Hybrid – Live via Zoom or In-Person at the ONE Center

Meets Law & Ethics Continuing Education Credit Hour CE Requirements

Ethics of Essential-Self Care for Clinicians

Presented by: Dr. Brenda Butterfield, EdD, MSW, LMHC 

When: Friday, March 21st, 2025 | 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM, Pacific Time

Where: Live on Zoom or In-Person at the ONE Center (7400 Gallagher Cove Road NW, Olympia, WA 98502)

Lodging Options: If you are coming to the area from out of town, several lodging options are available, including staying at the ONE Center. For all lodging accommodation options, please see the list here.

You will receive workshop details the week of the workshop.

Continuing Education Credit Hours: 6 Law & Ethics CEs | $199.00

Workshop Description:

Providing mental health care as a therapist, case manager, administrator, or in another role is rewarding but also quite challenging. Whether working in a system or in private practice, change is inevitable, requiring one to adapt and learn new knowledge and skills quickly, effectively, and often with little support. In addition, the landscape of our profession has changed in many ways since 2020.  While working from home provides flexibility, it can also result in feeling isolated, disconnected from others, and lonely. Change requires time and energy, and when both seem limited, change can be very stressful.  If you have been running on empty for a while, pushing on to keep meeting the needs of others even though you know you need to pause and rest, you are not alone. Many colleagues are tired, depleted, numb, and even emotionally callused. Thank goodness we can now pause and begin tending to what WE need.

Formally recognizing clinician self-care as essential to providing quality care to others gives us permission to pause, rest, and take time for ourselves. It also aligns with current research findings indicating that the therapist’s psychological health and well-being directly relate to client treatment outcomes. Yes, how we show up in the room with clients matters. Therefore, finding ways to practice caring for oneself is not only a personal responsibility and a gift to oneself but also an ethical obligation for mental health professionals. This workshop is an invitation to do just that! AND earn SIX law and ethics credits while tending to YOUR own health and well-being! Quite recently, the National Association of Social Workers updated the NASW Code of Ethics, reflecting an ethical imperative to practice self-care.

In this experiential workshop, we will spend the day tending to our own health and well-being WHILE earning ethics credits! We will practice turning attention inward by learning ways to slow down, pause, rest, check in with ourselves, notice what is needed, and then care for ourselves. Throughout the day, we will explore key practices taught in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), including breathing techniques, mindful movement, and mindful meditation (sitting and walking). Other practices we’ll explore include self-reflective inquiry, dyad, and large group sharing. All are simple, easy-to-use, effective, evidence-based ways to practice Essential-Self care that nourishes body, mind, and soul.

By the end of the day, attendees will:

1.) Understand ethical implications for practicing/not practicing self-care.

2.) Understand research correlating clinician health and well-being to client treatment outcomes.

3.) Develop knowledge of the Essential-Self Care Practice, including key intervention concepts and practices (Essential-Self, self-care, discipline, self-reflective writing, meditation, mindfulness, mindful practices, peace of mind, breathing techniques, cross-cultural spirituality, etc.)

4.) Explore various ways to practice simple self-care in daily life to cultivate awareness of the Essential-Self.

5.) Identify personal signs of burnout and lifestyle choices that are supportive or undermine health and wellbeing.

6.) Develop a realistic action plan for improved health and well-being.

We know that practicing self-care improves our health and well-being. When we tend to our heart’s longings, we feel better and show up as our True, Essential Self more often. Being our authentic selves simply feels good. Self-care benefits not only us but all those around us, including clients and coworkers. Indeed, it is an essential prerequisite to providing care for others, care that helps them heal.

Join us for a day of personal and professional learning to explore Essential-Self care practices that are nurturing and effective. It is finally here – the opportunity to practice what we often preach to clients, “Take good care of yourself.”

Workshop Objectives:

• Develop knowledge of the Essential-Self Care Practice, including key intervention concepts and practices (Essential-Self, self-care, discipline, self-reflective journaling, meditation, mindfulness, mindful practices, affirmative and contemplative Spirit talk/prayer, phenomenological interventions, cross-cultural spirituality, etc.)
• Experience a variety of ways to practice simple self-care in daily life to cultivate awareness of the Essential-Self
• Understand ethical implications for practicing/not practicing self-care.
• Understand research correlating clinician health and well-being to client treatment outcomes.
• Identify personal signs of burnout and lifestyle choices that are supportive or undermine health and well-being.
• Develop a realistic action plan for improved health and well-being.