Healers in Balance Services

"Saying no is not something negative; it is actually a matter of saying yes to yourself...A healer does not have to be at the beck and call of the world."

Bernie Siegel

Jillian

Biographical Information:

Jillian Guthrie, LCSW is a mental health therapist in private practice and Founder of the organization Healers in Balance (HiB), which was created to identify and address the challenges faced by those in the helping professions. She has worked in the Human Services field for the past 25 years, ranging through child welfare, juvenile delinquency, family services, homeless persons, chronically mentally ill, private counseling centers, teaching at Community College, and providing Training and Clinical Supervision to agencies. In addition to presentations/workshops, consultation, and literature through her organization, she has a successful private practice - "Simplicity Counseling" in Eureka Springs, AR. Participants have described Jillian's speaking style as; open, insightful, interactive, challenging, humorous, genuine, and real-world experienced.

Jillian

Presentations/Workshops:

To actualize her Mission, Jillian offers presentations and workshops specifically for the helping professional to receive insight, information, support, and encouragement in order to become aware and recognize any imbalances, and address them in healthy ways. All workshops are geared toward issues specific to Healer experiences, in order to foster healthy, effective processing and responses, thus avoiding negative effects as a result of helping others. Read Comments from actual participants.

Presentations currently offered:

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On the Humanness of Healers: the malady Forget Thyself in professional helpers
Inside the Jaws of an Eating Disorder: A Healer's struggle and recovery
In the Aftermath of Client Suicide/Homicide: How to deal and heal
Colleague Suicide : processing as a fellow healer, and as a clinic
Resources for Healers: material and information for the health of Healers
The Therapeutic Labyrinth : daily benefits & through challenging times

The Healers in Balance Exhibit Table is an ideal addition to Jillian’s presentations at your convention/conference, agency, or clinic. Reflecting the message to foster and improve self-care and balance, the board proclaims: “Client health is secondary to the professional’s!” and offers applicable information, options, and suggestions to support this effort. The HiB Exhibit Table is uniquely interactive, offering hands-on opportunities for participants to engage in various creative, pleasant activities that exemplify this perspective. Visitors to the table express enjoyment and gratitude at this applicable yet refreshing oasis in the Exhibit line-up. Jillian remains present at the Exhibit table throughout the day [except while presenting] to guide and encourage participants, as well as lend a sagacious ear and practical application of the concepts to their specific work challenges and situations as helping professionals.

Jillian is currently booking for 2014. She has presented widely, both in and out of her home state of Arkansas. Please see Comments above for common feedback from participants in her workshops & presentations. Please do not hesitate to make contact, if you are interested in arranging a Presentation, Consultation, or would like to offer an Interview. Interested parties are invited to contact via e-mail or telephone: info@healersinbalance.com/Office phone (479) 244-5181. You will receive a personal reply in a timely manner. Jillian seeks and gains - through such contact with other Healers - insight, input, and suggestions for change directly from those involved in the helping professions.

Interviews:

Offers for interviews are most welcome as a precious invaluable resource, and will be conducted at interviewee's convenience. Jillian explains, "I conduct and record the interview, then type up the salient points myself. The interview erased, I generalize that information, and put it back out there in presentations and literature, for the benefit of all Healers." Having found this process most beneficial and applicable, she professes the insight and general understanding gained from interviews is necessary, in order to facilitate recognition and change in the helping professions. Interviews are welcome from all areas and levels of practice. Jillian seeks and gains - through such contact with other Healers - insight, input, and suggestions for change directly from those involved in the helping professions. Jillian strives to access all factions: direct-service, mid management, and administrative positions, which has served well in her effort to "get the big picture" and facilitate understanding and communication within organizations and professions.

Consultation:

Consultation is an ongoing interpersonal interaction with Jillian, purpose of which is to assist in assessing and addressing the imbalance being experienced by the healer. The process begins with an Interview, which Jillian can utilize as research (see Interview section.) This “visit” then, is without charge and comes with a free Healers in Balance T-shirt, in gratitude for the healer sharing her experience to the benefit of others.

Starting with information and insight from the interview, Jillian then begins the process of assisting the healer to identifying aspects of his experience that have to do with the fact that he is a healer/helper, how this may be manifesting in negative or harmful ways in the healer’s life. Jillian’s extensive research and experience with other healers is highly applicable and invaluable in this process. Jillian is able, as few others can, to assist in identifying specific aspects of the healer’s life and experience in need of attention, consideration, and adjustment. These efforts, in working together, result in improvement in the healer’s quality of life, work, and internal experience of Self - as one called, gifted, having chosen to offer his/her services and abilities to others. To paraphrase one healer: The effort is to find the healer’s specific way of living-out her calling/gift; offering who she is to the world without sacrificing her well-being; her emotional, physical, or mental health.

“I appreciate your knack for helping me change, by asking questions and allowing me to give words to concepts that I needed to re-evaluate."

Consultation differs from counseling or therapy in that it is an overall “big picture” assessment of the person’s experience, level of contentment, and functioning, in light of the fact that he is/has been a healer. From that assessment, a course of action is co-developed to address areas of deficit, recognize and utilize strengths in productive and effective ways that feed back to the healer and to others in a way that recognizes and honors the beauty and benefit of the healer’s offerings. In this manner, Jillian and the healer work together to support intention and efforts to address imbalance and/or illness in the healer’s life.

“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping me see that I was the healer in need of healing. You helped save more lives than mine, by my recognizing the need to ‘stop and heal myself.”

Jillian is conscientious, as part of the process, in following the healer’s actions and progress to support, encourage, offer pertinent information, guidance, and access to specific resources that have been shown to help improve the healer’s experience. Action steps are identified, and the healer benefits from an ongoing assessment of areas of need and progress; adjustments and additions are made as needed during the course of Consultation. So if, for example, therapy is indicated or reduced volunteering in order to allow for play/leisure, these steps may be implemented as part of the plan for improvement; the impact being continually assessed during Consultation visits. There are at least 10 facets of one’s life (Home, Professional, Learning/Growth…) that need be balanced, a personalized combination for each individual. Most healers cannot list them all, but agree on them once they are named in presentations and in Consultation.

Consultation is an individualized intervention for those having much in common, being helpers in our culture and work environments. This process has shown to improve the healer experience significantly in all facets of their lives – from physical health to financial, social/interpersonal , and professional affairs.

If you are a healer, and have noticed some of the aspects/signs of Forget Thyself in your or another’s experience, consider contacting (or recommending) Jillian as a resource to foster this overall improvement in the healer’s life experience. Consultation can be conducted in person (depending on geographical factors) or via video-feed online. Do not hesitate to contact Healers in Balance; you are so undeniably worth it, as one who offers your gifts, time, and energy to others. If this offering has begun to feed back negatively, it is the sincere hope that you make the call to learn how to offer your gifts with peace and benefit for your self, as well as those you serve.

This is the purpose of Healers in Balance services: “testing…because helping shouldn’t hurt.”

Written publications:

There are many items and services in differing stages of development. Jillian is currently in the process of writing articles for pertinent publications, in order to reach as many Healers as possible in their homes and organizations. She is developing brochures and interventions specifically designed to assist the Healer in various venues and times of need. A book is also in process; date of release unknown at this time.