The group was encouraged to continue working on their handmade journal and ATC post retreat and to also incorporate its presence into a work space where it could be of help or support in times of need or support. It was great to see the room buzz with book making and art journaling energy infused with both written and visual positive messages. I also invited people to bring their own favorite quotes, sayings, images and inspiration related to resiliency, affirmation, and self-care. A variety of creative goodness was offered for materials such as acrylic paint, pastels, Sharpies, gel pens, printed paper of various colors and bright designs, tissue paper, as well as journaling cards & Smash pad paper. Each person also received an Artist Trading Card as an invitation to create an anchoring image that reflected a sense of peace and relaxation inspiration. Nurturing Emotional Resilience through Art JournalingĮveryone created paper bag art journals ( check out this past post on how to make one!) as a tangible reminder of our supports, strengths, positive affirmations, and comfort. Part of the morning included engaging in stretching, movement, & deep breathing and during some of the afternoon I was able to introduce and lead everyone in an art experience focused on art journaling as a tool for nurturing emotional resilience. In addition to the cognitive learning throughout the day, there was also dedicated time to mind/body & sensory based activities to support and explore self-care themes. Compassion Satisfaction supports this experience for the helper or caregiver, which I love! Check out this resource: Transforming Compassion Fatigue into Compassion Satisfaction – 12 Top Self Care Tips for more ideas and suggestions. I am always interested in learning more about concepts connected to Post Traumatic Growth and how very stressful or traumatic situations can transform into positive and life affirming experiences. It is the opposite of Compassion Fatigue (the emotional and physical exhaustion of caring for others) or Vicarious Trauma (becoming traumatized ourselves as a result of being exposed to stories and images of suffering). Compassion Satisfaction: Compassion satisfaction is the enjoyment created from being able to help other people.What are your own values and promises to yourself that you can make about living, working, loving, being, becoming, believing, promoting, striving, and seeking that support covenant caregiving vs. Vrabel to explore discovering our own covenants that I thought could easily be explored in visual form as well (I thought about making a collage or book!). Covenant Based Caregiving: A covenant can be defined as “ a written agreement or promise…especially for the performance of some action.” What are your covenants, values, or intentions related to bringing your “best self” to your life, work and service….to not only others, but to yourself as well? We were given a worksheet created by Dr.Using symbolic objects, scents, music, journaling, creative expression, & more are all offered as options to integrate this into self care practice. This resource provides many sensory based suggestions that can help cultivate routines and areas within the space we live to shift into a place of calmness, peace, and relaxation. In the same spirit, this idea reminded me to re-visit the article, 10 Easy Steps to Creating a Peaceful Home Retreat published by the Joyful Heart Foundation‘s Reunion Magazine (Issue 2). Create a Transition Zone: A space, ritual or practice that supports us to create a healthier boundary and balance between our personal life and work.There were countless takeaways from the day, but my top 3 were these: Bruce Perry, Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, Brene Brown, and many others who offer support & inspiration related to trauma focused work. Vrabel’s teachings and reminders rooted in the work of Dr. It was re-energizing to spend the day receiving Dr. I found the content presented throughout the day really spoke to the realities, challenges, & struggles of trauma work and exposure related to compassion fatigue, vicarious trauma, and burnout, as well as provided nurturing and encouraging staff self-care strategies and takeaways to implement and build upon as individuals, within programming, and agency wide. Vrabel’s work includes an interest in research and program development to address the issue of secondary traumatic stress in clinicians and first responders. The retreat’s main speaker was Cynthia Vrabel, MD, who is the Medical Director of FrontLine Service here in Cleveland. This week was our annual staff retreat and this year the day was completely dedicated to the impact of trauma exposure, self-care strategies, and resiliency. 3×5 365 day 154 takeaways : journey to resilience
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