MENTAL HEALTH IS SUFFERING IN PART BECAUSE MENTAL HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AREN'T MENTALLY WELL EITHER (Part 1 of a 2 part post)
The intersection of counselor well-being and client care is a nuanced area, reflecting broader shifts in how the mental health profession views self-care and supervision. My professional experiences in recent years has taught me just how easy it is for the wounded to show up for care, only to be further wounded by the caregiver(s). We are presently in a global mental health crisis. Those of us who serve as counselors and therapists are not immune from the same triggers and stimuli that make it hard for our clients to cope. I believe we are not equally susceptible, but actually more so than our clients because of the nature of our work. It is time we go back to the original model of caring for the caregiver-in-training so that we are not releasing mentally infected people to treat people whose mental immunity is compromised.
Historically, the concept that mental health professionals should themselves be in therapy has roots in the psychoanalytic tradition. This tradition, spearheaded by Sigmund Freud in the early 20th century, emphasized the importance of self-awareness and the understanding of one's unconscious processes, not just for clients but for therapists as well. In the psychoanalytic framework, it was common—and often expected—that therapists would undergo their own analysis both as a form of professional development and to prevent their unresolved issues from interfering with client care.
This requirement was not limited to psychoanalysis; many therapeutic orientations recognized the value of therapists experiencing the client role. This practice aimed to enhance empathy, self-awareness, and personal growth, thereby reducing the risk of counter-transference (where therapists project their own feelings onto clients) and ensuring that therapists were mentally and emotionally fit to support their clients.
Over time, while the mandatory requirement for therapists to be in therapy themselves has become less common, the emphasis on self-care and professional supervision has grown. Many professional bodies and training programs now strongly advocate for or require supervision, where therapists can discuss cases (in a confidential and ethical manner) with more experienced colleagues to gain insights and manage their emotional responses to the work. Self-care practices, including therapy, mindfulness, exercise, and peer support groups, are highly encouraged to maintain mental health and prevent burnout. These remedies are no longer adequate.
I'll share suggested solutions in Part 2, because we are not doing enough. The ship is taking on water quickly and nobody has been thoroughly trained for this particular emergency. We also seem to have very few lifeboats.
TO BE CONTINUED
#mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealthadvocate #mentalhealthcrisis
