For Helpers and Healers

For Helpers & Healers

coaching-helpers

My first career was in Social Work and its values remain true to my heart. I have the utmost respect for helping professionals who support others through the most difficult life experiences imaginable.

If you are a helper or healer, you’re vulnerable to vicarious traumatization and its effects (stress, burnout, and compassion fatigue). You bear witness to tragedies that the average person will never know, whether you hear stories about individual traumas or whether you support people who are in daily survival mode due to poverty, homelessness, oppression, etc.

You were likely drawn to your profession because you’re naturally empathic. This is one factor that can make you more susceptible to stress. The other factor is that, to be effective in this work, you have to be fully present and connect with your authentic self; this openness creates a vulnerability, and if you’re not skilled at managing your energy regularly, you can experience detrimental health symptoms.

It wasn’t until I left direct-service work that I found the teachings that helped me manage my energy — emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually. I learned how to be fully present to others without being drained or pulled off center.

Coaching

I offer individual coaching sessions for helpers and healers. Unlike my Life Coaching services, this type of coaching is more short-term (typically 2-3 sessions) and involves skill-building tailored to your experiences and needs:

  • Heightened awareness of the way your emotional and physical systems are impacted by your work
  • Quick, easy techniques to use throughout the day to manage your energy
  • “Transition” rituals to leave work at work
  • Identifying any stories or beliefs that may contribute to your stress
  • Ways to ask for, and receive, the supervision you need
  • Small shifts in the way you structure your work day that can create positive changes
  • Exploration of possible lack of fit between what you’re doing and what you’re meant to be doing

Benefits

  • Less stress
  • Reclaiming any “lost” qualities or skills such as compassion, sense of humor, memory recall, etc.
  • Increased sense of control
  • Reconnecting with who you are and what you love

Get Started

Contact me to discuss your needs and goals. After a free phone consultation, you may choose to schedule a coaching session (in person, or by phone or Skype). Sessions are 45-60 minutes in length and include a follow-up email with a brief summary of recommended action steps and self-care techniques. Fee: $95.

Please note the maximum number of sessions for this type of coaching is three. During the course of our work, or upon completion of the three sessions, you may identify goals outside of restorative self-care; in that case, I’ll share information about my Life Coaching services and we can explore possible next steps.

Workshops

I offer “Soul Care for Helping Professionals” as a workshop and am available to come to your place of work if you have a group of at least five participants. Please contact me for more information.