School Counselor Self-Care by

Professional Take Away

meagansmith6 — 2024-04-24 06:02:04 UTC

An interesting concept and reoccurring theme was how difficult it can be for those in the helping field to prioritize and recognize their own limitations to seeking and maintaining a self-care routine. As a professional school counselor, the number, roles, and frequency of those seeking guidance or intervention from the school counselor can be overwhelming. A given population that requires attention and services is the student population. It seems that many do not realize that helpees are also coworkers such as teachers, parents, and fellow providers in the helping field.

Self-care as an ethical mandate is also a professional take away. I think it is easy to feel that providing others the upmost care, resources and time is essential, whereas focusing on ourselves almost seems counterintuitive. Establishing areas of personal strengths and identifying activities that create joy help to keep the goal of wellbeing in perspective. The idea that self-care ensures effectiveness in practice with others is instrumental in participating in and benefitting from such activities.

I found it normalizing to see that burnout is a common occurrence in graduate level students as well as those in the helping field who work in negative work environments as I have noticed similar feelings in myself in the beginning of this school year and attributed more of this to be a personal issue rather than a shared experience.

Importance of Self-Care Reflection

meagansmith6 — 2024-04-24 06:18:13 UTC

Self-care is crucial to the helping field because it ensures effectiveness in dealing with others and prevents or mitigates burnout. This is a "practice what you preach" approach in that the more the helper exercises and participates in the process of self-care, the more empathy and insight they gain as well.

Being present in therapeutic sessions allows for both the helper and the helpee to gain insight into the issue at hand and to progress further towards outcome goals. Boundaries are also healthy and can assist in recognizing when a referral or collaboration with fellow helpers is necessary.

Personal Self-Care Strategies

meagansmith6 — 2024-04-24 06:29:16 UTC

The first and most important activity that I can and need to do is remain connected to my children. Time spent with them is refreshing and reminds me why I set out on this journey to further my understanding of mental health and counseling practices at all. My goal is to spend 30 minutes each day on an activity of their choice where I am present, able to give and RECEIVE love.

The second activity that helps me to ground myself is my at home yoga practice. Yoga by myself allows me to go inward and is rejuvenating. Practicing yoga with my fellow educators after school allows us to destress and leave work issues at work prior to returning home to our families. My goal is to practice yoga alone for 30 minutes twice a week and in the company of others for 30 minutes at least once a week.