Professional Healing
In education, there is a consistent call for self-care. Often the framing is at the individual level and void of the systemic and contextual factors that induce the need for self-care to begin with Self-care is a limited response to long-term professional trauma. It can often neglect a focus on complete healing for quick-fix deflection strategies. Equity-minded leaders who have exhausted themselves need more than self-care; they need an opportunity to professionally heal before moving forward.
Lessons from the Healing Process
By adulthood, most people have suffered an injury or wound and thus experienced the healing process. Each experience provides clearer insight into the healing process and how it can vary — particularly for internal injuries. The healing process not only teaches us about specific injuries, but it can also provide one with a deeper understanding of how an injury affects the body’s ability to move and engage in small tasks such as holding a pencil or sitting upright.
Early in the pandemic, I sprained my calf muscle. My body sent me signals that wearing flip flops consistently and not stretching was putting tension on my calf muscle. I ignored the warnings and went out to double dutch with a group of friends. During my first two jumps, I could feel a slight sting in my calf. Yet, energized by the moment, I still attempted a set of pop-ups. Pop-ups create a lot of force when you land, and on my third landing my knees buckled. Still stubborn, I refused to go home and tend to my injury. Despite encouragement from my friends to sit down or head home early, I stayed for the rest of the gathering and stood turning the ropes for others. When I finally arrived home, I could barely make it up the two flights of stairs to my apartment. I hobbled along for the next six weeks. For the first two weeks, walking my dog was so painful that I had to create a new routine so that he would not attempt to chase a bird or jump up on me to say hello. The injured leg was also my driving leg, so I was forced to eat every item in my refrigerator in order to reduce placing pressure on my calf by driving. While others couldn’t see my injury they could tell by my movement and engagement that I was hurt.
After several weeks, I began to heal. I could walk evenly on both legs, step down and not flinch, and keep a decent pace walking my dog. As I began to heal, I also began to have more gratitude for each small act of movement. I was more mindful to stop and stretch my leg, to ice my calf, and to put on more stable shoes when heading out for a long walk. I had healed and learned how to better care for myself in the process. My experience of healing is similar to the kind of professional healing required for continued professional growth and engagement.
Professional wounds are the result of internal impact from stress, micro-aggressions, gender bias, and the other “-isms” that plague work environments. Much like myself at the double dutch outing, equity-minded leaders may ignore initial signs of professional wounds and create further injury. The additional 30 minutes I spent turning the ropes after knowing I had been injured is akin to the years equity-minded leaders stay in a job or at an organization that has caused them professional trauma without addressing the harm created. The idea that we have a responsibility to be present for others while suffering only leads to more pain. We continue to work with the pain believing that things are not too bad. However, just as my friends could see how much pain I was in, colleagues can tell from our engagement and conversation that we are hurt. Colleagues with greater self-awareness and self-care might offer support and encourage us to take time off while colleagues who are equally in pain may leverage our vulnerability to create more tension and chaos.
In order to heal professionally, equity leaders must know when to take time off, transition roles, and engage a support system. Just as I had to reduce my movement, rest more, and then consistently care for my calf to ensure I stayed healed, equity-minded leaders may need to take a step back, take days or even months off, and engage a career coach or therapist to heal from professional trauma. This healing must then be sustained throughout the career journey.
Sustaining Professional Healing
I missed jumping greatly. I was so eager to get back in the ropes that as soon as I felt better, I went to a group meeting. After two turns of the ropes, I could feel a faint pinch in my calf. While I wanted to continue jumping, I stopped immediately and went to the bench to rest and lightly stretch. Since that day, I have not been back to jump. It’s been nearly a year.
My eagerness to return to jumping is equivalent to equity-minded professionals who leave a position only to accept an equally problematic role at another organization. The desire to “get back in the game” can set us up for re-injuring old wounds. To sustain the healing, equity-minded leaders must identify the circumstances that supported healing and then ensure those are present in all future professional opportunities. These circumstances could be more transparent and direct communication, a system for ensuring an equitable and inclusive work environment, a role that reflects your worth in both opportunities and salary, or a work culture that honors time off. What is necessary to sustain healing will vary depending on each person’s needs and experience.
This past week I spoke to two leaders in transition. Both conversations surfaced professional wounds. One had been injured from the linguistic violence that can occur in workplaces, the other had experience discrimination based on race. Both felt stuck in their professional lives. When I suggested that they should name the pain they feel and then also seek professional support, tears began to flow. I read their tears as both a response to the acknowledgement of their pain and the fear of being hurt again.
I know this feeling. When I first entered the teaching profession I experienced an incident which harmed myself and my professional relationships for the next 10 years. It would take me leaving teaching, engaging research articles, and weekly therapy sessions before I fully healed from my first year of teaching. While I don’t have regrets about my process, I would have benefited from being able to have a frank discussion about the need to heal the professional scars sooner. In my process of healing I developed more empathy for colleagues not yet on the healing path, have learned how to be proactive about my professional boundaries, and leverage thinking partners rather than isolate myself when a challenge arises.
During this time of the great resignation, much of the conversation is framed as leaders not getting the salary or benefits that they want. Few reports outside of those focused on medical professions have focused on the fact that some leaders are leaving because they have experienced professional trauma. It is important that we acknowledge that all sectors have employees who have experienced professional trauma and need a space to discuss and engage the healing process. Otherwise, we will see equity-minded leaders get lost in the transition — moving through the pain instead of healing from it. However if we acknowledge the need for healing, we can build toward a just future that centers not only those being served, but equity-minded leaders themselves.
Dr. Lanette Jimerson is a writer, educator and scholar. She helps equity-minded leaders expand their impact and craft a career trajectory that centers their professional and financial needs. Book a conversation to learn how she supports leaders in transition. Check out 12 Tips to Transitioning Careers to get started on your journey
