THE LEGAL AID SOCIETY JUVENILE RIGHTS PRACTICE Training Materials © The Legal Aid Society 2011 All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted without the prior written permission of The Legal Aid Society. What Our Work Does to Us

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 1 The Legal Aid Society of New York City Oldest (est. 1876) and largest private, not-for-profit organization providing free legal assistance in the US Represents clients in over 300,000 cases each year Provides comprehensive range of legal services in three practice areas: civil, criminal and juvenile Services provided in a network of 25 neighborhood and court-house offices by a staff of 900 attorneys and 600 social workers, investigators, paralegals, and support staff

2 Juvenile Rights Practice Established concurrently with the NYS Family Court in 1962 Provides representation to 90% of the children appearing in the five NYC Family Courts on dependency, termination of parental rights, status offense, and delinquency petitions Represents more than 34,000 children, ages birth to 21 years, each year Provides representation in appellate cases and initiates class action lawsuits and other litigation aimed at system reform Pioneered in the use of professional social workers to assist in representing children

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 3 1. What are Secondary Trauma Stress (STS), Vicarious Trauma (VT) and Burnout? 2. Do we have Secondary Trauma Stress (STS), Vicarious Trauma (VT) or Burnout? 3. Why do we have Secondary Trauma Stress (STS), Vicarious Trauma (VT) and Burnout? 4. What are we going to do about it?

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 4 Stress Defined A mentally or emotionally disruptive or disquieting influence, it can be positive or negative. It emerges over time. Each new stress builds on unresolved past stress, compounding the effect of additional stress.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 5 Do You… Work relentlessly for clients? Get over-involved in work? Frequently skip lunch to work? Frequently stay late at the office? Accumulate too many vacation days? Sacrifice your health and private time to cases?

6 What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 1. What Are: Secondary Trauma Stress? Vicarious Trauma? Burnout?

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 7 Trauma Defined Trauma: Any shock that creates substantial damage to the psychological health of the individual. Traumatic stress: The strain on the human mind and body from a specific major event that shocks, stuns and horrifies.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 8 Vicarious Trauma (VT) Witnessing traumatic events experienced by our clients Absorbing the sight, sound, touch, and feel of the stories told by the victim Causing an instant physical reaction Shaking beliefs about kindness of others and safety

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 9 Symptoms of Vicarious Trauma (VT) The trauma experienced by the client creates distress in the helper which may cause symptoms such as: Minor sleep disorders Hyper-arousal Intrusive thoughts Recurring dreams Avoidance or emotional numbing Anxiety Depression

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 10 Secondary Trauma Stress (STS) AKA Compassion Fatigue Combination of exposure to trauma and empathy Behavior and emotions resulting from knowing about a traumatizing event experienced by someone close Emotional weight experienced when helping or wanting to help a traumatized person

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 11 Factors Contributing to STS Chronic nature of our work and its stresses Our own trauma triggered by hearing about clients’ trauma Lack of control over work life Experiencing: The pain of our clients The difference between expectations and realities The difference between how we perceive our job and how our clients and their families perceive it A sense that showing emotions, especially for attorneys, is seen as weakness

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 12 Burnout Three dimensions: Emotional exhaustion Depersonalization Low feeling of accomplishment All three feed on each other, quickly creating a downward spiral Often stems from the distance between a person’s values and goals and the resources available to achieve them Can be the end result of Secondary Trauma Stress and Vicarious Trauma Common in helping professions

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 13 Signs of Burnout Fatigue Poor Sleep Headaches Anxiety and irritability Depression and hopelessness Cynicism Gradual erosion of idealism

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 14 Burnout Personified

15 What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 2. Do We Have: Secondary Trauma Stress? Vicarious Trauma? Burnout?

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 16

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 17 Caring Has a Price STS is a natural result of knowledge about a trauma. It is also the result of wanting to help a trauma victim, And possibly not being able to do so. We pay the price every day.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 18 People Bring Themselves People bring their experiences and personal perspectives to anything they do: Their attitudes, beliefs and assumptions Their relationships with family, friends and others Their history of trauma Their cultural background Their socio-economic situation ADAPTED FROM: ©Beth Hudnall,

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 19 The Professional Quality of Life Scale ( ProQOL ) A 30 item self report scale Measures Compassion Satisfaction, Burnout and Secondary Trauma Stress Statistically valid measure developed with data from over 3,000 people Most widely used measure of the positive and negative aspects of helping ADAPTED FROM: ©Beth Hudnall,

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 20 Our Survey ProQOL was used in our Legal Aid survey 30 other questions were added to the survey to develop JRP-specific data: Characteristics of the responders Work styles Environment

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 21 Mean Secondary Trauma Stress

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 22 Mean Burnout

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 23 Mean Compassion Satisfaction

24 What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 3.Why Do We Have: Secondary Trauma Stress? Vicarious Trauma? Burnout?

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 25 We Checked Out… Differences among professions and their levels of STS Is there a relationship between STS and: Vacations Outside activities Sense of responsibility for clients Supervision Health

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 26 I Give My Clients My Personal Contact Information

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 27 I Check My on My Personal Time

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 28 I Feel that I Need to Be Available to My Clients Outside of Work Hours

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 29 I Feel that My Client’s Safety and Well-being Rests Primarily on My Shoulders

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 30 I Feel this Work Affects My Health

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 31 What do you think……??

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 32 Our Working Theory Exposure to trauma is part of the job. We work in a crisis-oriented, dysfunctional system. We develop a different sense of “normal”. Our work is child client directed.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 33 Exposure to Trauma Our clients have experienced trauma. Their parents have experienced trauma. Their families have experienced trauma. They come with current and past traumas that become a part of our work with them.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 34 The System We Work In Problem focused Power and control are important Players in the system do not collaborate and cooperate and communicate Lack of resources Sustainability problems Poor training, supervision & support for many players in the system A sense of having to compensate for the failures of others

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 35 Our Work Is Client Directed Our job is not defined by winning. We have an important but limited role in our clients lives. We are not here to “save” them. We have to trust that our clients’ decisions are right for them even if we feel differently.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 36 What Is Our Motivation? Why did we chose a profession focused on helping others? What core beliefs led us to it? What do we get out of it? What don’t we get out of it (money, status, power)?

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 37 Empathy Defined Appreciation of the feelings of others, even if they are distant others Emotional responsiveness Willingness to be/work with others who have problems

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 38 The Bottom Line Trauma is an occupational hazard of this work.

39 What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 4. What Are We Going to Do About It?

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 40 Preventing and Managing STS Knowledge Recognition Response Personal Institutional Professional

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 41 The Ethics of Self Care 1.Do no harm to yourself when helping others. 2.Pay yourself first. Attend to your physical, social, emotional, and spiritual needs so you can provide the highest quality services to your clients. 3.Neglecting sufficient self care can cause harm to those you serve.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 42 Personal Responses Be an Advocate for Yourself Remember the basics: sleep, eat, exercise, laugh Balance home & work - leave work, refuel and refill Cultivate healthy intimate and family relationships Develop a healthy attitude towards the use of drugs and alcohol Get regular medical & dental checkups Consider including spirituality or meditation in your day If needed, seek counseling and professional help

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 43 Stress Management Learn stress management techniques Breathing exercises “Centering” and using guided imagery Biofeedback Progressive relaxation Develop skills to soothe and calm yourself Be aware of physical manifestations of STS Empathic resonance (tendency to experience the same feelings as the client, e.g. anger, sadness, etc.) Hyper-arousal, hyper-sensitivity (tendency to over-react to stimuli)

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 44 Save Time for Things that Give Your Life Meaning Contact with nature Spirituality Creative expression Volunteer work Whatever else works for you

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 45 Institutional Responses Create a safe and supportive environment Ensure regular supervision and peer and individual support, especially during times of crisis Balance case load size/work load Encourage attendance at continuing professional education Address effects of STS and other job issues Undertake coalition building with other system players Guarantee a healthy work setting Make sure staff understands policies and procedures Provide access to leaders and supervisors Create adequate human resource policies Provide a method for seeking counseling and professional help Create awareness of these issues during staff recruiting

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 46 Supervisory Responses Create and maintain an open and nonjudgmental professional space Supervisors must address STS issues Identify pertinent cases, discuss issues, validate reactions, encourage and monitor self care Good supervision includes: Dedicated time A collaborative relationship Constructive feedback Reflection Self exploration Mentorship APPRECIATION AND RECOGNITION!!!! APPRECIATION AND RECOGNITION!!!!

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 47 Professional Responses Within Your Office Acknowledge toll of work Arrange job into manageable, well paced parts Boundary and limit setting - You can only accomplish so much with limited hours and personal resources Engage in daily goal setting and/or self evaluation at the end of the day Develop and implement plans for coping with STS Reduce and resist isolation in yourself and others Make worker care a team activity Help each other keep good work boundaries

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 48 Professional Responses Outside Your Office Reach out for peer support - formally and informally Cultivate relationships with professional peers outside Family Court Attend professional trainings Participate in professional societies Cultivate relationships with other professionals who have a positive attitude Find professional mentors Engage in social activism to help clients and the community develop a sense of shared mission

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 49 Resilience Resilience is how a person recovers (bounces back) from stress and trauma. It can be inherited or innate, but resilience can also be learned and developed. Resilience is related to the delicate balance between the factors and defenses that protect against cumulative stress (prevention and management). It is based on having/employing coping skills that allow for continued stress resolution.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 50 Compassion Satisfaction Perceived stress is associated with lower compassion and job satisfaction. Workers in the same setting who report higher job satisfaction report less stress. Job satisfaction is associated with higher levels of social support, autonomy and effectiveness.

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 51 Our Goal

What Our Work Does to Us (© The Legal Aid Society 2011) 52 Thank you Please feel free to contact us Vicki Brad Jennifer Beth