Caring for the Person in the Therapist
Working as a school-based mental health professional is an emotionally, mentally, and physically draining job.
It seems like everyone is needing you at the same time (because they are). A student knocks on your door needing to speak with you. A phone call is coming through from a worried parent. A teacher stops you in the hallway to tell you a concern about a student. An emergency is happening in the cafeteria. You have several student support meetings on your schedule and somehow, you still need time to get to your caseload and document all the interactions you’ve had.
Whew! Even listing that is exhausting.
When so many people need your time and attention, it’s hard to make enough time and space to attend to yourself as well. This becomes a Catch-22 because if you don’t take care of yourself, you become too depleted to serve your students and peers effectively.
It’s crucial that social workers find ways to allow more self-care into their routine. Here are a few ideas I’ve found to be helpful when I was building a school social work program:
Create a triage system. This will help you organize your workload so that it’s not all coming at you at once. Here’s a sample triage system I created when I was a school social worker. It was a game-changer for me, and I hope it can help you too!
Lay the groundwork with your peers. Request one hour of time at an all-staff professional development meeting to educate teachers and staff on who you are, your role, and what you do as a school social worker. Laying this foundation early on will help you establish boundaries. This is a crucial part of building a sustainable mental health program on your campus.
Lay the groundwork with your students. Step into grade-level homerooms or grade-level assembly meetings and educate students on who you are, what you do, and how they can access your services. It’s just as important for your students to get to know you as it is with your teachers and staff. Don’t skip this part!
Communicate your availability. Hang a sign outside your door with different options that display your status at any given moment. Here’s a sample sign I’ve used in the past. Get creative with it!
Take a real lunch break. If possible, go off campus for a 30-minute lunch or go in the staff breakroom to eat lunch and take deep breaths. Getting out of your office and into a different setting can do wonders for refreshing your energy.
Don’t be afraid to take a day off! I understand that schools are understaffed and everyone is needing support right now, but if you communicate to your students that you will be out ahead of time and have someone available to support as needed, it is possible. Breaks are always important—especially now as we round the second year of working with COVID!
Schedule an admin day. Ask your supervisor if you can take a day at least once a quarter to get caught up on documentation, update student files, check in on families, and do anything else that you need to get done in order to keep moving forward. This is a day you don’t see any students, don’t go to any meetings, you simply focus on administrative tasks. GET CAUGHT UP!
I know that all of these might not seem like traditional “self-care” things that people talk about, but self-care is not all bubble baths and vacations. Those things are great, but this is about sustainability and being conscious of how you use your energy.
In order to have a sustainable school mental health program, relationships have to be built, information has to be provided, and systems have to be put in place in order to support your workflow. These things take time.
I spent the first year and a half as a school social worker consistently building relationships with teachers and staff. Trust was built over time, systems and policies were in place, and things didn’t always go smoothly but I could trust that the school community could count on that consistency that I had cultivated whether I was in the building or not. This made all the difference in how I was able to work and function as a social worker and human.
My hope for you is that you build this for yourself and for those who come after you. Whether or not you plan to be in the position you hold forever or temporarily, building a solid foundation for your school-based mental health program is the greatest gift you can give your students and your community.
If you need support or want to discuss further, please reach out to us via email.