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With busy lives, it can be hard to find time to volunteer. However, the benefits of volunteering are enormous to you, your family, and your community. The right match can help you reduce stress, find friends, connect with the community, learn new skills, and even advance your career. Giving to others can also help protect your mental and physical health.

Why volunteer?

Volunteering offers vital help to people in need, worthwhile causes, and the community, but the benefits can be even greater for you, the volunteer. Volunteering and helping others can reduce stress, combat depression, keep you mentally stimulated, and provide a sense of purpose. While it’s true that the more you volunteer, the more benefits you’ll experience, volunteering doesn’t have to involve a long-term commitment or take a huge amount of time out of your busy day. Giving in even simple ways can help those in need and improve your health and happiness.

Benefits of volunteering:

• 4 ways to feel healthier and happier
• Volunteering connects you to others
• Volunteering is good for your mind and body
• Volunteering can advance your career
• Volunteering brings fun and fulfillment to your life
• Volunteering connects you to others

One of the more well-known benefits of volunteering is the impact on the community. Volunteering allows you to connect to your community and make it a better place. Even helping out with the smallest tasks can make a real difference. And volunteering is a two-way street: It can benefit you and your family as much as the cause you choose to help. Dedicating your time as a volunteer helps you make new friends, expand your network, and boost your social skills.

Make new friends and contacts

Volunteering is a great way to meet new people, especially if you are new to an area. It strengthens your ties to the community and broadens your support network, exposing you to people with common interests, neighborhood resources, and fun and fulfilling activities.

Increase your social and relationship skills

While some people are naturally outgoing, others are shy and have a hard time meeting new people. Volunteering gives you the opportunity to practice and develop your social skills, since you are meeting with a group of people with common interests. Once you have momentum, it’s easier to branch out and make more friends and contacts.

Volunteering is good for your mind and body

Volunteering helps counteract the effects of stress, anger, and anxiety. The social contact aspect of helping and working with others can have a profound effect on your overall psychological well-being. Nothing relieves stress better than a meaningful connection to another person.

Volunteering combats depression. Volunteering keeps you in regular contact with others and helps you develop a solid support system, which in turn protects you against depression.

Volunteering makes you happy. By measuring hormones and brain activity, researchers have discovered that being helpful to others delivers immense pleasure. Human beings are hard-wired to give to others. The more we give, the happier we feel.

Volunteering increases self-confidence. You are doing good for others and the community, which provides a natural sense of accomplishment. Your role as a volunteer can also give you a sense of pride and identity. And the better you feel about yourself, the more likely you are to have a positive view of your life and future goals.

Volunteering provides a sense of purpose. Whatever your age or life situation, volunteering can help take your mind off your own worries, keep you mentally stimulated, and add more zest to your life. Older adults, especially those who have retired or lost a spouse, can find new meaning and direction in their lives by helping others.

Volunteering helps you stay physically healthy. Studies have found that those who volunteer have a lower mortality rate than those who do not. Older volunteers tend to walk more, find it easier to cope with everyday tasks, are less likely to develop high blood pressure, and have better thinking skills. Volunteering can also lessen symptoms of chronic pain and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Many people choose to volunteer their time via phone or computer. Many organizations need help with writing, graphic design, email, and other web-based tasks. In any volunteer situation, make sure that you are getting enough social contact, and that the organization is available to support you should you have questions.

Volunteering can advance your career

Volunteering can help you get experience in your area of interest, meet people in the field, and gives you the opportunity to practice important skills such as teamwork, communication, problem solving, project planning, task management, and organizing.

Teaching you valuable job skills

Just because volunteer work is unpaid does not mean the skills you learn are basic. Many volunteering opportunities can provide you with new skills. Joining a board of directors, helping with events, or communication can add to one's skill set. Volunteering can also help you build upon skills you already have and use them to benefit the greater community. Your volunteer work might also expose you to professional organizations or internships that could benefit your career.

When it comes to volunteering, passion and positivity are the only requirements.

While learning new skills can be beneficial to many, it’s not a requirement for a fulfilling volunteer experience. Bear in mind that the most valuable assets you can bring to any volunteer effort are compassion, an open mind, a willingness to pitch in wherever needed, and a positive attitude.

Volunteering brings fun and fulfillment to your life

Volunteering is a fun and easy way to explore your interests and passions. Doing volunteer work you find meaningful and interesting can be a relaxing, energizing escape from your day-to-day routine of work, school, or family commitments. Volunteering also provides you with renewed creativity, motivation, and vision that can carry over into your personal and professional life.

Consider your goals and interests

You will have a richer and more enjoyable volunteering experience if you first take some time to identify your goals and interests. Think about why you want to volunteer. What would you enjoy doing? The opportunitiess that match both your goals and your interests are most likely to be fun and fulfilling.

How much time should you volunteer?

Volunteering doesn’t have to take over your life to be beneficial. In fact, research shows that just two to three hours per week, or about 100 hours a year, can confer the most benefits—to both you and your chosen cause. The important thing is to volunteer only the amount of time that feels comfortable to you. Volunteering should feel like a fun and rewarding hobby, not another chore on your to-do list.

Don’t be afraid to make a change. Don’t force yourself into a bad fit or feel compelled to stick with a volunteer role you dislike. Talk to the organization about changing your focus or look for a different organization that’s a better fit.

Enjoy yourself

The best volunteer experiences benefit both the volunteer and the organization. If you’re not enjoying yourself, ask yourself why. Is it the tasks you’re performing? The people you’re working with? Or are you uncomfortable simply because the situation is new and unfamiliar? Pinpointing what’s bothering you can help you decide how to proceed.

Article reprinted with permission from HelpGuide.org.

Nancy Wesson, Ph.D. is the founder of the Center for the Study of Group Psychotherapy (CSGP.org), a nonprofit group therapy training center.

Individual and group psychotherapy are both considered effective and highly therapeutic forms of psychotherapy. However there are differences in how the therapeutic process works in the two modalities of psychotherapy. In this article individual psychotherapy will be defined as the one-on-one therapeutic process between a client and an individual psychotherapist. Group psychotherapy will refer to psychotherapy within a group with several clients meeting at the same time. There is a special emphasis in this article on interpersonal group psychotherapy as defined by Dr. Irvin Yalom.

Different therapeutic alliance: in individual psychotherapy the therapeutic alliance is between a client and a psychotherapist. In group psychotherapy the therapeutic alliance is with the group.

Individual psychotherapy is a one-on-one therapeutic relationship with a psychotherapist. The group psychotherapist has a different role in the therapeutic process. The group psychotherapist leads a group comprised of several clients through the therapeutic process.Different therapeutic factors (components of the change process) are at work in individual and group psychotherapy. Unlike individual psychotherapy, group psychotherapy is a team approach.

Different Therapeutic Alliance

There is considerable clinical evidence which links therapeutic alliance (engagement in a therapeutic bond ) with psychotherapy outcome. Individual psychotherapy is a place for clients to work through psychological issues within the context of a one-on-one therapeutic alliance. In group psychotherapy, the therapeutic alliance is with the group comprised of peer group members and the group psychotherapist. The group psychotherapy alliance can be understood as the emotional bond held by each group member for the other group members and the group psychotherapist.

Different role of the psychotherapist

The individual psychotherapist’s role is to provide a one-on-one protected therapeutic relationship with a client. In contrast, the role of the group psychotherapist is quite different. The group psychotherapist leads several clients (peer group members) in an exploration of relationship issues and maintains the group process.

In individual psychotherapy, the focus is on the individual client and resolution of their psychological issues through the therapeutic process. The therapeutic change process in group psychotherapy is different. In group psychotherapy peer group members interact with each other and interpersonal skills are learned through several different peer relationships. The group members and group psychotherapist observe interactions as they take place within the group and provide feedback. This is a very different change process than in the one-on-one relationship of individual psychotherapy.

Different therapeutic factors are at work in individual and group psychotherapy

There are different factors that reflect different processes in individual and group treatment. The factors of insight and problem solving are more important to the process of individual psychotherapy. The therapeutic factors of altruism, interpersonal skill building, and group cohesiveness are emphasized more in group psychotherapy. This is a substantially different therapeutic process involving different therapeutic factors than individual psychotherapy.

Unlike individual psychotherapy, group psychotherapy is a team approach

Relationships between group members and the therapeutic bond between them are the most important aspects of the group therapeutic process. In group psychotherapy, members experience in-vivo closeness with each other, learn to trust each other, and develop a “team” approach which entails the development of an active cohesive group. In group psychotherapy clients become part of a community which is like a healthy family and clients have the opportunity to experience multiple positive and healthy relationships. This is known as the “corrective emotional experience.”

For many of our clients, relationships have been painful and difficult. As psychotherapists we work with our clients to improve the relationships in their lives. According to interpersonal theory, in group psychotherapy a client demonstrates the very interpersonal behavior which is causing problems in his/her relationships. This dysfunctional relationship behavior creates feeling reactions in other group members and is described and reflected back to the client through feedback. Clients become aware of their unhealthy interpersonal behavior through the eyes of peer group members and how this behavior interferes with closeness and support. They then have the opportunity to develop healthy interpersonal skills and practice these skills within the group. Clients learn how to develop meaningful and close relationships through this process.

Conclusion

The healing power of psychotherapy exists in individual and group psychotherapy. Involvement and engagement in healthy relationships with peer group members is an important aspect of the therapeutic process in group psychotherapy, which is different than the one-on-one therapeutic process of individual psychotherapy. In both forms of psychotherapy clients learn about the “work” and “joy” of relationships which have honesty and emotional depth.

Nancy Wesson, Ph.D., CGP, is a licensed psychologist and Certified Group Psychotherapist (CGP). She is the founder of the Center for the Study of Group Psychotherapy (CSGP.org), a nonprofit group psychotherapy training center which offers group psychotherapy training courses. Dr. Wesson has studied group psychotherapy for 30 years. She has been trained by Dr. Irvin Yalom, M.D. and the American Group Psychotherapy Association. She has led two weekly psychotherapy groups for 27 years. CSGP.org DrNWesson@CSGP.org.

References

Holmes, S., & Kivlighan, D., Jr. (2000). Comparison of therapeutic factors in group and individual treatment processes. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 47, 478-484.

Klein, A., Markowitz, J., Rothbaum, B., Thase, M., Fisher, A., & Kocsis, J. (2013) The Relationship between the Therapeutic Alliance and Treatment Outcome in Two Distinct

Psychotherapies for Chronic Depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 627-638.

Wesson, N. (2007). Becoming a true member of a psychotherapy group. The California Psychologist, 21, 22-25.

Yalom, I., & Leszcz, M. (2005). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy (5th Ed.). New York: Basic Books.

Integrating research and practice of evidence-based psychotherapy and Person-Centered Expressive Arts (PCEA) for healing and social change.

Recognizing, understanding and regulating emotions is complicated, which may a part of why therapists are in demand. As therapists, we have skills to help clients sort through the difficulties and challenges of life in order to create opportunities for meaningful change, improved clarity, insight, and relationships.

Person-Centered Expressive Art combines the creative process and psychology to promote emotional growth and healing. Therapists can use our inborn desire to create as therapeutic support to help initiate change, nurture well-being, and foster transformation.

On Feb 23, 2018 Santa Clara Valley Chapter of California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (SCV-CAMFT) invited Julie Norton to facilitate a participatory professional engagement presentation, entitled “Ignite Creativity, Wonder, and Well-being.” The presentation offered an opportunity to explore our relationship with creativity to serve as a pathway to deep work with clients.

Creativity can be used for enriching a wellness practice, and creative expression can have many benefits for youth and adults alike. Creativity is highly connected to emotion. Active participation in art activities is one of the best ways to achieve benefits (Bolwerk et. al, 2014). Participants in this introductory Person-Centered Expressive Arts presentation were encouraged to reflect on their own wellbeing and their relationship to creativity, as well as that of their clients.

Creativity is a process that involves mental agility and cognitive resourcing. In order to increase creativity, research indicates that we need to tend to our wellbeing. Some examples are reducing the overload on working memory and lessening over-stimulation.

Participants who attended this presentation-explored ways that awe, wonder, and well-being can be modeled and applied. Each clinician had a chance to apply a multi-modal approach that included elements such as sounding, visual arts, writing, movement, and other forms of expression. According to Myers and Sweeny, “Wellness refers to the integration of mind, body and spirit into healthy balance.” In the session, participants explored what wellness and well-being meant to them and their clients.

Drawing can improve moods, reduce stress, and help regulate emotion by serving as a distractor (Drake & Winner, 2012; Stuckey & Nobel, 2010). People who report feeling happy and active are more likely to engage creatively (Silvia et. al, 2014).

One of the concepts and practices explored in the presentation was that of wonder. Wonder and awe are most likely to occur in places that have two key features: physical vastness and novelty. To experience a moment of awe, take a look at this resource provided by Greater Good in Action: Science-based Practices for a Meaningful Life. https://ggia.berkeley.edu/practice/awe_video This video was shared in the session and one participant said, “I loved the video clip! It was inspiring and very good priming for creativity, awe, and well being. I was in awe, so it was then easy to draw, use colors, shapes, etc.”

The person-centered approach offers qualities of empathy, openness, honesty and congruence as a foundational basis for creating safety and building trust in groups.

Person-Centered Expressive Arts Guidelines
Natalie Rogers, Ph.D. (2011). The Creative Connection for Groups: Person-Centered Expressive Arts for Healing and Social Change. Palo Alto, CA: Science and Behavior.

1. Be aware of your feelings as a source for creative expression.
2. There is no right or wrong way to do art. We create art to discover our inner essence.
3. Be aware of your own body, and take care of yourself.
4. Instructions are always suggestions. You have the option not to do them. Be your own boss, here.
5. These experiences stirrup many feelings. You may need to cry or let out loud sounds, which can be very helpful.
6. If you choose to observe, notice group dynamics or enjoy the experience vicariously. Please do not judge others.
7. The events in this session/program should be kept confidential. You may discuss the events with others outside of the group without attaching any personal names to those events. Thank you for keeping our trust.

Carl Rogers was known for his belief, “Experience is, for me, the highest authority.” Some feedback from participants who attended the presentation were: 

• “Great reminder to use our creativity and help our clients.”
•  “Sometimes we need to re-learn how to breathe. Inspiring and a breath of fresh air!!”
• “Enriching, inspiring, connecting.”
• “Great reminder for me to use the arts for myself, not just my clients. Loved it!”
• “Thanks, Julie! It was fun, informative, and refreshing. Well done!”
• “Crayons + stickers + pastels, oh my! Thanks for this opportunity to play and connect with myself and with others.”

Natalie Rogers, the pioneer of PCEA said, “It is difficult to convey in words the depth and power of the expressive arts process. Really, you must taste it to understand it.” The desire of Norton was for local therapists to get a nourishing morsel. 

The SCV-CAMFT presentation was popular and Santa Cruz therapists have asked Julie to do an encore presentation. 

Julie Norton, LMFT
Julie Norton is a licensed marriage and family therapist (MFC53057) and relationship specialist, trained to assess, diagnose, and treat individuals, couples, children, families, and groups to achieve more satisfying and productive lives. Julie presents nationally on resilience, social and emotional learning, and grief. She specializes in a Person-centered expressive arts, humanistic and strengths-based approach. Find out more: www.nortonmft.com.

References

Bolwerk A, Mack-Andrick J, Lang FR, Dörfler A, Maihöfner C (2014) How Art Changes Your Brain: Differential Effects of Visual Art Production and Cognitive Art Evaluation on Functional Brain Connectivity. PLoS ONE 9(7): e101035. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0101035. 

Drake, J.E. & Winner, E. (2012). How children use drawing to regulate their emotions. Cognition and Emotion, 27, 3, 512-520, DOI: 10.1080/02699931.2012.720567 

Myers, J. E., & Sweeney, T. J. (Eds.). (2005). Counseling for wellness: Theory, research, and practice (pp. 29–38). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.

Natalie Rogers, Ph.D. (2011). The Creative Connection for Groups: Person-Centered Expressive Arts for Healing and Social Change. Palo Alto, CA: Science and Behavior. 

Silvia, P.J., Beaty, R.E., Nusbaum, E.C., Eddington, K.M., Levin-Aspensen, H., & Kwapil T.R. (2014). Everyday creativity in daily life: An experience-sampling study of “little c” creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8, 2, 183-188.

Stuckey, H. L., & Nobel, J. (2010). The Connection Between Art, Healing, and Public Health: A Review of Current Literature. American Journal of Public Health, 100(2), 254–263. http://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2008.156497

Note: portions of this article are adapted from a short piece on ACES by Kim Gulbrandson, Ph.D. and the research referenced is from https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/volume-24/edition-7/how-rudeness-takes-its-toll 

Fairy tales are important in our children’s lives. The classic stories heard frequently throughout childhood at bedtime, in Disney movies, in school and later into adulthood in ballets and operas contain special guides to behavior. According to psychoanalyst Carl Jung, we have a favorite fairy tale that goes with us throughout life that forms the pattern for our most significant development.

Fairy tale heroes and heroines all take the same journey. Most begin with an abusive home, but some start out on a quest. Cinderella is tormented by cruel stepsisters and Snow White’s step mother tries to kill her. Without parental protections, the main character is soon lost in a threatening dark forest. Although extreme challenges beset them in the woods, invariably helpers appear in the form of godmothers, helpful animals, or dwarfs. Strong inner resourcefulness is discovered as they master tasks of strategy and use empathic ways with others. Ultimately, the standard path leads to a high exalted place in society. The stories teach that quick wittedness and kindness leads one to a good end despite the necessary struggles along the way.

Some parents are concerned about the violent themes. Fairy tales often revolve around child neglect and abuse, such as in Hansel and Gretel, wherein the parents abandon the children to the forest, or The Girl without Hands, where the story centers on the father’s pact with the devil that ultimately leads him to chop off his daughter’s hands.

More than ever before, modern times are filled with the threat of violence and discord in the forms of terrorism, global warming, school shootings and myriad other representations. Because of rapid advances in communication technology such as the internet, it is impossible to hide these core realities. Children need models and guides for mastering threatening situations.

The fairy tale hero or heroine invariably finds the means to master disturbing events. Thus they teach that it is within one’s own power to thrive through creative and strategic action despite what appear to be overwhelming odds.

For example, In the Grimm’s tale, The Three Little Gnomes in the Forest, one learns that through a willing attitude to try difficult tasks, success follows. As the heroine successfully faces impossible challenges, such as gathering strawberries in bitter cold of winter, she gains strength.

“A man with a daughter loses his wife and marries a woman who has lost her husband and also has a daughter. The stepmother favors her own daughter and makes her stepdaughter do the nasty work. One winter day she tells the maiden to gather strawberries in the woods. The girl objects but is forced to the task. In the woods she comes upon a little house with three little men living in it. They pity her being in the snow and ask her why she is there. She tells of her task and shares her meager breakfast with them. They tell her to sweep the snow from the back door, which she does. So they grant her three gifts: that she shall become more beautiful each day, that gold will come from her mouth, and that a king shall take her for his wife. Meanwhile she has discovered ripe strawberries shooting from the ground; she fills her basket and returns home.”

Parents become concerned when their children are fearful. Yet it is part of normal child development to become afraid. During preschool, small ones may get distressed over the dark, monsters and ghosts, animals, and noises in the night. During school years, fears shift to fear of rejection or failure, being hurt, natural disasters, an angry teacher, being home alone, scary news, and death. These are frequently the main motifs in fairy tales! In symbolic language, classic stories encode the means to master fears. For example, the essential theme, the “dark forest,” always resolves with the heroine finding her way to safety.

Contrast the beginning of the story The Ugly Duckling, wherein “the ducks bit him, the hens pecked him, and the girl who fed him kicked him aside…..” “….Even his mother said “I wish you were miles away” with the ending wherein “He thought of how he had been scorned......and now he was the most beautiful of all birds”.

Tales teach although frightening situations exist, it is within one’s own power and resources to find the path to safety and eventual success. 

Bette Kiernan, MFT is in private practice in Menlo Park. She works with individuals, couples, groups, and families. Ms. Kiernan does trainings for corporations, cities, counties, and hospitals. She has taught at Santa Clara University, JFKU, UCSC, UC Berkeley, and Sofia University. MIT presented her work on fairy tales and sacred texts at their International Conference on Media in Transition. Ms. Kiernan is also a journalist for Splash Magazines Worldwide.

If you do not create your own estate plan, the law will create one for you at death, deciding which relatives get what portion of your property based on the relationship to you of the family members who survive you (known as "intestate succession").  

But that plan may not comport to your priorities.  And if you become incapacitated without an estate plan, the law has a process for appointing a person (known as a "conservator") to make financial and personal care decisions on your behalf.  Again, these decisions and the people in charge of this care may not be in line with your wishes.  

Creating a foundational estate plan ensures that your goals are achieved and that your family is taken care of after you're gone.  

Having a plan can also protect you if you should become disabled or incapacitated. Below are the four estate planning documents that make up the foundational estate plan

Living Trust

A Living Trust allows you to determine how your estate will be distributed and in the vast majority of cases this can be done efficiently without court involvement.  If you have a Will, but not a Living Trust, then decisions about who gets your property can still be taken care of by the Will, but the process for executing your wishes must be supervised by the courts.  

You also want to prevent disputes among your family members.  Your Living Trust can provide your loved ones guidance and clarification regarding your wishes and if you are concerned about particular disputes, an estate planning attorney can help you create incentives in your plan aimed at preventing strife and litigation.  You can also appoint the person you trust the most to administer your estate.

Durable Power of Attorney

The Living Trust is also useful in that it allows a person you trust to manage your property for your benefit (e.g., paying for your care and comfort) if you become incapacitated.  However, in order to have authority to do this, your property must be titled as trust property. 

A durable power of attorney gives your chosen agent the power to take control of your property that is not titled in the Living Trust.  For example, IRAs cannot be owned by a Living Trust, so it is the agent under the durable power of attorney who might take distributions or make investment decisions in your IRA if you become incapacitated.  This person can make financial and legal decisions for you, so it is imperative that you appoint somebody you trust implicitly.  

If you have a Living Trust, generally it is a good idea to name your successor trustee(s) as the agent under your durable power of attorney.

Will / Nomination of Guardian

If you have a Living Trust, you will need a document known as a pourover will.  This document is essentially a backup document in case you pass away with assets that are not titled in your Living Trust.  It instructs the executor of your Will to transfer any such property to your Living Trust. 

Parents with minor children can also nominate a guardian for their children through the Will.  In some cases, a Living Trust may not be necessary and a Will may be sufficient for the at-death transfer of your property.  

As a very generic rule, if you have no minor children, no real property, and the net worth of your assets is below $150,000, a Will may be sufficient for your estate planning needs.  You should consult with a lawyer before deciding whether a Will is sufficient for your goals.

Advance Health Care Directive

Your Advance Health Care Directive (AHCD) provides another person with the authority to make medical decisions for you if you're unable to do so. Again, it is vital that you appoint an individual that you trust to act in your best interests.  

Your AHCD also outlines what you want to happen with your end-of-life care.  You can specify whether you want to receive artificial life support, donate organs, and how your remains are handled (i.e., burial, cremation, etc.).  

It is imperative that you have open discussions with your loved ones about your wishes.  This will make facing the difficult situation easier and lift the burden of making end of life decisions from your loved ones.

Estate planning is emotional, but it is one of the best gifts you can give yourself and your loved ones.

Gadi Zohar, Esq., practices as a trusts and estates lawyer in Palo Alto, California.  He is also an LMFT and CEO of TherapistWill.com, an online professional will solution.  Gadi no longer provides professional psychotherapy or psychological counseling.  

This article is for information purposes only, and is not intended to be legal advice.  The opinions of the author are not a guarantee of any particular outcome.  For advice regarding your individual situation you should consult an attorney.  Gadi welcomes your calls and emails and states that contacting him does not create an attorney-client relationship.

I have been leading group consultation for over fifteen years now and I have come to believe that consultation is the key to a vibrant private practice. Having participated in group consultation since I was an intern in private practice, I have always valued it highly.  It is an excellent marketing and networking tool.  Whether you participate in the chapter’s free Newly Licensed Support Groups, a peer consultation group, or a facilitated Private Practice Consult, group consultation will always be worth the time and/or money you invest.

 Private practitioners who belong to peer consultation groups report such benefits as support for difficult cases, guidance on ethical and professional issues, sharing information, and countering isolation (Lewis, Greenburgh, & Hatch, 1988). 

 We work in a very isolated environment. At times, we can become so overwhelmed with the problems facing our clients, we lose our perspective. Case consultation in a group setting gives you the luxury of several unique perspectives and theoretical orientations.  Often times, clinicians do not see how truly “burnt out” they are and it takes other clinicians to recognize the signs. Group consultation can give you the empathy and support you give your clients. 

Lawson (2007) found that counselors in private practice engaged in less consultation on average (2.34 hours a month) than counselors in all other settings, including K-12 schools, colleges and universities, hospitals and residential settings, and community agencies. Private practitioners also tended to engage in less peer and group supervision than colleagues in other settings, and in less individual supervision than everyone else except school counselors. 

All of us in private practice know that it can be lonely at times. Running the business of a private practice, it is difficult to find time to read journals, sign up for CEU classes, and even attend SCV-CAMFT luncheons. Scheduling time to meet with other therapists to discuss cases can be overlooked.  A few minutes in the hallway with a colleague or over the phone, usually will not allow us to address the more in-depth issues we handle alone in our offices. 

The unique private practice dilemma of financial concerns like budgeting, billing, setting client fees, working with insurance, and renting offices, make consultation incredibly useful.  Private practice therapists always need to discuss how they will handle client referrals and advertising their practices. Consulting with a colleague who already has a thriving practice could be beneficial to MFTs first starting out or looking to improve their practices.

Your fellow therapists are the only ones who can tell you to call and speak to a CAMFT lawyer. They are the ones who will say,” that’s a CPS report” or “you did the right thing sending that teen to the hospital.” You can always document consultation in your notes on difficult cases, therefore following ethical practices. Most importantly, other clinicians can give you reliable and diverse feedback on your cases.  One of the greatest values in group consultation is that your fellow MFTs can suggest when a case appears out of your scope of practice. 

Depending on the focus of the consultation, consultants can provide specialized expertise, research knowledge, situation assessment, diagnosis, treatment recommendations, guidance on ethical concerns, and assistance with case conceptualization (Dougherty, 2013). 

Many of us still remember our intern experience in group supervision.  The camaraderie with our fellow interns, the nervousness in presenting cases, and the security in numbers, propelled us through the process. Group Consultation harkens back to those days with the added burden of paperwork and monetary burdens. The idea of spending more money on another expense or taking time to meet consistently with fellow MFTs may seem superfluous. 

The opposite is true. Spending the money and time to secure your success is wise. Having the balance in your practice of monthly consultation enables you to get invaluable feedback from your peers. Whether you are discussing a case that has kept you up the night before or addressing an issue with an insurance company, your colleagues have been in your shoes. They feel your pain and your joy. 

A colleague in your consultation group will have worked with that child psychologist you need for your new child client or know a good software program to keep your practice up and running.  They may have a bookkeeping referral, a masseuse, or a bank that’s friendly. They may know an office in a different town that you are considering or a way for you to become involved in your CAMFT chapter so you can network and meet new clinicians. They will know which CEU classes are boring and which online referral services are worthwhile.

 Group consultation is a safety net.  Each of us has felt overburdened at times with the demands of our practice. More than your family or your friends, your colleagues   will recognize burnout.  They will not hesitate to encourage you to take a vacation or lower your case load. Group consultation can insure your work/life balance. It is well worth the investment of funds and time. 

Mary Deger Seevers, MA, MFT (CA#35702) has been leading private practice consultation groups in San Mateo for over fifteen years. She is a certified CAMFT supervisor. Her current group meets on Friday mornings once a month. If you are interested in individual or group consultation, please contact her through mary@marydegerseevers.com

September was alopecia areata awareness month so I wrote up this article to help educate my colleagues at SCV-CAMFT about alopecia areata, the stages of grief and loss one goes through with this condition, and the power of group therapy to help those who suffer from it and other unique conditions. 

The beginning of my journey toward becoming an LMFT happened by chance in 2006 when I contracted an autoimmune disease called alopecia universalis (AU).  Alopecia universalis is the most rare form of alopecia areata (AA), which is characterized by rapid and unexpected hair loss over the entire epidermis.  In alopecia areata, the affected hair follicles are mistakenly attacked by a person's own immune system (white blood cells), resulting in the arrest of the hair growth stage.  Alopecia areata usually starts with one or more small, round, smooth bald patches on the scalp and can progress to total scalp hair loss (alopecia totalis) or, as in my case, complete body hair loss (alopecia universalis). Eyebrows, eyelashes, and a full head of hair were all gone in six weeks. 

Getting AU was like getting a body blow from Mike Tyson.  I was knocked down for the count.  While AU is not life threatening, it is life altering.  Initially, I was determined to defeat the disease with everything modern medicine had to offer.  What I discovered is that the sum total of the medical community's knowledge of AU is that there is no known cause, there is no known cure, and there is no common progression.  All my hair could come back tomorrow, or it could never come back.  No one knows what will happen or why it happened.  I found AU to be a psychological minefield, very hard to wrap my brain around.  I had now officially entered the world of grief & loss.  All the stages were there for me: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance.  It took me four years to reach the acceptance stage.  But first, let’s go back a few stages. 

One may think, why was this so hard for him?  There are plenty of bald men out there, and the bald look is in.  This perception is one of the many reasons why this condition is so hard.  People that don’t have alopecia areata have a hard time relating to the struggles of those that do.  Alopecia areata is so difficult, in my opinion, because it has to do with a loss of identity.  Whether we want to admit it or not, physical appearance is a huge part of one’s identity in today’s society.  Nothing defines our physical appearance more than our hair.  Take away our hair and we are unrecognizable.  This rapid and dramatic change in physical appearance wreaks emotional havoc.  Initially I felt AU was a horrible condition and a big black cloud that one-day just invaded my life.  I went into a deep depression. My usual sources of support weren’t helping.  The doctors couldn’t help.  Friends and family, while they cared deeply about me, could not seem to say the right words.  I heard things like “it’s only hair” and “it could be worse.” 

The way I got better was with the help of a decent psychiatrist, a good psychologist, and even better group therapy.  The psychiatrist prescribed anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications in the beginning.  Not wanting to take medications for the rest of my life, I found that hypnosis, combined with cognitive behavioral therapy, enabled me to cope in such a way that medications were no longer necessary.  Psychological counseling helped but the biggest turning point occurred when I went to a support group meeting in San Francisco and met people going through the same struggle, people like me.  I was no longer isolated and all alone.  Being able to process the emotions with people who understood was invaluable.  

Emotional treatment is the only reliable and effective treatment that currently exists for AA.  Other alopecians were the main source of support for me on my road to recovery.  I found another support group at Stanford for parents of children with alopecia.  Soon I began to realize that I had AA, but AA didn’t have me.  I started to volunteer at the National Alopecia Areata Foundation (NAAF) offices.  Every year, I would attend the annual international NAAF conference and find healing amongst the 800 or so bald, men women and children that took over the hotel.  I have now been to eleven NAAF conferences, each one an anniversary reminder of my new identity.  

The first four years I went to the conferences for myself, to get help.  Slowly, I started to feel ok about my condition.  The next four years I went to support NAAF by selling T-shirts and to see my new set of bald lifetime friends.  In the middle of all of this grief and loss, I found a new purpose in life.  Instead of selling high-end sports art, I decided to help others struggling in life.  I left my career in retail, went back to school and eventually got my LMFT#92542.

Today I am a co-facilitator of the SF support group, a NAAF phone contact support person, and the last several years I have lead support groups at the annual conference.  The group that I originated at the NAAF conference is called “It’s OK to Feel Sad” and it’s about the stages of grief and loss associated with this condition.  I do a brief slide show with much of my own experience with AA included and then we circle the chairs to talk and process the emotions.  The main message of my presentation is that AA is really hard and that we shouldn’t try to conduct “business as usual” in our lives, that we should allow ourselves to feel the sadness.  

In my opinion, denying the sadness will block us from progressing through the stages of grief & loss.  These groups are powerful.  The last couple of years I have lead groups of teens, tweens, and parents of children with AA.  In addition to grief & loss groups, I also lead other groups like “Relationships & Intimacy and AA”; “It’s Hard for Men Too,” and “Living the Active Life with AA.”  As you can see, the lemons of alopecia areata have turned into lemonade for me.  At this point, as strange as it may sound, I wouldn’t take a cure pill if one were available.  

Matt Kelley, MBA LMFT#92542 has a private practice in Menlo Park where he works with teens, individuals, families and couples and his subspecialty is alopecia.  If you’d like to know more about alopecia areata, alopecia universalis, or any of the support groups you can contact him at (650) 319-6814 or through his website at www.stanfordtherapy.com.

At this point, it seems to me that following the rules of conventional article writing is useless.  I’m done with the rules.  Why?  Because you still don’t have a professional will.  (For the tiny minority of you who do have a professional will, I’m not talking to you.  I’m talking to just about everyone else.)  

I’ve written articles in third person with citations.  I’ve shared real life stories of people who died without a professional will and my advising their survivors that they need to start the statute of limitation clock ticking, because someone can now sue the estate for malpractice.  I’ve cited to real cases where estates were sued for negligence for much less than failing to leave a professional will.   (There’s a citation for you.)  I’ve explained to people how the law creates a right to sue your estate for your malpractice even if you’re dead.   (There.  I just did it again.)  I’ve given talks.  Advertised in The Therapist.  Maybe I just need to break the rules and tell it like it is.

Do we really need to wait for a colleague to die and cause “newsworthy” damage from failing to leave a professional will?  Because it seems to me that even a death of a colleague alone isn’t even enough to motivate most people to get this done.  Every time I mention this topic to a group of therapists, someone walks up to me with a story of how a colleague died without a professional will and the aftermath was trying for that person’s survivors.  

What’s it going to take to get you to sit down and get your professional will done?  Hopefully this article will do it, because that’s my ultimate goal here.  Maybe you’re annoyed by my tone right now, but I hope you don’t use that as your excuse to continue putting this off.  Clearly I’m not trying to win a popularity contest.  You can focus on my tone or you can focus on getting your professional will taken care of once and for all.  You decide.

I do not recall knowing about professional wills when I was practicing as an LMFT.  Maybe you’ve been in the same boat until this moment.  I happen to be a wills and trusts attorney and that is how I came to realize the gravity of this issue.  

Professional Wills 101: Why You Need One

If you’re not informed about professional wills, I’ll give you the quick explanation now.  CAMFT Rule 1.3 effectively requires that you create a professional will.   Unfortunately there are no guidelines for what a “professional will” should look like.  On top of that, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist must maintain clinical records (in accordance with HIPAA of course) for a minimum of 7 years after termination of treatment.   In the legal field, a common truism is that without a remedy, there is no law.  In other words if I say “stealing is illegal” but there is no legal consequence for stealing, it’s effectively legal to steal.  The converse applies here.  There is no statute that says you have to have a professional will per se.  But the rules and laws cited in this paragraph that create a remedy – you or your estate can be sued if you fail to create a professional will.  These rules and laws are the basis that forms a de facto requirement that you create a professional will.  Because if you (or your estate) can be sued for not doing it, you’re effectively required to do it.  Thus I would submit that where there is a remedy, there is a law.

But do you really need rules and laws here?  I’m going to take a leap here and guess that you genuinely care about your patients and loved ones.  I know you do.  For no other reason than you just plain care.

Recommended Content for Your Professional Will  

The point of a professional will is straightforward.  If you die or become incapacitated, a clinician needs to be assigned to refer your patients out to appropriate care as soon as possible.  And then someone needs to take control of your clinical files in accordance with relevant privacy laws.  It’s a lot better for everyone if you leave some basic instructions.  Enter the document we’re calling a “professional will.”  Although I am not the biggest fan of the “DIY” approach for this type of thing, I’d rather you do it yourself than do nothing if those are the only two options.  So I’m giving you some guidelines.

There is no particular set of rules dictating the elements necessary for a valid professional will.  But I’ll give you one imperative: Don’t over think it!  I’ve seen too many people get mired in thinking of just the right clinician to refer patients out, contacting the clinician, considering what to do about a funeral service, etc.  Done is better than perfect.  Get something done now and do your deep thinking later.  The purpose and nomenclature tells us that a professional will is substantially similar to a will or living trust that an estate planning lawyer would create.  Years of experience (and litigation) have yielded a number of best practices for drafting wills and trusts, which I have adapted into my recommendations for your professional will.  Some of these best practices in the context of a professional will can be summed up as follows:

1. Identification of the creator.  It is a good idea here to use the name most people know you by, whether or not that happens to be your legal name.  You should also include your office address(es), and license number(s)  so that it is absolutely clear who you are.

2. Appointing a “clinical executor.”   Generally, attorneys advise that only one person act as executor, because one does not want to slow down the administration process with disagreements among multiple executors.  This is not to say that the executor is not allowed and encouraged to seek outside assistance.  But there should be one person who has the final word where judgment calls are needed.  You should also name at least one and preferably two alternate clinical executors in case your first choice can’t/won’t act.

3. Authority of the clinical executor.  The clinical executor should have express authority to access physical and electronic clinical files and to contact active patients.  It is always a good idea to spell that out, since this is probably the clinical executor’s most important function.

4. Outside assistance.  This is very important in my opinion.  You should take steps to ensure that the clinical executor has quick access to clinical files.  It may be a good idea to name one or two people (a family member or close friend) who can help with non-clinical issues like access to the premises where clinical files are located and reimbursement for out of pocket expenses. 

5. Compensation of the clinical executor.  This is tricky, because a professional will does not necessarily have the same force and effect of a traditional will.  Nevertheless, I feel strongly that some intent and authorization (whether or not legally enforceable) should be expressed for the compensation of the clinical executor because he or she is taking on personal liability by referring patients and taking possession of patient records.

6. Overriding clauses.  Estate planning attorneys make a lot of money off of people who try to do their own estate planning, because often in such cases people write in terms that are unclear, incomplete, or unlawful.  This risk can be somewhat mitigated by clauses that instruct clinical executors to override any directives that turn out to be unlawful, unethical, or inappropriate under unforeseen circumstances.

Estate planning attorneys could add many more terms like a HIPAA release in case of incapacity to permit doctors to speak with your clinical executor, various contingency clauses, and so on.  You should seek professional help from an attorney or an attorney-created template in order to incorporate some of these more technical clauses.

Frankly, having a non-attorney complete this task makes me nervous.  I see a lot of plans go bad when people do their own estate planning.  But I’d rather you do it yourself than do nothing.

Just get it done.  PLEASE!

I have thought long and hard about this both from the perspective of a former clinician and as a practicing trusts and estates attorney.   I don’t need to preach to this audience about the tendency to avoid the topic of our mortality.  I’m not throwing stones from my glass house.  But at a certain point, you just have to sit down and get this done, because your patients and loved ones are counting on you.  Now it’s up to you.  You can focus on my unprofessional tone.  You can put this off for tomorrow.  Or you can do a little research and get this done.

Gadi Zohar, Esq., LMFT is the CEO of TherapistWill.com, an online professional will solution.  He also practices as a trusts and estates lawyer in Palo Alto, California.  He no longer provides professional psychotherapy or psychological counseling.  This article is for information purposes only, and does not constitute an attorney-client relationship.  The opinions of the author are not a guarantee of any particular outcome.  

On September 12, 2015, just 35 miles northeast from my home, the Valley Fire began in Lake County; by evening it exploded to 10 thousand acres. The following morning I walked outside and smelled smoke. I checked online and discovered nearly the entire community of Middletown, California had been immolated while I slept. 

The fire grew to a massive 76 thousand acres throughout Lake, Napa, and Sonoma counties. The Redwood Empire CAMFT (RECAMFT) Chapter serves those counties along with Mendocino county. A massive crisis was looming, and RECAMFT had no plan in place for how to assist those traumatized by the fire. 

With some 40,000 California Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFTs), LMFTs represent the largest group of mental health providers in the state. Our training in family systems gives us a unique edge whether serving families, children, elders or first responders who have seen too much. LMFTs need to be networked into our local emergency response systems so when disaster strikes, we are prepared and trained to answer the call.  

Crisis response mental health interventions are different. First we assess the basics: shelter, food, first aid, water. Once we have people’s survival needs addressed, we provide psychological first aid – normalizing the experience of those suffering acute stress. After the crisis is over, some who suffer posttraumatic stress symptoms will seek us out for additional services. Reactions vary given the impact of the crisis (for example, losing a loved one or one’s home will likely be far more stressful than simply being displaced for a time). 

Our nation was shocked by the terrorist attack in San Bernardino on December 2, 2015. Inland Empire CAMFT Chapter was suddenly in the same place RECAMFT had been - a disaster unfolding with no chapter trauma response team. 

• CAMFT Chapters are in a unique position to lay the groundwork for a disaster mental health team in every county. Every CAMFT chapter can take a lesson from RECAMFT and IE-CAMFT and start a crisis response team now. My wish is for every LMFT to take at least one continuing education (CE) class in disaster mental health counseling in the coming months.
• RECAMFT worked quickly to provide services to the community, identifying those trained in crisis response, and ultimately creating a list of over 50 members willing to give 3-5 sessions of free counseling to anyone affected by the fire. Chapter member, Doreen Van Leeuwen, subsequently took on the task of organizing a chapter crisis response team. It starts with every willing LMFT joining the Red Cross, taking their disaster mental health courses, and FEMA’s free online classes. The chapter crisis response team will organize additional training, communication trees, and network with county agencies.
• Marin CAMFT has had a trauma response team for two decades. They have responded to traumatic deaths, child abductions, shootings, earthquakes, fires, and floods. The Marin trauma team chair, Jacque Ladrech, is a wealth of friendly information and advice.

CAMFT’s Crisis Response Education and Resource Committee (CRERC) provides outstanding resources on the CAMFT website, including links to pertinent trainings. The people on this committee are some of the top experts in the state. CAMFT’s Annual Conference will be an opportunity to get training in disaster mental health. After my initial shock about the smell of smoke, I found myself on the phone with people who knew exactly what to do, and gave great advice. It was a comforting feeling, in the face of a fire burning out of control.

Chris Hadfield said, “Ultimately, leadership is not about glorious crowning acts. It's about keeping your team focused on a goal and motivated to do their best to achieve it, especially when the stakes are high and the consequences really matter. It is about laying the groundwork for others' success, and then standing back and letting them shine.” 

The stakes have never been higher or mattered more. Together we can bring our talent and expertise to shine in our local communities when disaster strikes. 

Laura is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFC 49174), Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPC 149) and Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC 00113822).  She is in private practice in Santa Rosa and specializes in trauma utilizing Stanford cue-centered treatment along with transformational sandplay and EMDR.  She is a member of the Redwood Empire Chapter and is currently president of CAMFT.

Assembly Bill No.1775 was signed by Governor Brown on August 22, 2014 and became effective January 1, 2015. This bill amends Section 11165.1 of the Penal Code relating to the existing Child Abuse and Neglecting Reporting Act: Sexual Exploitation.

The purpose of this update is to provide you with information about how this law impacts our profession and assure you that SCV-CAMFT will be monitoring events as they unfold.

Today I spoke with CAMFT attorney Ann Tran regarding this new law and below is a summary of our conversation.

Penal Code Section 11165.1 does not specifically include Internet usage of child pornography within the definition of “sexual exploitation” because it was written before the prolific use of the Internet and does not reflect modern technology.

Prior to the passage of this law the existing law, known as the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act, defines sexual abuse as sexual assault or sexual exploitation for purposes of mandating certain persons to report suspected cases of child abuse or neglect. Under the act, sexual exploitation refers to, among other things, a person who depicts a child in, or who knowingly develops, duplicates, prints, or exchanges, a film, photograph, videotape, negative, or slide in which a child is engaged in an act of obscene sexual conduct, except as specified. Failure to report known or suspected instances of child abuse, including sexual abuse, under the act is a misdemeanor.

The passage of this new bill provides that sexual exploitation also includes: A person who knowingly downloads, streams, or accesses through any electronic or digital media, a film, photograph, videotape, video recording, negative, or slide in which a child is engaged in an act of obscene sexual conduct. The bill imposes a state-mandated local program because it expands the scope of a crime and imposes additional duties on local officials.

A Question about Sexting: Ann Tran said child sexual abuse reporting has always included sexting. Sexting includes printing, duplicating, downloading, a photograph in which a child is engaged in sexual conduct. However, there are a lot of interpretations, and it is not very clear when a report is required.

I posed a couple scenarios and Ann responded:

• If a minor is “sexting” a photo of herself in bra & panties to her boyfriend and she is not posing in an obscene manner, that may not be reportable.
• If a minor sends a photo of herself nude, or posing in an obscene way, the exchange of those photos is reportable and was always reportable, even prior to the passage of AB1775.

Law enforcement would say yes, sexting in both instances are reportable. Some therapists may say no, Item 1 is not reportable, because the example states she is NOT posing in an obscene manner. However, it becomes a problem if the boyfriend then forwards the photo to others.

Regarding scenarios 1 and 2 above, according to Ann Tran, both are reportable because the law applies the words “a person” to the minor who “depicts a child in . . .” by sending the self-photo.

However, here’s an interesting note: Texting sexual content (using words) is not reportable, according to Ann Tran.

Should you report? Yes, if you make the report you’re protected. If you don’t make the report you can be fined or charged with a misdemeanor, or reported to the Board. And although it can have an impact on the therapeutic relationship, the law requires a report.

This is a new law and there are a lot of concerns. How does reporting a teen sexting a photo to a friend impact that young person’s future? There is concern among therapists with specialties in sexual addiction and those who work with sex offenders. How are they able to help their clients if they are mandated to make a report for downloading images electronically?

A Petition for Writ of Prohibitory Mandate, Request For Immediate Stay of A.B.1775‘s Amendment of Penal Code Sections 11165.1, Subd. (C) has been filed. It will be going through the court system and there may be changes. But in the meantime, we must follow the current law, which became effective January 1, 2015.

You can read more about AB1775, the Petition, and various articles at the following link http://stopab1775.org/articles/

I asked Ann about the contents contained in the above link and she stated the site is a good source of information regarding this new law. She also stated that she disagrees with a few opinions in some of the articles there and cautioned readers to keep each author’s perspective in mind while reading.

This law is generating much discussion. With so many moving parts, information about the law may be confusing and vague. It will be interesting to see what happens when the Petition is heard in court. SCV-CAMFT will be monitoring it closely.

In the meantime, feel free to use the chapter exchange to share new information you may receive or new links that may be beneficial for our membership regarding this new law.