid to
make a wrong grammar or wrong assumptions,
it takes practice, and soon you
can build influence to your followers you
never expected, I did.
If we have issues going on with our family and financial
wellness, can we focus on giving the same
advice to others? It is difficult unless we have
been through it and our mind is clear or stress-free. When we
moved from California to Connecticut then
back to California in a span of 7 years, it took a significant financial toll in our family as we purchased houses
in both places and we could not get a renter and housing market crash. We were devastated and if affected how I did my
counseling and eventually my promotion to higher rank as a counselor.
My wellness was unresolved, and it changed
a big part of my job, not necessarily counseling my clients, but it was later
fixed through proper budgeting,
joining a group called Crown Ministry and having a financial advisor.
The bottom line is our
overall personal wellness: physical,
financial, spiritual, social and mental health is vital for us as a counselor. We have to take care of ourselves first before
we can do it for others and that is not a cliche. Our goal is the same for the client and
practicing what we advocate during our counseling will be evident to all clients (or patients for
clinical counselors). Now that you have
your personal wellness in place you are all set to talk to your client
more efficiently and sincerely ask: How are you doing and how is your well being? What are your skills and passions?
References:
Culligan, M.J., & Sedlacek, K. (1980). How to avoid
stress before it kills you. New York: Gramercy.
DeBenedette, V. (1988). Getting fit for life: Can exercise
reduce stress? The Physician and Sportsmedicine, 16, 185-200.
Kirkcaldy, B.D., & Shephard, R.J. (1990). Therapeutic implications of exercise.
International Journal of Sport
Psychology, 21, 165-184.
Patrick, P. (2007). Contemporary
issues in counseling. Boston, MA: Pearson
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