Self-care: a positive College of Arts, Social and Health Sciences~ approach to vicarious traumatization and personal growth

Drawing on the constantly used metaphor that depicts one putting on the oxygen mask first because unless one is able to breathe, one cannot be of assistance to other passengers, I posit that helping professionals must not just acknowledge the self-care movement but embrace it and start living it. Helping professionals, especially counselors and more specifically students and trainees, are more susceptible to mental and emotional dis-ease. I believe that knowing of self-care is quite simply not enough and that doing self-care is a personal and professional obligation. By taking care of our mental and emotional well-being and living a healthy and balanced life, helping professionals really are taking care of those near and dear as well as those with whom we work. Continually faced with personal and professional challenges to worldviews, healthy ways of being, and ability to sustain positivity, the helping professional must take all available precautions to minimize the likelihood of permanent damage to their psyches. The focus of this project is to provide a unique way of protecting oneself while fostering the opportunity for personal growth not only before, but also during and after experiencing vicarious traumatization (VT). --P. 1.