How Not to Burn Out in the Flames of Mental Health Crisis
September is usually a hard month for adults, particularly the parents among us. Kids are going back to school, the often relaxed summer routines are ending and the last quarter of the year is looming with all the things we still have to achieve and complete.
This September has been particularly challenging. Masked or unmasked, the kids have gone back to school full time for the first time in over a year and a half. For many, my 9-year-old son included, it's a rough adjustment.
For other kids, it means a new experience of homeschooling:
"The number of kids going to school at home nationwide has doubled over the past two years. In 2019, there were about 2.5 million students learning at home. Today there are nearly 5 million. That means more than 11 percent of American households are educating their children outside of traditional schools."
Teenagers have also been affected with teenage eating disorders rising and parents sounding alarms. I just listened to Dr. Gabor Maté's live discussing the different types of pandemic-related trauma and the issue of eating disorders came up as one of the niche problems teenagers and their parents are facing today.
And these are just a couple of examples of mental health issues that our society is experiencing right now.
So how do you reconcile the understanding that more work is coming your way when your schedule doesn't allow you to accept new clients anymore?
How do you help people when they hurt without hurting yourself and your private practice? Because having a really full practice is not always a "good problem to have". It can feel frustrating not to be able to help all the people who need your help.
One of the main things that I work on with my clients is correctly assessing their resources. The resources include time, money, technology, external help, etc.
I can't say that there is one correct way to work on this problem, because your practice might be very different from someone else's, even with providing similar services. Your stamina and your strengths are as unique as your approach and point of view.
Looking at the big picture of your private practice and examining your resources and opportunities fairly can help you set up the business of your private practice for success. But when your only strategy is filling your schedule to the brim, it can only last so long until you burn out and become disillusioned with your profession.
Want Some Help With That? Schedule a 30-minute chat with me.
Conclusion
I went to Grad School during the 2008-2009 recession. The financial crisis was being felt by everyone, myself included. I had lost my job as an Art Director and was looking to reinvent my career. What I learned during these years is that times of turbulence produce new opportunities for people who don't want to be stuck in old and familiar ways.
The old model of filling your schedule to the brim was sustainable before only because you were able to balance it out with the slower months. Right now we are in a new private practice territory for which we need new solutions and business models.
How do you want to reinvent yourself during this time of turbulence?
Comment below, I'd love to read your thoughts.
