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Burke Harris, N. (2015, February 17). How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime [Video]. TED MED. https://www.ted.com/talks/nadine_burke_harris_how_childhood_trauma_affects_health_across_a_lifetime

Crandall, A., Miller, J., Cheung, A., Novilla, L. K., Glade, R., Novilla, M. L. B., Magnusson. B. M., Leavitt, B. L. Barnes, M. D., & Hanson, C. L. (2019, October). ACEs and counter-ACEs: How positive and negative childhood experiences influence adult health. Child Abuse & Neglect, 96, Article 104089. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2019.104089

Fullen, M. C., Granello, D. H., Richardson, V. E., & Granello, P. F. (2018, October). Using wellness and resilience to predict age perception in older adulthood. Journal of Counseling & Development, 96(4), 424-435. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12224

Myers, J. E., & Sweeney, T. J. (2007). Wellness in counseling: An overview. Professional Counseling Digest.  American Counseling Association.
https://www.counseling.org/resources/library/ACA%20Digests/ACAPCD-09.pdf

Newman, B. M., & Newman, P. R. (2018). Development through life: A psychosocial approach (13th ed.). Cengage Learning, Inc.

Starecheski, L. (2015, March 2). Take the ACE quiz — and learn what it does and doesn't mean. Shots: Health News From NPR. Retrieved June 4, 2023, from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/03/02/387007941/take-the-ace-quiz-and-learn-what-it-does-and-doesnt-mean

Zarnello, Lisa. (2023). Implementing trauma-informed care across the lifespan to acknowledge childhood adverse event prevalence: best clinical practices. Nurse Practitioner, 48, 14-21. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NPR.0000000000000002

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As future clinical mental health counselors, we must first protect our own wellness in order to help the clients we will be serving. This article directs counselors to ask themselves: "How do we go about healing ourselves as counselors and promoting wellness in our own lives?" (Blount et al., 2016). After a counselor is able to answer this question, then they can begin the process of helping clients promote wellness and be successful in their everyday lives.

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The concept of wellness can be found across history, from ancient civilizations through the foundational tenets and ethical codes of contemporary counseling and allied mental health and medical disciplines. Counseling professionals in particular have embraced a holistic, wellness-oriented approach that contrasts with traditional medical/illness models, and many of our theoretical approaches have adopted health-enhancing, prevention-oriented ideals. As a result, counselors serve as agents of wellness promotion and models of wellness by integrating and practicing wellness-based philosophies and practices in their personal and professional lives.

The notion of "therapist, heal thyself" is often used to suggest that helping professionals can and will, simply by virtue of their knowledge of wellness ideals and practices, be better prepared to address life's diverse challenges. Although counselors certainly possess a dynamic range of concepts and interventions that can be applied in times of distress (and eustress), we remain susceptible to life's idiosyncrasies just as our friends, families and, yes, clients do. Our effectiveness in serving others as counselors, then, is often connected to our ability to maintain a wellness perspective in our own lives.

The question is: How do we go about healing ourselves as counselors and promoting wellness in our own lives? Awareness appears to be a significant first step in promoting counselor wellness.

A common view of wellness depicted in the media is the notion of "I must," which suggests that people must do specific things and take explicit actions to be considered healthy. For example, obtaining eight hours of sleep per night and drinking eight glasses of water per day are often cited as keys to good health. We are also told that weight training, cardiovascular exercise, a specific body mass index and consistent social interactions are requisites for health and wellness. Although few would argue that these factors have positive wellness implications, actually attaining all the media-driven perceptions of an ideal wellness state is unreasonable, if not impossible, for many individuals.

The concept of wellness among counseling and allied health professionals provides a healthier, holistic and evidence-based understanding of wellness. In effect, paying attention to the totality of one's personal wellness facilitates a more accurate perception of wellness and allows one to devise more intentional, individualized wellness plans.

Increasing counselors' awareness of their current wellness states is an essential component in healing, maintaining wellness and promoting wellness in others. We view wellness in two forms: perceived wellness and aspirational wellness.

Perceived wellness refers to individuals' self-understanding of their wellness levels, whereas aspirational wellness refers to the level of wellness people wish to achieve. Similar to the concept of cognitive dissonance and the differences between actual and ideal individual states, this perspective of wellness looks at where people are and where people want to be in relation to their personal well-being.

When people are struggling, who they are (how they perceive themselves) can be vastly different from who they want to be (their aspirations). For example, if we look in the mirror and don't like what we see, it is likely that there is a discrepancy between what we are seeing (e.g., physically, mentally, emotionally) and what we desire for ourselves. The central idea is that the less discrepancy that exists between one's perceived and aspirational wellness, the higher one's potential is for optimal holistic wellness (i.e., if who I am is close to who I want to be, I am more likely to experience well-being). Conversely, the higher the discrepancy is between perceived and aspirational wellness, the less likelihood there is for achieving advanced well-being.
Assessing your wellness
Contemporary wellness models continue to evolve, providing us with expanding views of the meaning and structure of wellness, as well as numerous interventions and strategies for improving distinct aspects of wellness. Although these models have increased our understanding of wellness as a holistic concept, there remains a need to clarify and address the distinctions between perceived and aspirational wellness.

To assess the wellness discrepancies in helping professionals (counselors, psychologists and social workers), two of the authors of this article, Ashley J. Blount and Glenn W. Lambie, developed the Helping Professional Wellness Discrepancy Scale(HPWDS). The wellness domains measured within the HPWDS are:

Professional and personal development activities

Religion/spirituality

Leisure activities

Burnout

Optimism

The professional and personal development activities domain includes activities such as furthering knowledge in personal and professional arenas, reading or conducting research relating to the helping professions and taking actions to advance general knowledge (e.g., reading a book, attending seminars or conferences).

The religion/spirituality domain involves partaking in activities centered on advancing spirituality or religious rigor. Examples include having religious or spiritual beliefs that are sustaining, engaging in prayer, experiencing satisfaction with spiritual or religious activity and meditating with a focus on a higher power or spiritual entity. Spirituality and religion have roots in the wellness literature and are included in the majority of wellness and wellness-related models and assessments.

Theleisure activities domain refers to engaging in free-time activities and time away from work or chores. This factor can include time spent with others socially or time spent alone. Regardless, leisure time is influential in maintaining well-being.

The burnout domain involves feeling exhausted, run-down, worn out and stressed as a helping professional. Correlations between burnout and unwellness are found throughout the counseling literature, and it is logical that if we are struggling in our work environment, this will overflow into our personal lives as well. Burnout influences us on many levels and can have a negative effect on our well-being.

Finally,the optimism domain is considered a universal construct and is associated with health and well-being. Helping professional optimism includes feeling optimistic personally (e.g., "I am hopeful about my future") and feeling optimistic about clients' futures.

Each of the five domains contributes to helping professionals' overall health and well-being. Increasing your knowledge about your personal experiences in any of these areas can boost your wellness awareness and help you make positive life changes.
Informal wellness assessments
If taking a wellness assessment isn't on the docket, counselors can choose from other techniques oriented toward wellness awareness. One example is the Wellness Starfish awareness technique, which is based on the sea star balancing exercise developed by Lennis G. Echterling and colleagues (2002).

Here, the first step involves drawing a starfish on a blank piece of paper and filling in each "arm" with an area of life that you feel is important to your well-being (e.g., family time, spirituality, walking with the dog). The wellness starfish example shown [in the print version of this article in Counseling Today] contains the wellness-influencing factors of Jane E. Myers, Richard M. Luecht and Thomas J. Sweeney's Five Factor Wellness Inventory (2004).

Second, take a couple of minutes to process the items you have written down. Next, consider that starfish are rarely the symmetrical, five-armed creatures we are accustomed to seeing represented in pictures and posters. In reality, starfish can be unevenly proportioned and may even lose and regenerate an appendage during their lifetime. This unique ability to regenerate, or actively change, is central to achieving aspirational wellness. Thus, the final step involves drawing a second wellness starfish, but this time with arm lengths that correspond to your "aspirations" for each area. For example, if your relationship with your partner contributes (or if you want it to contribute) most to your well-being, that area would be represented with the longest arm. See the figure on the lower right for an example of a recreated wellness starfish.

Now consider your new wellness starfish. Which arms are longer or shorter? Why is that? Do any of the shorter arms or missing arms constitute areas that need work in your life or areas in which you could make a change to start the regeneration process? As this simple exercise demonstrates, informal assessment techniques can be tremendously effective in helping you learn about your personal wellness and highlight areas for future growth and development.

Another useful technique involves creating an individualized wellness plan. The plan can contain a single area or many areas for growth. This written plan can follow established wellness tenets such as Bill Hettler's Six Dimensions of Wellness (i.e., emotional, occupational, physical, social, intellectual and spiritual), the HPWDS tenets discussed earlier or areas that are based on personal experiences. Regardless of how a wellness domain is labeled, assuming and maintaining an aspirational stance can help ensure that one's aspirational goals remain the central focus.

The example [in the print version of this article in Counseling Today], adapted from Darcy H. Granello and Mark E. Young (2012), provides a sound framework for addressing key factors that can either support or act as barriers to one's well-being.
Wellness as prevention
Roughly 75 percent of health care dollars in the United States are spent on treating chronic diseases, whereas only around 1 percent goes to the prevention of illness. Assigning more value to a wellness perspective could help mitigate or even eliminate many illnesses by refocusing attention on lifestyle strategies that are conducive to improving overall well-being. Consider that prominent diseases such as diabetes, coronary heart disease and obesity are often associated with unhealthy lifestyle choices. Adopting a wellness-oriented outlook and lifestyle can lead to positive changes in our diets and our physical and leisure activities.

Wellness is something that is fluid. Because it remains dynamic, it provides individuals with opportunities for change. The challenge for many of us, of course, is awareness and integrating these new behaviors into our lives. Along with adopting a wellness-oriented lifestyle, this requires learning to navigate the discrepancies between who we are and who we want to be, increasing our personal awareness and, ideally, enhancing personal well-being.
Wellness at work
Aligning our lifestyles with a holistic wellness approach can also have considerable occupational benefits for us as counselors. Gerard Lawson (2007) highlighted several key career-sustaining behaviors for counselors that can, by extension, have a positive impact on client outcomes. These behaviors include:

Maintaining a sense of humor

Spending time with your partner/family

Maintaining a balance between your professional and personal life

Maintaining self-awareness

Maintaining a sense of control over work responsibilities

Reflecting on positive experiences

Trying to maintain objectivity

Engaging in quiet leisure activities

Maintaining professional identity

Participating in continuing education

Some other counselor behaviors found to be beneficial include:

Consulting with colleagues

Attending trainings/conferences

Socializing

Receiving supervision

Limiting caseloads

Attending personal counseling sessions

Although individual needs and expectations will vary, failing to attend to personal wellness is a recipe for poor wellness outcomes, both at home and at the office. Conversely, the activities aimed at raising awareness of wellness are numerous and can be tailored to each counselor's personal and professional needs.

There is likely no shortage of counseling professionals who feel a bit hypocritical when advocating for their clients to adopt a wellness orientation while simultaneously struggling to maintain balance in their own lives. Even Carl Rogers noted, "I have always been better at caring for and looking after others than I have been at caring for myself."

Often, the challenge for counselors is not ignorance of the wellness literature or the benefits of wellness, but rather the tendency to forgo our own wellness for the sake of caring for clients and others within our spheres of influence. Thus, adopting or rededicating ourselves to a lifestyle that recognizes our own needs and desires is key to maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
Conclusion
The American Counseling Association, the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs and the American Psychological Association all support the idea of monitoring the wellness of helping professionals. The HPWDS is a tool that helping professionals can use to assess their areas of wellness strength (low discrepancies between where they are and where they would like to be) and wellness areas for growth (high discrepancies between where they are and where they would like to be). Other wellness assessments (whether formal or informal) can be tailored to meet individual preferences and needs to increase overall well-being.

When it comes to our personal wellness, we often think, "I'll start next week" or "I'll get around to that." It is easy to put ourselves below work deadlines, client responsibilities, family duties - the list goes on and on. Unless we are functioning well, however, we are setting a poor example for the people around us. And beyond that, we may not be providing the best services to
our clients.

*****

Knowledge Share articles are developed from sessions presented at American Counseling Association conferences.

Ashley J. Blount is an assistant professor at the University of Nebraska Omaha. She is a national certified counselor and chair of the American Counseling Association Graduate Student Committee. Her research interests include wellness counseling, counselor education and supervision, and counseling athletes and former athletes. Contact her at ablount@unomaha.edu.

Glenn W. Lambie is chair of the Department of Child, Family and Community Sciences and a professor of counselor education at the University of Central Florida. He is an American Counseling Association fellow, a national certified counselor, a national certified school counselor and a certified clinical mental health counselor. His research interests include counselor development and supervision, counseling children and adolescents, and professional school counseling.

Daniel B. Kissinger is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Counseling at the University of Nebraska Omaha. He is a licensed independent mental health practitioner and certified professional counselor. His research interests include the student-athlete experience, wellness and clinical supervision.

Letters to the editor: ct@counseling.org

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Opinions expressed and statements made in articles appearing on CT Online should not be assumed to represent the opinions of the editors or policies of the American Counseling Association.

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The concept of wellness can be found across history, from ancient civilizations through the foundational tenets and ethical codes of contemporary counseling and allied mental health and medical disciplines. Counseling professionals in particular have embraced a holistic, wellness-oriented approach that contrasts with traditional medical/illness models, and many of our theoretical approaches have adopted health-enhancing, prevention-oriented ideals.

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Check out this resource on wellness in counseling, which covers basic facts and benefits of self-care, self-care myths, and ways to practice self-care.

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On this page:
About Self-Care

When we feel stressed, it is easy to stop doing things that replenish our energy and keep us going through the difficult phases of college life. Self-care is the active participation of enhancing your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and quality of life. It can alleviate some of your stress. It is important to maintain both the physical and mental components of self-care in order to achieve an overall state of wellness. Physical and mental health can balance your mind and body, which are essential to achieving wellness for optimal functioning. There are behavioral, relational, and internal self-care strategies.

Benefits of Self-Care

1. Being at your best

2. Maximizing your potential

3. Improving your quality of life

4. Increasing your physical and mental resources to deal with stressors

Self-Care Myths

Myth: I need to stay up late to study for an exam.
FACT: Good sleep helps with memory. Sleep helps you better store the information you've learned in your memory, so that you can better recall it on an exam. Cramming before an exam, especially at the expense of sleep, is a bad strategy. Sleep is also important for energy and mental sharpness, two factors related to doing well on an exam. Want to do well, get a good night's rest.

Myth: I don't have enough time to eat early in the day.
FACT: Food is fuel. Food intake is part of a chemical process impacting energy and a host of other systems that directly relate to positive performance. It doesn't take a lot of time to eat a piece of fruit or to prepare a sandwich to carry and eat. If you are not eating until late in the day, consider that your schedule is too jammed, too hectic. Consider that without the benefit of food you will be more fatigued, more mentally foggy, more easily stressed, and more likely to perform poorly.

Myth: I need to be strong and do it by myself.
FACT: That makes no sense! When did it become a sign of strength to make things harder for ourselves by not utilizing the help and resources around us? A university is invested in student success, students staying in school and graduating. There are offices and people devoted to helping students with studying, physical and mental health, connection and activity, and just about anything else you can think of. Students who study in groups often perform better than those who study alone. Asking for help can be hard but can spare you lots of pain down the road. You can CHOOSE the harder way but you'll pay for it later (and your performance will suffer).

Myth: I couldn't do my schoolwork because I had to go to my job.
FACT: Many students need to work in order to get through school. However, remember you are working TO GO TO SCHOOL. School is your priority. If that isn't true, maybe you should consider if school is something you are committed to, something that you want to be doing. It is okay to choose to work and return to school at a later time. It is okay to choose to work because right now in your life school isn't a good fit for you. Maybe you haven't asked for what you need at work, like time off or a flexible schedule. Have you made it clear school is your top priority? Have you looked into other funding options like grants, loans or scholarships? If working makes you unable to perform in school, rethink what you are doing before you waste your time and money.

Myth: I don't have time to....
FACT: Focus on building your time management and organizational skills. See: Academic Success Strategies Purchase and use a planner (can be electronic). Don't wait until the last minute for assignments. Organize and clean your living space.

Myth: All of this is easy to say but hard to do.
FACT: It can be hard. Some of it is easy. It can be done. Thousands of students before you have done it. Perseverance is critical to success. Believing that if you continue to work toward a goal that you will succeed increases the likelihood that you will, in fact, succeed.

Ways to Engage in Self-Care

There are multiple ways to engage in self-care. The following are a few suggestions:

Physical Self-Care

Get enough sleep-Most people need 7-8 hours of sleep each night in order to feel feel, refreshed, and energetic in the morning. Sleep disturbances can affect your work performance. You can improve your sleep habits by having a regular sleep schedule. This includes weekends! A single day of deviance from the sleep schedule can confuse your body. (Eng & Relme, 2014; Fletcher et. al., 1996; Kruger, 1989; Rosekind et. al., 2010)

Exercise-Physical activity for 20-30 minutes each day helps in reducing your body's physical reaction to stress by relaxing muscle tension. It also helps in relaxing negative thoughts, reducing anxiety, and boosting your confidence. (Petruzello, Landers, Hatfield, Kubitz & Salazar, 1991)

Pay attention to your nourishment-Nourishing your body and mind with a healthy diet can help you stay focused and keep your body satisfied. Replace fast-food with smaller healthy meals every 3-4 hours and stay hydrated. Skipping meals can deprive your body from energy and dehydration can increase physical and mental stress, which can limit your performance. (Can et. al., 2000; Soh, Walter, Baur, & Collins, 2009).

Engage in relaxing activities-Relaxation replenishes your mental resources and helps your body recover by decompressing the muscles. Relaxation activities may vary from a calm stroll through a park to taking a bath, to deep breathing exercises, to meditation and mindfulness. Find what works best for you. Be sure to make time for it in your schedule, even for 10 minutes.

Emotional Self-Care

Smile-Research shows that smiling, even if you don't feel like it, can change your mood. Your brain cannot tell the difference between a real smile and a fake smile. So, when you smile, even in the lack of a humorous stimulus, your facial muscles communicate positive feelings to your brain. So, say cheese and smile away! (Strack, Martin & Stepper, 1988)

Help others-Helping someone else can make you feel good about yourself. It also increases hopefulness and optimism. Helping others promotes gratification and can shift your attention from negative thoughts and feelings towards fulfillment and optimism. (Glomb, Bhave, Miner, & Wall, 2011)

Practice optimism-Optimism is highly correlated with resilience and emotional acceptance. Optimism and resilience can reduce feelings of depression, anxiety and anger. Optimism can also helps in perceiving difficulties as opportunities for personal growth and improve work performance learn more about optimism and resilience here. (Mache, Vitzthum, Wanke, Groneberg, Klapp, & Danze, 2014; Relvich, Gillham, Chaplin, & Seligman, 2013; Wright State University, 2014).

Internal Self-Care: Being mindful, compassionate, and kind to yourself. Internal self-care includes learning soothing techniques.

Positive self-view-It is easy to doubt ourselves in difficult situations. Be mindful of negative self-talk or putting yourself down. Actively replace these negative thoughts with a positive view. Create a list of affirmations for yourself (e.g., I grow and change; I am open-minded, etc.). (Lambert, Fincham, & Stillman, 2012).

Practice mindfulness-Mindfulness serves to alleviate distress by helping you experience situations in a different way. It will help you experience thoughts and sensations as they are, without judgment. Increasing awareness and reducing judgment can be a valuable exercise for internal self-care. You can learn mindfulness exercises here. (Liberate, Cotton, Macleish, Minglone, & O'Bryan, 2014).

Social Self-Care

Build a social support system-Living apart from families and childhood friends can feel lonely at times. Take comfort in the fact that you're not alone! Many other students around you feel the same way. Create and maintain contact with a small group of people you can call on for emotional support or for distraction. You don't have to disclose your stressors if you don't want to; social support in of itself can be helpful in alleviating feelings of isolation. Research shows that people with strong social support experience less stress and exhibit better overall health than those people who are socially isolated. (Cohen, Mermelstein, Tamarack, & Hoberman, 1985; Dennis, Phinney, & Chuateco, 2005)

Get involved-Did you know that Wright State University has over 200 registered student organizations that vary over 10 different categories? Becoming involved in organizations of your interest can provide a great way to meet new friends and engage in activities that bring joy to you. You can find student organizations at (https://www.wright.edu/student-activities/student-organizations).

Learn how to say no-Learn of your own boundaries, setting limits, and explore your relational expectations. Awareness of our boundaries allows for what helps us in social interactions and restricts what can harm us. Each person needs a different amount of personal time to recover his or her energy. While college life involves plenty of opportunities to engage in different activities on and off campus, know when it's appropriate to say "no." Time-management skills are critical for success and professional development (Britton & teaser, 1991).

Spiritual Self-Care

Get in touch with your values-If religion is an important part of your identity, find time for prayer or meditation. A few moments of spiritual connection each day can help improve physical health, decrease stress, and improve overall well-being. (Mass, Friedman, Lederman, Zuttermeister, & Benson, 1991; Seybold & Hill, 2001)

Environmental Self-Care

Take care of your personal space-Having a comfortable and organized environment can make us feel less stressed and happier. It helps in reducing anxiety and making us feel more in control of our environment and life. Take some time at the end of each day to clean up any clutter, wash the dishes in the sink, and fold your laundry so that your personal space continues to be clean and inviting. (Moore, 2014)
These tips are for informational purposes only and are not meant to substitute mental or physical health counseling.

References and Links

Britton, B. K., & Tesser, A. (1991). Effects of time-management practices on college grades. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83(3), 405-410.

Clan, C., Koulmann, N., Barraud, P. A., Raphel, C., Jiminez, C., & Melin, B. (2000). Influences of variations in body hydration on cognitive function: Effect of hyperhydration, heat stress, and exercise-induced dehydration. Journal Of Psychophysiology, 14(1), 29-36.

Cohen, S., Mermelstein, R., Kamarack, T., & Hoberman, H.M. (1985). Measuring the functional components of social support. Social Support: Theory, Research and Applications, 54, 73-94.

Dennis, J. M., Phinney, J. S., Chuateco, L. I. (2005). The role of motivation, parental support, and peer support in the academic success of ethnic minority first-generation college students. Journal of College Student Development, 46(3), 223-236.

Eng, J. J., & Reime, B. (2014). Exercise for depressive symptoms in stroke patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Rehabilitation, 28(8), 731-739. doi:10.1177/0269215514523631

Fletcher, G. F., Balady, G., Blair, S. N., Blumenthal, J., Casperson, C., Chaitman, B., Epstein, S., Froleicher, E. S. S., Froleicher, V. F., Pina, I. L., & Pollock, M. L. (1996). Statement on exercise: Benefits and recommendations for physical activity programs for all Americans. Circulation, 94, 857-862.

Glomb, T. M., Bhave, D. P., Miner, A. G., & Wall, M. (2011). Doing good, feeling good: Examining the role of organizational citizenship behaviors in changing mood. Personnel Psychology, 64(1), 191-223. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6570.2010.01206.x

Kass, J. D., Friedman, R., Leserman, J., Zuttermeister, P. C., & Benson, H. (1991). Health outcomes and a new index of spiritual experience. Journal For The Scientific Study Of Religion, 30(2), 203-211. doi:10.2307/1387214

Krueger, G. P. (1989). Sustained work, fatigue, sleep loss and performance: A review of the issues. Work & Stress, 3(2), 129-141. doi:10.1080/02678378908256939

Lambert, N. M., Fincham, F. D., & Stillman, T. F. (2012). Gratitude and depressive symptoms: The role of positive reframing and positive emotion. Cognition And Emotion, 26(4), 615-633. doi:10.1080/02699931.2011.595393

Luberto, C. M., Cotton, S., McLeish, A. C., Mingione, C. J., & O'Bryan, E. M. (2014). Mindfulness skills and emotion regulation: The mediating role of coping self-efficacy. Mindfulness, 5(4), 373-380. doi:10.1007/s12671-012-0190-6

Mache, S., Vitzthum, K., Wanke, E., Groneberg, D. A., Klapp, B. F., & Danzer, G. (2014). Exploring the impact of resilience, self-efficacy, optimism and organizational resources on work engagement. Work: Journal Of Prevention, Assessment & Rehabilitation, 47(4), 491-500.

Moore, B. A. (2014). Taking Control of Anxiety: Small Steps for Getting the Best of Worry, Stress, and Fear [Kindle version]. Retrieved from Amazon.com

Reivich, K., Gillham, J. E., Chaplin, T. M., & Seligman, M. E. (2013). From helplessness to optimism: The role of resilience in treating and preventing depression in youth. In S. Goldstein, R. B. Brooks (Eds.) , Handbook of resilience in children (2nd ed.) (pp. 201-214). New York, NY, US: Springer Science + Business Media. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-3661-4_12

Rosekind, M. R., Gregory, K. B., Mallis, M. M., Brandt, S. L., Seal , B., & Lerner, D. (2010). The cost of poor sleep: Workplace productivity loss and associated costs. American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 52(1), 91-98.

Strack, F., Martin, L. L., & Stepper, S. (1988). Inhibiting and facilitating conditions of the human smile: A nonobtrusive test of the facial feedback hypothesis. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 54(5), 768-777. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.54.5.768

Seybold, K. S., & Hill, P. C. (2001). The role of religion and spirituality in mental and physical health. Current Directions in Clinical Psychology, 10(1), 21-24.

Soh, N. L., Walter, G., Baur, L., & Collins, C. (2009). Nutrition, mood and behaviour: A review. Acta Neuropsychiatrica, 21(5), 214-227.

Wright State University-a (2014, Feb 5). Counseling and Wellness. Retrieved from: https://www.wright.edu/counseling-and-wellness/workshops-and-self-help/optimism

Wright State University-b (2014, Feb 5). Student Organizations. Retrieved from: https://www.wright.edu/student-activities/student-organizations

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On this page: When we feel stressed, it is easy to stop doing things that replenish our energy and keep us going through the difficult phases of college life. Self-care is the active participation of enhancing your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and quality of life.

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How to Improve Your Mental Health and Wellness 

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How to Improve Your Mental Health and Wellness 

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In this Ted Talk, Andy Puddicombe talks about how 10 minutes of doing nothing can improve your mental health and wellness.

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When is the last time you did absolutely nothing for 10 whole minutes? Not texting, talking or even thinking? Mindfulness expert Andy Puddicombe describes the transformative power of doing just that: Refreshing your mind for 10 minutes a day, simply by being mindful and experiencing the present moment. (No need for incense or sitting in uncomfortable positions.)

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Definition of Wellness in the Counseling Field

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Definition of Wellness in the Counseling Field

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Myers and Sweeney (2007) concluded that wellness is "a way of life oriented toward optimal health and well-being, in which body, mind, and spirit are integrated by the individual to live life more fully within the human and natural community. Ideally, it is the optimum state of health and well-being that each individual is capable of achieving" (p. 252).

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This article from the American Counseling Association (2007) provides an overview of wellness in counseling. The focus of this article was related to: The Wheel of Wellness, which is considered a theoretical, an evidenced-based model on wellness, research on wellness counseling and wellness counseling applications that can be used.

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Resilience is an important concept for counselors and their clients. Resilience is the ability to adjust to or recover from stress, change, and adversity (Newman & Newman, 2018, p. 72). Because all people will experience stressors in their lives, resilience is an important factor in maintaining or getting back to wellness. In fact, growing research indicates that "resilience and wellness are intimately connected" (Fullen et al., 2018). Resilience has also been shown to have powerful health benefits, including improving coping, reducing depression, and mitigating the impact of chronic disease.

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Members of "high touch" caring professions are very vulnerable to burnout, compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatization, and professional impairment. Counselors might be even more vulnerable due to the "one-way giving" nature of our profession and our inherent empathy (Sadler-Gerhardt & Stevenson, 2011, p. 7). Rather than reactively addressing burnout, it is better to proactively cultivate counselor resilience. Building resilience doesn't happen by itself; it is based on actively practicing habits and making decisions that lead to wellness and health. Read this article to learn more about the connection between burnout, impairment, counselor wellness, and resilience.

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Helping Counselors Build Resilience and Avoid Burnout

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Everyone is capable of building resilience, like strengthening a muscle (Eells, 2015). Cultivate these areas to build resilience, because resilience SAVES:

Social connection - Humans need quality relationships to be healthy.

Attitude - Adopt an open-minded attitude: one day your troubles will change, focus on what's good now, and lean into your strengths.

Values - Pursue what matters most to you.

Emotions - Accept, communicate, and live congruently with your emotions.

Silliness - Don't take yourself too seriously; embrace humor and playfulness

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Cultivating resilience | Greg Eells | TEDxCortland

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How might Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) impact development/wellness?

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How might Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) impact development/wellness?

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Research into the long-term effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) suggests that abuse, neglect, and various other traumas experienced in childhood can lead to a multitude of physical and mental health challenges in adulthood. "Findings [have] revealed a strong correlation between experiencing multiple ACEs and adult negative health indicators (e.g., less physical activity and higher BMI, smoking rates, depression, and chronic health conditions)" (Crandall et al., 2019, p. 2).

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How do ACEs manifest across the lifespan?

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How do ACEs manifest across the lifespan?

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The greater one's ACEs score, the higher the likelihood of experiencing a host of negative effects across the lifespan. A dose-response relationship has been well established. "The higher one's ACE score, the more likely the person is to experience chronic diseases, depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, and negative social outcomes such as employment challenges, decreased graduation rates, incarceration, risk of revictimization, and homelessness" (Zarnello, 2023, p. 2).

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Take The ACE Quiz — And Learn What It Does And Doesn't Mean

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Take The ACE Quiz — And Learn What It Does And Doesn't Mean

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This article provides a simple explanation of ACEs and the implications of childhood trauma in later life. The three types of ACEs (abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction) are discussed. A ten question ACEs quiz is included, along with information to help contextualize results. This information pertains to resiliency, various mitigating factors, and potential treatments (Starecheski, 2015).

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An ACE score is a tally of different types of abuse, neglect, and other hallmarks of a rough childhood. According to the Adverse Childhood Experiences study, the rougher your childhood, the higher your score is likely to be and the higher your risk for later health problems. You can take the test below:

So, you've got your score. Now what?

First, remember that the ACE score isn't a crystal ball; it's just meant as guidance. It tells you about one type of risk factor among many. It doesn't directly take into account your diet or genes, or whether you smoke or drink excessively - to name just a few of the other major influences on health.

To learn more, check the CDC's ACE Study website. You'll find, among other things, a list of studies that explore the ways adverse childhood experiences have been linked to a variety of adult conditions, ranging from increased headaches to depression to heart disease.

Remember this, too: ACE scores don't tally the positive experiences in early life that can help build resilience and protect a child from the effects of trauma. Having a grandparent who loves you, a teacher who understands and believes in you, or a trusted friend you can confide in may mitigate the long-term effects of early trauma, psychologists say.

"There are people with high ACE scores who do remarkably well," says Jack Shonkoff, a pediatrician and director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University.

Resilience, he says, builds throughout life, and close relationships are key. Recent research also suggests that for adults, "trauma informed" therapy - which can center on art, yoga or mindfulness training - can help.

How best to find and help kids who are experiencing abuse and neglect right now?

Child psychologist Hilit Kletter, of Stanford University's School of Medicine, says that to spot these children, she looks for visible signs of stress to understand what might have happened to them and how best to intervene. Some kids have nightmares or recurring thoughts of a stressful event, she says, or may re-enact the trauma through play. Or the child may seem distracted or withdrawn.

"This will come out at school," Kletter says. "Teachers will tell parents [their child] seems to be in a daze in the classroom, not paying attention."

Kletter says reactions to trauma are sometimes misdiagnosed as symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, because kids dealing with adverse experiences may be impulsive - acting out with anger or other strong emotions.

"It's something that's very common in trauma: difficulty in regulating emotions and behavior," she explains. "That's why a lot of these kids get in trouble with the classroom."

Shonkoff's research center at Harvard tests interventions that can build resilience in kids who are growing up with adverse experiences - not just problems in the family, such as those the ACE study investigated, but also trauma stemming from poverty, for example, or from the chronic stress of racial or gender discrimination.

To bolster parents, the Harvard team is testing interventions right now that use video coaching to show moms and dads how to engage their babbling infants, using sounds and facial expressions in a style Shonkoff calls serve and return.

Shonkoff says these early interactions - a kind of conversation - have been shown to help children with later learning and literacy. Even more important, they boost kids' resilience, by helping them build secure attachments with caring adults. Research suggests that just one caring, safe relationship early in life gives any child a much better shot at growing up healthy.

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Take The ACE Quiz - And Learn What It Does And Doesn't Mean

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First developed in the 1990s, the 10 questions of the Adverse Childhood Experiences test are designed to take a rough measure of a difficult childhood. Finding out your score is easy. Now what?

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Does ACA address self-care in our Code of Ethics? 

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Does ACA address self-care in our Code of Ethics? 

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Yes, ACA addresses self-care in our Code of Ethics. It states that counselors must engage in self-care activities to maintain and promote their own physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being to meet their professional responsibilities (ACA, 2014). Self-care is very ethical and is known to be a professional obligation for all counselors. Self-care is very important and should be mandatory in order to prevent burnout, compassion fatigue, impairment, and  ethical violations.

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This video helps clients use different strategies when it comes to their overall well-being.

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How Childhood Trauma Affects Health Across a Lifetime

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How Childhood Trauma Affects Health Across a Lifetime

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Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris delineates the importance of ACEs in determining an individual's quality of life across the lifespan. She goes as far as to call ACEs a public health crisis which pediatricians must begin to address with a sense of urgency and concerted effort (Burke Harris, 2014).

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How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime

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Childhood trauma isn’t something you just get over as you grow up. Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris explains that the repeated stress of abuse, neglect and parents struggling with mental health or substance abuse issues has real, tangible effects on the development of the brain. This unfolds across a lifetime, to the point where those who’ve experienced high levels of trauma are at triple the risk for heart disease and lung cancer. An impassioned plea for pediatric medicine to confront the prevention and treatment of trauma, head-on.

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Avoiding Common Ethical Violations and Standards Related to Self-Care 

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Avoiding Common Ethical Violations and Standards Related to Self-Care 

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In addition to establishing self-care as a counseling best-practice, the ACA also provides specific standards related to self-care, wellness, and impairment:

Impairment: Counselors monitor themselves for signs of impairment from their own physical, and emotional problems. Counselors may also seek assistance for certain problems that may reach the level of professional impairment.

Personal Problems and Conflicts: Most counselors refrain from offering or accepting personal gifts from clients when they may impair judgement or interfere with a therapeutic relationship.

Wellness: Counselors are encouraged to contribute to overall health and wellness of all clients and society through coping skills, life choices, and also growth.

Check out this video for more information on avoiding ethical  violations, including those related to counselor self-care and wellness.

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Avoiding Common Ethical Violations | Counseling Ethics