The continuous process of becoming

Reflections from the frontline

For most of the past week, I have been secluded in silent retreat, increasing my skills and attention to self care with the practice of meditation and mindfulness.

Over the past few years, I have become increasingly drawn to retreats as an important way to maintain and continue to improve my work-life balance.

Too often, in the flow of life as a human services professional, I find myself setting an intention for self care and then noticing the daily practices that give it meaning slowly ebb away over time.

Retreats have become a way in which I can re-set my intentions and step away from the intensity of work. Putting the meaning of my work into its place: that it is a livelihood with purpose, but it is not the purpose of my one precious life.

Self care is a necessary practitioner skill in human services, yet too easily overlooked as an essential part of our toolkit. Without it, we are higher risk of vicarious trauma and burnout. I know the truth of this from experience at the frontline of my work and personal life over the past decade.

Photo by Zoltan Tasi on Unsplash

This retreat focused on a very simple practice of attention and connection to self, by whatever means worked. Whether it was attending to your breath, a body scan or specific mantras that maintain focus and attention. The only other ‘rule’ of the retreat was to remain silent, due to its enhancing effects on the practice of connecting within at a deeper level.

The daily teachings included attending to a practice of ‘observational distance’, that is, being able to see thoughts and feelings without become attached or fused to these. This skill, also part of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), is one that I have been more intentionally using when I am in high stress or intense moments at work. (If you’re interested in learning more about this, or even explaining this to your clients, this simple video by Russ Harris perfectly illustrates the concept of the Observing Self.)