Teresa's Self-Care Padlet by Teresa Crow

The Importance of Community

tmcrow86 — 2023-10-30 04:34:40 UTC

My biggest takeaway was how important the community is to the counselor. Most counselors understand how important self-care is because they encourage their students/clients to practice this all the time. All counselors would like to practice self-care and are aware that this is necessary for them to effectively assist students/clients but they need to have the proper support to encourage self-care and foster a transparent and empathetic environment.

Walz, G. R., & Bleuer, J. C. (2016). Beyond the Breaking Point: Examining the Pieces of Counselor Burnout, Compassion Fatigue, and Secondhand Depression. ACA Knowledge Center. https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/vistas/article_91_2016.pdf?sfvrsn=c3e2482c_4

Importance of Self-Care

tmcrow86 — 2023-10-30 04:46:30 UTC

Self-care is important in the helping profession because we cannot pour from an empty cup. Helping professionals tend to focus so much on helping others that they forget to take care of themselves. A great way to think of this is if we truly wish to help others, we need to ensure that we are in a place to do so. We need to make time for the people and things that help us feel good so we are the best version of ourselves for them.

Self-Care Strategies

tmcrow86 — 2023-10-30 04:58:39 UTC

One way that I can be more self-aware is to keep a self-care journal to monitor my daily emotions and hold myself accountable for maintaining self-care strategies. This could be helpful to share with a group from my work community to encourage growth.

A self-care strategy that I already practice is physical activity; sometimes that is in the gym with music in my ears, walking in prayer, or exploring/running around outside with my family. Nature really settles my heart, and all of the above helps me be present in the now and not worry about the future.

Schlund, J., & Fitzgerald, A. (2021, January 28). Who helps the helpers? SEL for School Counselors’ Mental Health. ASCD. https://www.ascd.org/blogs/who-helps-the-helpers-social-emotional-learning-for-school-counselors-mental-health

Self-Care is NOT Selfish

tmcrow86 — 2023-10-30 05:02:47 UTC

Helping professionals often feel guilty to take care of themselves but it is important to remember that we are also human and we are deserving of the same care we encourage others to practice.