Issue link: http://ncumarketing.uberflip.com/i/1071485
TEACHINGTIPS The article below originally appeared in the January 2018 issue. However, this is an important reminder for us all as we start a new year! The Importance of Self-Care for Faculty This teaching tip may be more appropriately understood as a life tip. My thoughts were inspired by a supervisee who happens to be a NCU MAMFT graduate. Recently, he said to me, "You NCU professors all seem to have several responsibilities (jobs) going at the same time." He then described how his experiences with some of us has left him with the impression that we are a bunch of workaholics. I have to admit that I have considered myself an overachiever, especially in the last few months. Having made my confession, let me suggest that one of the best ways we can serve our students and the other people in our lives is to address our own self-care. There are two obvious alternatives associated with the notion of self-care. Either we will be able to approach our students at our best, or we will simply grade the next several assignments as another item on our long list of tasks requiring our attention. The former perspective requires that we approach the task of mentoring as an opportunity to shape and mold tomorrow's MFTs. This opportunity requires that we be present, available, and invested in our students' development as clinicians. If we are simply "checking the box," we will most likely miss the mark. Over the course of my clinical career, I have encouraged psychiatry residents, MFT supervisees, Army and Navy chaplains, and myself to develop a self-care lifestyle that works for the caregiver as an Jesse Logan, PhD, LMFT Adjunct Faculty, Department of Marriage and Family Sciences individual. Looking back, it is obvious that this was influenced by a former graduate professor of mine, Bob Wicks. In one of his many books on this topic, Wicks (2008) encouraged caregivers to develop a "self-care protocol" (p. 8). The idea, also addressed by others such as Charles Figley, is that people who invest themselves in the lives of others must invest in themselves. Being the best we can be professionally with students, clients, or patients is informed by who we are personally. This suggestion is further developed from the biopsychosocial-spiritual model first introduced by Roy Grinker (Ghaemi, 2009). The biopsychosocial-spiritual model suggests we have several over-lapping domains in our personal lives. For instance, in the biological domain, we can address what I call "The Big Three," sleep, diet and exercise. Our clients can change a lot of the emotional issues in their lives by addressing these three areas. The same holds true with you and me. If we address one or two of these areas, we can change the way we feel, thereby allowing ourselves to be more effective as mentors. This holds true with the psychological, social, and spiritual domains in our lives as well. Pick one as a place to begin. I am not much on "resolutions," but I am all about controlling what I can, namely myself. Let's review our decisions to assess and invest in ourselves, so we can be more invested in those we teach. If there is any way I can assist you in this process, please do not hesitate to contact me. Cheers! References Ghaemi, S. (2009). The rise and fall of the biopsychosocial model. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 195(1), 3-4. Wicks, R. (2008). The resilient clinician. Oxford University Press, New York, NY.