Nearly every time I have gone to a past boss to discuss my workload, boundaries at work, and feelings of burnout, I have heard things like this:
“Well, did you eat a high-protein breakfast this morning?”
“We are doing yoga in the lobby tomorrow morning - that will help.”
“I don’t want to know how late you have been working.”
“Oh, we only work half days here - 7 AM to 7 PM.”
“Are you focusing on your big rocks?”
Seriously. Every single one of these things is an actual response I have received when advocating to a supervisor for something to change to make my role more sustainable and to keep me from burning out.
The non-profit and education world is infamous for talking about the importance of caring for ourselves yet providing little to no support to make actual changes that make our jobs more sustainable. Shouldn’t our field be working to retain talent rather than watching helpers burn out and leave the field in droves?
I’ve realized that supervisors' view of self-care is too often limited - exercise, a hot bath, or a glass of wine after a hard day. Those things are great but aren’t the answers employees often seek. I know I can do those things, but they are putting a bandage on the actual problem. I shouldn’t have to work in a field that requires me to find internal solutions for external problems.
We can’t self-care our way out of broken systems.
I have found that in my training as a helper, we haven’t been facilitating meaningful discussions about collective care. How do we support each other to build a profession that allows us to make a strong impact on the communities we serve while also making sure our needs are being met? Why can’t we zoom out and think about this from a systems level?
For years, I have dreamed of building workshops for helpers to address these questions and more. Yesterday, Jen Vallieres and I facilitated one of our Eudaemonia Counseling & Consulting workshops for 1st-year students at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education titled “Helping Helpers Flourish.”
In our 3 part workshop, participants begin by focusing on their unique, individual self-care story before sharing a self-care plan for others to hold them accountable. We then shift to talk about collective care and how our field can change policies, practices, and mindsets to ensure that employees can thrive rather than burn out. We played some pretty dope music along the way too. 😉
Yesterday, I felt alive. I know that I was walking in my purpose, providing a space to future counselors that was rarely (if ever) provided for me.
Eudaemonia Counseling & Consulting's work in this space will continue, and we are excited to partner with organizations where employees are feeling tired, overwhelmed, and burned out.
If that sounds like you or your organization, reach out. We would love to support you in building a community of collective care for all. ❤️
#collectivecare #selfcare #helpers
