Preventing Counselor Impairment PDF

Preview

Summary

Preventing Counselor Impairment...

Description

Running head: PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

Preventing Counselor Impairment Roslyn L. Broadhurst Liberty University

1

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

2

Abstract To prevent physical, emotional, and mental impairment, professional counselors must maintain healthy relationships with their clients, other counselors, their friends, and above all their families. They need to provide descriptions of the strategies they use to assess their selfcare and their physical, emotional, and mental wellness. The American Counseling Association (ACA) recognized that professional counselors run the risk of compassion fatigue, burnout, vicarious traumatization, and impairment if they do not maintain their physical, emotional, and mental wellness through self-care. Therefore, this paper provided definitions for each term, to include impairment as defined within the counseling profession.

This paper provided an

assessment of the incidence of impairment among the professional counseling community. In addition, this paper provided a description of the signs and symptoms of counselor impairment. This paper provided an assessment of the risk factors that make counselors vulnerable to the development of impairment. Finally, this paper provided an assessment of the activities that promote wellness and lead to compassion satisfaction among professional counselors.

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

3

Preventing Counselor Impairment Often counselors believe they are invincible, that they can handle anything their clients throw at them; however, inevitably, something occurs to prove they are only human after all. Therefore, to prevent physical, emotional, or mental impairment counselors must maintain healthy relationships with their clients, colleagues, friends, and most importantly their families. To maintain healthy relationships, they need to have strategies for assessing their self-care. In other words, they need to know how to assess their physical, emotional, and mental well-being. The ACA recognized this need for assessing well-being to prevent running the risk of burnout, vicarious traumatization, compassion fatigue, and impairment. Therefore, this paper provided definitions of these terms, an assessment of the incidence of impairment, some characteristics of counselor impairment, risk factors, and an assessment of activities that promote wellness and compassion satisfaction. For this reason, this paper is an assessment of Lawson and Venart’s (2005) article titled Preventing Counselor Impairment: Vulnerability, Wellness, and Resilience. Definitions This paper defined several terms concerned with the physical, emotional, or mental wellbeing of professional counselors. Compassion fatigue occurs when counselors feel intense sorrow sympathy, fatigue, apathy, and emotional distress because of constant demands from their clients (American Counseling Association [ACA], 2002, para. 5). Vicarious traumatization occurs when counselors have empathic connections with clients who disclose traumatic pasts causing counselors to feel their pain so intensely that it impacts them physically, emotionally, and mentally (ACA, 2002, para. 6). Burnout occurs when counselors work with emotionally demanding clients for unusually long periods, which leads to physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion, cynicism, and a decreased sense of effectiveness (ACA, 2002, para. 7; Lawson &

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

4

Myers, 2011, p. 164). Therapeutic impairment occurs when counselors cannot function in a professional capacity without compromising their clients’ care, which can result in possible harm to their clients because of substance abuse or dependency, mental illness, personal crisis, or a life (ACA, 2002, para. 2; Lawson & Venart, 2005, p. 243; Lawson, Venart, Hazler, & Kottler, 2007, p. 12). Compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatization, and burnout can lead to counselor impairment if they remain untended by medical and mental health professionals. Compassion satisfaction occurs when counselors feel pleasure for a job well-done (Lawson & Myers, 2011, p. 164), and wellness occurs when counselors live life to the fullest, achieve their potential, and obtain optimal health and well-being in mind, body, and spirit (Lawson et al., 2007, p. 12). Incidences Incidences of therapeutic impairment include any occurrence of compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatization, or burnout that result in counselors who cannot function in the capacity of counselor without causing potential harm to their clients. As Lawson and Venart (2005) stated, Those who practice in the helping field often have an acute sense of empathy to the experiences of others. It is not simply the empathy that counselors possess, but empathy coupled with the intimate exposure to the struggles and suffering that clients present, which can take a toll. (p. 244) Many counselors believe they are infallible, and refuse to practice effective self-care, leaving themselves open for burnout, vicarious traumatization, or compassion fatigue. The greatest incidence of therapeutic impairment takes place within agencies that “set unrealistic expectations for clinicians to carry a large caseload with many seriously troubled clients” (Lawson & Venart, 2005, p. 244). When counselors have large caseloads, they do not have time to practice effective

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

5

self-care. Another incidence of therapeutic impairment worth mentioning occurs when hospitals release clients before counselors determine they are ready to leave, or when counselors must work longer hours, see more clients, produce results more quickly, work with highly stressed clients, and set aside their own well-being (Lawson & Venart, 2005, p. 244). Not only do counselors believe themselves to be invincible, clients and their families believe them to be invulnerable as well. This invulnerability results in creating barriers to their physical, emotional, or mental well-being. Characteristics Characteristics of counselor impairment are the hazards that can cause counselors to be more susceptible to burnout, vicarious traumatization, compassion fatigue, and eventually impairment if they do not seek help. Lawson and Venart (2005) list the following hazards: clients having an unsolvable problem that must be solved; all clients not being honors students (they may not have the skills or resources to meet their goals); a readiness gap often between them and us; our inability to say no; constant empathy, interpersonal sensitivity, and one-way caring; elusive measures of success; and normative failure. (p. 244) Lawson et al. (2007) provided some characteristics by stating, “As counselors, we are taught to see the world through our client’s eyes, to experience our client’s feelings through empathy, and to connect to our client’s pain when they are vulnerable” (p. 5). They continue by saying that these strengths are counselors’ greatest strengths and their greatest weaknesses because they leave counselors feeling vulnerable to therapeutic impairment (p. 5).

Any one of these

characteristics by itself can lead to burnout, vicarious traumatization, or compassion fatigue

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

6

when it occurs for a long time; but, when counselors suffer from several at once, even for a short time, therapeutic impairment is bound to occur. Risk Factors Risk factors can leave counselors vulnerable to the development of impairment by causing them to suffer from vicarious traumatization, compassion fatigue, and burnout. Some of these risk factors are: the ability to obtain quality supervision; the nature of our clientele (e.g., vulnerable children, complexity of problems, safety concerns); the nature of our workplace (e.g., insufficient resources or vacation time; lack of input into the decision-making process of the organization; current policies prohibiting best practice treatment); our training, education, and experience; current stressors and/or changes in our life outside of work; our natural coping style; a personal history of trauma; and beliefs that limit our likelihood of seeking support. (Lawson & Venart, 2005, p. 244) In addition to these factors, Lawson and Venart (2005) mentioned the exposure to primary and secondary trauma and violence (p. 244). This can lead to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a debilitating condition that will lead to burnout, compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatization, or even total counselor impairment if counselors do not seek help. If total impairment occurs, counselors may have to forfeit their licensure, and will have to show proof of rehabilitation before they can apply for licensure once again. Conclusion Counselor impairment prevents counselors from helping their clients without causing them harm.

To prevent impairment, counselors need to be aware of their own physical,

emotional, and mental health.

They need to strive towards wellness by using self-care

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

7

techniques, like a holistic approach that will preserve and maintain their wellness. One such self-care technique is to participate in career-sustaining behaviors (CSBs). Some of the CSBs are: maintaining a sense of humor, spending time with family and friends, maintaining selfawareness to perform self-care techniques, engage in some type of exercise, use positive self-talk to improve self-esteem, take regular vacations, maintain alone time spent in self-reflection, spend time in prayer or meditation to build and maintain spirituality, and engage in leisure activities that will quiet the mind (Lawson, 2007, p. 28). There are many other CSBs that will help counselors to perform self-care and maintain a holistic self-aware image that will build their wellness and help to prevent counselor impairment.

PREVENTING COUNSELOR IMPAIRMENT

8

References American Counseling Association (ACA). (2002). American Counseling Association’s taskforce on counselor wellness and impairment. Retrieved from http://www.creatingjoy.com/taskforce/tf_definitions.htm Lawson, G. (2007). Counselor wellness and impairment: A national survey. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education and Development, 46(1), 20-34. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/ps/i.do? p=AONE&sw=w&u=vic_liberty&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE %7CA163940203&sid=summon&asid=cd114f8bdd8449c25342803b7d6058e7 Lawson, G., & Myers, J. E. (2011). Wellness, professional quality of life, and career-sustaining behaviors: What keeps us well? Journal of Counseling and Development, 89(2), 163-171. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/858390611?pqorigsite=summon&accountid=12085 Lawson, G., & Venart, B. (2005). Preventing counselor impairment: Vulnerability, wellness, and resilience. VISTAS Online, Article 53, 243-246. Retrieved from https://learn.liberty.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-19178514-dt-content-rid85643898_1/courses/COUN500_LUO_8wk_DEV/PDF_American_Counseling_Associat ion_Preventing_Counselor_Impairment_Vulnerability_Wellness_and_Resilience.pdf Lawson, G., Venart, E., Hazler, R. J., & Kottler, J. A. (2007). Toward a culture of counselor wellness. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education and Development, 46(1), 5-19. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquestcom.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/212447632?accountid=12085...