POTUS Transitions and Mental Health Professionals: What We Can Do
A more in-depth look at actionable steps and resources during this time
Recap from Previous Article
More recently, I wrote the following article:
Where I covered not only what businesses can be doing, but also actionable steps mental health professionals can be doing. As mentioned in that article, actionable steps for clinicians can look like:
Obtaining and using red cards for patients with undocumented status.
Have a code word or non-verbal sign between professionals or patients to notify if ICE is nearby.
Gather contact information for immigration lawyers in your area.
Look at changes to your state's medical programs through official websites.
Having ready sliding scale applications and fees.
Looking into utilizing a bartering system.
Stay up to date on policies attacking transgender rights.
Have conversations regarding documentation including diagnoses.
Identify resources that are considered safe.
More in-depth information on this can be found in my previous article.
POTUS Transitions and Mental Health Professionals: What We Can Do
There are a lot of changes being made by POTUS and the administration that directly impacts clients and the work of mental health professionals. Regardless of your work setting, Community Mental Health Center (CMHC), group practice, or private practice, these are suggestive strategies that can be implemented in the workplace or independently, even if your workplace does not formally adopt them.
Outside of the therapy room:
Manage self-care to prevent burnout: Self-care is always essential for therapists, but with all of the POTUS changes and executive orders that impact our work and clients, it becomes even more critical. Shifting policies can add stress, uncertainty, and even moral injury. Some self-care strategies may look different than how you typically implement it and manage burnout.
Stay informed without overwhelm: Set boundaries around political discourse as in, managing how much you’re consuming, where you are consuming the content, and who you engage with. Create space to process and adapt while continuing to provide ethical, compassionate care. Take social media breaks if needed.
Identify sensations within your body: A good way to know if you need to shift your energy from what is going on, is by identifying sensations within your body. Practice somatic awareness through identifying signals in your body, use body scans, and mindful check-ins. Practice journaling psychical sensations, implementing progressive muscle relaxation, and whatever else you use to regulate responses in your body.
Hold space for your emotions: There are going to be times where you might feel like you are going “crazy.” These are times where it will be important to hold space for your feelings and validate them. Holding space may look like putting aside dedicated time for them. Use 90 second emotional processing. Let yourself fully feel any intense emotions for 90 seconds. Notice where it shows up in your body and name the emotion. End with deep breaths and a grounding technique. This exercise, including progressive muscle relaxation, are ways to complete the stress cycle and prevent burnout.
Have the hard conversations
Address the changes in case consultation and supervision: As hard as it might be, you are allowed to seek reassurance, voice concerns, and ask about plans for addressing potential obstacles. These discussions aren’t about a clinician’s political views, they’re about ensuring that policies affecting clients and their care are thoughtfully considered and addressed. Bring these conversations to supervision and case consultations.
Collaborate and share resources with colleagues: Some clients may be distressed or fearful of changes from the POTUS. Share what you are doing to support clients. Sharing techniques and tools regarding these issues used with clients, during this time, can be helpful to your colleagues. Sharing information on supports and challenges within the community i.e. safe referrals for professional services and supports, access to food, updates on local challenges like ICE raids, ect.
Be sensitive to others’ needs: Now more than ever, it's crucial to be receptive to others' experiences and approach others' feelings and concerns with empathy and openness, rather than dismissal. Recognize that while some may not feel the effects to the changes as strongly, others are facing significant challenges, and their concerns should not be disregarded. Collectively, we are being impacted by these shifts in one way or another.
Build Community
Turn into trusted colleagues and supports: Identify who your trusted supports are, personal and professional, and lean into them. If these supports are scarce, consider it time to build a community either through online or in-person spaces, no matter the platform.
Find and turn into safe supervision and consultations groups: For some clinicians, depending on your work setting, you cannot change your supervisor or consultation group. If that is the case and you don’t feel you can be your authentic self, it would behoove you to find an additional supervisor or consultation group. That way you feel comfortable and safe discussing a variety of topics without judgment or fear of retaliation.
Find time for supports: Make sure that you are making time for your trusted supports whether they are personal or professional. Plan time, have it in your calendar, and be consistent with showing up.
Attend the American Counseling Association “Advocacy Power Hours” online: The American Counseling Association puts on “Advocacy Power Hours” every 3rd Thursday of the month at 3pm Eastern. During these meetings, they discuss executive orders and provide additional information, resources, and policy updates. You can join these meetings by emailing advocacy@counseling.org to get the Zoom link. Their next meeting is March 20th.
Be apart of mutual aid groups: Mutual aid groups are voluntary to support the community through resources, collaboration, and other services such as food or clothing. Some mutual aid groups offer mental health support or psychotherapy sessions where mental health therapists can volunteer their services. An article with information on how to create a mutual aid network can be found here.
Host or attend Call to Action meetings: I first saw this initiated by Marvin Toliver, MSW, LCSW. He held a call to action meeting through Zoom for various professionals to share resources and skills to keep clients and us safe due to all of the executive orders. His first post regarding this can be found here. He does plan on putting more of these with them being lead by Marisela Milian, LCSW, founder of The Social Work Room @_thesocialworkroom. The next meeting is March 11th at 8pm EST/5pm PST. Register for “SW State of Emergency” calls here. I encourage professionals to also hold Call to Action meetings either in-person or video conference. These meetings are to put into action to build community and support one another. Hold or attend these meetings to: share resources, safe referrals, skills, tactics, network, discuss community challenges, and validate during this time.
Identify news sources for information: I have seen several clinicians asking where they should get information about all the changes being made.
Subscribe to newsletters from state to organizational levels: Some mental health related state and organizational newsletters have been putting out newsletters regarding updates, their impact on clinicians, and some actionable steps. For example:
Subscribe to your state’s department of human services. They will have updates to health insurance, licensing, clinics, and legislative changes. For Minnesota, subscribe here.
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has been sending out emails regarding updates and information on Medicaid. They have a few news categories you can choose to subscribe to. For Minnesota, subscribe here.
Follow the American Counseling Association with their website page on news and their LinkedIn page. They have been posting about executive orders, updates, and meeting information.
Look into alternatives to mainstream media: Most legacy media is ran by large corporations and some people feel they tend to lean shift certain narratives. Subscribing to alternatives to mainstream media can look like independent journalists or groups that are able to get content out faster. Here are some recommendations with no paid affiliation:
Dr. Rubin's Substack-Is a double board-certified physician in General Pediatrics and Allergy/Immunology. He identifies current FDA recalls, information on vaccines, and other health news.
Caster-Recall list for cat food and further cat information.
The Parnas Perspective-Aaron Parnas, attorney turned full-time journalist with daily news updates.
Facts HQ-Lisa Remillard, “The News Girl gives a daily dose of the news you need to know. Just the FACTS, broken down in the simplest way. No opinions. No BS.”
Meidas News and The MeidasTouch Podcast-“source for independent, unfiltered, and forward-thinking analysis on today’s most pressing political, legal, social, and cultural issues.”
Ground News-“Read the news from multiple perspectives. See through media bias with reliable news from local and international sources”
If you feel politically inclined… There are things you can be doing to get more involved.
Contact your state’s politicians: Call and write to your senators and representatives about legislation that can and is impacting you and your clients. Be assertive with your opinions and concerns, put the pressure on.
Attend in-person and phone call town hall meetings: Attend town hall meetings put on by your politicians. This can be in-person or on a phone call. Attend them to ask your questions, express your concerns, and be an advocate for yourself. This is another way to put the pressure on.
Follow supporting political figures: Some political figures are taking action and rallying others which can be motivating. They also share some up to date information.
Bernie Sanders-United States senator from Vermont, has been rallying in several states to get people motivated and take action. His lives and videos are on his YouTube channel.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez-U.S. representative for New York, has been reporting things people can be doing and resources on her website.
Mary Trump-psychologist and niece to Donald Trump, she has daily political coverage and personal insight into the Trump family on her YouTube channel.
Inside of the therapy room:
As noted in my previous article, I mentioned some things therapists can be doing inside the therapy room such as using red cards with clients, discussing clinical documentation, and identifying sliding scales. While this article focuses on what mental health professionals can do personally and professionally in response to POTUS changes, an equally important conversation is how these shifts impact the therapy room. In a follow-up piece, I will explore strategies for navigating political policy changes within clinical work, including how to support clients processing these changes while maintaining ethical and therapeutic boundaries.
POTUS transitions and shifting policies inevitably impact both mental health professionals and the clients we serve. While these changes can bring uncertainty, therapists have the ability to navigate them with intention by setting boundaries, engaging in self-care, staying informed without becoming overwhelmed, and finding ways to advocate within their capacity. By prioritizing our own well-being, we ensure that we can continue providing ethical and effective care, no matter the political climate. As policies evolve, so must our strategies for resilience.
“Sometimes life is like this dark tunnel. You can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you just keep moving... you will come to a better place.”
― Uncle Iroh
