Healthy Boundaries With At-Risk Students Ofc Tara Fleetwood Bellingham Police Crime Prevention Unit

The Importance of Boundaries… In order to make positive, healthy changes and meet expected outcomes with at-risk students, professionals must maintain and reinforce healthy boundaries.

The At-Risk Client May: Lack interpersonal skills Have a chemical/alcohol dependency Exhibit manipulative behavior Suffer from emotional/physical abuse Be in financial crisis Have seemingly endless needs that may burn out the most diligent of people

We All Have “Baggage” The Federal Government reports that 1 in 4 adults suffer from some form of mental illness, and the number is increasing. Be conscious of precipitating factors and triggering events.

Signs of Students with Unhealthy Boundaries At-Risk student who tells all Talks at an intimate level at first meeting Falls in love with an acquaintance Believes others should anticipate his/her needs and fulfill them Falls apart so someone will take care of them

Signs of Students with Unhealthy Boundaries (Cont.) Self-abuse Allows people to take advantage of them Food and chemical abuse Sexual and physical abuse Takes/gives all regardless of need Goes against personal values to please others

Signs of Staff with Unhealthy Boundaries: Give your home number to student or tell them to call you anytime Share intimate personal information with student Believe that only you can “save” this person Believe the “system” doesn’t understand, but you do, so you must intervene.

Signs of Staff with Unhealthy Boundaries (con’t.) Believes other staff members don’t understand when you discuss/defend your behavior with student Lend student money Physical/emotional abuse Take sides in arguments between students Experience stress induced illnesses (migraines, asthma, etc.) when involved with student

To establish healthy boundaries you must first know yourself! The Crisis Prevention Institute teaches professionals the use of rational detachment to let go of the outcome, without overreacting or acting inappropriately. Find a positive outlet for the negative energy, in order to foster a rationally detached view of an unpleasant situation.

Make use of talking with and involving colleagues, confidentially, to release stress and provide feedback and support in successfully setting boundaries.

Managing Healthy Boundaries: Distinguish which type of boundary is unhealthy and discuss with the student how the behavior is inappropriate and how to avoid this in the future. Offer a substituted behavior in place of the inappropriate behavior. Set firm limits. Be prepared to reinforce them. Refer clients to the proper social service agency personnel trained to meet their needs.

If these steps do not work, or the student refuses redirection, take the appropriate steps to withdraw contact.

Staff should continually work to reinforce and develop their own professional boundaries to increase effectiveness and reduce stress as they work with at-risk students.

Establishing Healthy Boundaries Establish boundaries and parameters early in the relationship Maintain personal awareness Avoid risky behavior Maintain appropriate settings Motivate students and build self-esteem Documentation and communication

“If it is predictable it is preventable”