Self-Care for Mental Health Professionals During the Time of COVID-19 and Social Unrest

The year 2020 brought many unique challenges for psychotherapists, including transitions to TelePsychology, dealing with their own sense of isolation and helplessness, and the impact of the turbulent political and social context on their clients and themselves. For some therapists, the approaches to self-care that once were sufficient are no longer adequate to meet their self-care needs. This workshop focuses on helping therapists develop good self-care strategies and adapt them to the current challenges of the pandemic and social/political unrest. We begin with an overview of mindfulness and mindfulness-based self-care strategies. From this foundation, we discuss ways to adapt mindfulness-based self-care strategies to the current context of the pandemic and social/political unrest. Next, we discuss some of the cultural liabilities in the United States culture that have been unmasked by the COVID-19 pandemic. After identifying these, we will discuss ways to counteract some of these vulnerabilities with self-care and growth-oriented strategies. Next, we consider the impact of psychologists engaging in advocacy and activism as a mental health professional and ways to use self-care strategies tailored for advocates and activists. As the pandemic has contributed to a sense of isolation for many, including therapists, family and other close relationships have become more important. We address the role that family and other close relationships can play in a self-care plan. Finally, we consider the impact of TelePsychology and specific forms of self-care that can address the unique impact of practicing TelePsychology.