6- FOXcast SLP: Self Care for Clinicians

Everybody in our field we are givers we are caretakers in a certain way and we love to put other people first. But are we putting ourselves first? And are we actually filling our cup so that we can pour into others?

Welcome to FOXcast SLP, a podcast for clinicians made by clinicians. It’s brought to you by FOX Rehabilitation. Find out more at foxrehab.org

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Alright welcome to FOXcast SLP, I’m your host Jimmy McKay on the program today Meredith Cozzarelli. Another colleague of mine here FOX rehabilitation. Meredith, welcome to the show.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Thank you so much and happy to be here.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Meredith, a speech language pathologist for us here at FOX rehabilitation where are you located geographically?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: I’m in North Jersey about 15 miles outside Manhattan.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Not that I’m on the Upper West Side it’s a work close distance was reclose but to actually get there it could actually three or four days. Self Care for the PT the OT and the SLP. I feel like well all of those therapies could use low self care right.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Yes I should add in the EP’s too. Sorry to The exercise physiologist for adding you guys on my title there.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: When you take care of someone else you need to make sure that you’re taking care of yourself or else you’re not going to be effective.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Exactly.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Why is this something you’re passionate about why did you pick this topic to discuss?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Well so actually what I’ve been doing recently I’m adjunct faculty member William Patterson and I notice probably about six months ago nine months ago that some of my students were just dragging. They would come into session and they were just there beating themselves up about every little thing. I mean I’m there to teach them and give them feedback I’d be giving them feedback and they’re taking it as like I am critiquing them and telling them what they did wrong. Where it’s actually a learning sessions, so finally I said what’s going on. Why are you guys all bumming about yourselves putting yourselves down? They said we just don’t have time for ourselves. We’re tired. So I started asking them what they’d been doing for themselves. And I really didn’t get much of a response except drinking or hanging out with friends or binge watching Netflix. You know great escapes but that’s actually not true self care. So about eight years ago I joined a business outside of speech language pathology and one of the big things that we talk about is self care is a health and wellness company. And I just really delved into personal growth and self care and I really acknowledged the fact that my students needed some kind of indication on how to really take care of themselves they really needed some guidance. So I started doing services with them. I did at William Paterson I did one at Montclair State and have two more coming up at local universities. Everybody in our field we are givers we are caretakers in a certain way and we love to put other people first. Are we putting ourselves first and are we actually filling our cup up so that we can pour into others?

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: I love the way you put that. I like it a lot.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Thanks.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Now answer this. I’m a physical therapist hosting this show and I know within the physical therapy Community. Self care is actually recently as you’re saying last six to nine months I’ve seen you know PT burnout. New graduate students who are entering the field that in the first one three to five years a lot of students are saying they’re feeling this burnout. You seen that in the SLP world as well?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Yeah and I think that a lot of that has to do with the fact that there’s not a lot of preparation for the field plus life. Not only are people graduating and going into their fields but they’re all of the sudden and moving out they’re getting cars they’re getting apartments they’re not getting stuff paid for by mom and dad anymore. There’s a lot of that stuff happening as well.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: A lot of adulting as is there.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Exactly a whole lot of adulting is happening.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: All right we’re going to go over some things that you can do as a therapist to improve your own self care to fill up your own cup. As you mentioned a second ago. We’ll Start here. What can you do to keep yourself healthy given any type of stress as you mentioned it’s not just the things that at work in caring for those individuals that we love to care for? So what can you do to make sure that you’re OK and lower that stress given all those different things?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: A lot of people who do yoga understand the mind body spirit connection in the same thing goes with self care. You have to really have your mind strong. You have to have your body strong and you have to have your spirit strong in it whatever that means for you. One of the things that I say to people all the time is are you speaking kindly to yourself? That’s your mind. What is your mindset what do you believe about yourself what kind of stories you’re telling yourself? Are you telling yourself that you’re exhausted. Are you telling yourself that you’re not a great therapist things like that? Or are you saying positive things to yourself like. I am strong. I am happy. I am able to serve my clients. I am a good person. Are you giving yourself positive affirmations. I always suggest to people what types of things are you doing in your mind to keep your mind strong. Positive self talk. I am a huge proponent of writing in a journal either writing out how crappy you feel and then writing out how you can change your mind about it. I also am a huge proponent for affirmation. So just speaking very kindly to yourself and a lot of people are always saying to me I don’t know how to write an affirmation. There are plenty of resources out there for you Louise Hay is phenomenal. She’s the queen of self talk. Wayne Dyer is another one, Tony Robbins. Any of those people can really help guide you and how to make your mind strong and really and improve your selftalk.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: These sound like things that you’d be saying to clients that you’d be working with and of course we should be doing them for our show.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Exactly we’re always saying you can do this. You know that’s what I love about FOX that we’re constantly telling people what they can do what we’re capable of doing but are we saying that to ourselves? The other thing is reading to keep that mind strong you’ve got to read positive things.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Love that we’re talking about taking care of ourselves before we get too ahead of ourselves. What is self care what does that mean to you or how would you explain that to someone else?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Being very aware of yourself and really taking good care of yourself again in those three realms mind body and spirit. It’s really just feeding yourself before you can feed others. And some people might consider this to be selfish because in this world we’re supposed to put other people first. In this industry we’re supposed to put other people first. But in reality we do not put ourselves first. If we do not take care of ourselves. We are not going to be able to serve others. Our family our clients our friends our colleagues. That’s what self care means to me is really just putting yourself first and being ok with it but doing it in a way that is going to continue to serve the world.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: What do they tell you on an airplane if the airplane decompresses, put your mask on first so you can help others.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Exactly that is actually my next slide that I have. Way to go Jimmy.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Where else you want to go what else you’ve said about it?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: You know the other thing is body especially PTs and OTs. You guys put yourselves through heck when it comes to working with a lot of our patients. It’s not just working out things like that it’s eating well it’s you know limiting the amount of alcohol you might take in. Who doesn’t like a drink once in a while right? Really being mindful of the types of food. Who doesn’t like I personally love sweets it’s like my jam. I love a cookie, love a brownie.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: I could eat ice cream every day of the year.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Exactly. But again that’s health care because you’re doing something for yourself that makes you feel good. You’re not beating yourself up about it but you’re not going to eat ice cream all day long. So we have to make sure that we’re doing the same things that we’re saying to our clients because we want ourselves to be able to be the strongest physically that we possibly can be for them.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Last takeaway, last thing we want the audience to know. Learning to stay healthy and live at your peak for yourself for your family for your clients. What does that mean to you?

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Really I think it just means connecting to yourself you know whatever has to be either through meditation, deep breathing, working out. Doing things for yourself on a daily basis increasing your energy level if that means listening to pump up music that really gets you going before you go into a session. Or before you go interact with somebody. Again like some people like to meditate some people I do both. I meditate and then I jump up and down and sing and dance. That’s how I roll. Before we got on the call I had meditated and that I was jumping up and down singing and dancing in my bathroom. You Know but it’s all of those different types of things. You know you look at Tim when he does something he’s got so much energy he’s got so much passion. He definitely is taking care of himself. He’s you can see our leader is taking care of himself just by the way he puts himself out there for us. You can see when people are not taking care of themselves they go into sessions they’re dragging. Do what you can for yourself whatever it is to change your energy to change how you’re feeling inside so that you can give to the outside world.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: The underlying message too is knowing what gets you going. Not everybody out there is going to be like Meredith or I, I do the same thing I crank the tunes. You know I said before I have to do something big but if that doesn’t work for you that’s OK. The point really is the examples that you’re giving are what worked for you but knowing yourself which I guess probably would be the first step right? Know what makes you tick and ask yourself those questions.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Alot of times it’s that whole you gotta try it out like you’ve got a trial and error. Are you are you a jump up and down person or are you a sit down pray and meditate person? Are you a deep breather? Or do you have to go out and run? You know figure it out for yourself.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: All right. Last part of the show we are here Meredith is your FOXtale.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: My FOXtale, what’s my FOXtale?

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Why did you decide to work with older adults.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Well I have been working in skilled nursing for some time. I had my daughter. I wasn’t thrilled with the company that I was working with to be completely honest. I had always heard wonderful things about FOX. About the time that my daughter was born. There was a position posted and I was like wow that looks actually really interesting and I started kind of asking around and you know people my field and heard nothing negative heard wonderful positive things. And for me the thing that most drew me to FOX is our mission, were defying ageism. I absolutely love that because these patients should not feel like oh I’m 90 I can’t do anything. I feel like we’re able to empower our patients and really give them an opportunity to have another lease on life. And that’s really what I think fuels me the most when it comes to working with this population and with FOX is that we really it’s exactly who I am to my core. I want to empower people. I mean I’m going to sound like a blubbering idiot but I love it. It’s just it’s a wonderful wonderful space to be in and it’s a different approach. And I love to see the gains that my patients have made. I’ve worked in I worked with head injury i’ve worked with the young guys you know. But there’s something about the geriatric population that just is so thrilling and they have fun with us too. You know they I think they really enjoy us coming in and encouraging them because they don’t get that a lot in their lives.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Love that. Meredith appreciate you taking some time out to remind us that we need to take care of ourselves first before we go out and take care of our older adult clients or the rest of the people that we interact with as well.

Meredith Cozzarelli, MS, CCC-SLP: Exactly. Yeah. My pleasure to be on. Thank you so much for having me.

Jimmy McKay, PT, DPT: Thanks for listening to FOXcast SLP. A podcast for clinician’s made by clinician’s. It’s brought to you by FOX Rehabilitation. Find out more at foxrehab.org.