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Root Strength
A Health and Care Professionals Guide to Minimizing Stress and Maximizing Thriving
- 1st Edition - December 9, 2021
- Author: Shannon Dames
- Language: English
- Paperback ISBN:9 7 8 - 0 - 3 2 3 - 7 7 8 6 9 - 5
- eBook ISBN:9 7 8 - 0 - 3 2 3 - 7 7 8 7 0 - 1
Develop resilience and thrive as a care professional! Root Strength: A Health and Care Professionals’ Guide to Minimizing Stress and Maximizing Thriving discusses principle… Read more
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Request a sales quoteDevelop resilience and thrive as a care professional! Root Strength: A Health and Care Professionals’ Guide to Minimizing Stress and Maximizing Thriving discusses principles of self-care that can help you prevent emotional fatigue and job burnout in highly stressful workplaces. An evidence-based approach examines how the care professional can develop self-compassion, mindfulness, relationships with co-workers, and perceived satisfaction with one’s career. Written by noted educator and researcher Shannon Dames, this practical manual shows how you can apply these insights on the job and enhance your personal well-being in real-world health care settings. With the prevalence of mental health issues among care professionals — including rates of PTSD and major depressive disorder (MDD) — appearing much higher than that in the general population, never has a resource like this been more required!
- Focus on both theory and practice allows for self-assessment and the ability to build resilience and thrive, with concepts underpinned by research.
- UNIQUE! Journeys case studies highlight a care professional’s real-world experience/concerns, encouraging you to think about how you would handle the situation as you read through the chapter; the chapter closes with an effective method to handle the real-life situation, demonstrating how to apply the lessons learned.
- UNIQUE! Clear and conversational writing style and metaphorical roots/tree framework makes it easier to understand concepts.
- Practical exercises throughout the text allow you to build and strengthen your own metaphorical roots.
- Vignettes demonstrate how concepts apply to real-world scenarios.
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead sums up the content at the end of each chapter, ensuring that you understand the key concepts.
- UNIQUE! Special boxes contributed by Dr. Crosbie Watler, MD, FRCPC help you understand and navigate through professionals’ mental health challenges.
11,000 university RN Students / 7,000 college PN Students in Canada / 20,000 PSW Students
- Cover image
- Title page
- Table of Contents
- Evolve
- Copyright
- Dedication
- About the Author
- Reviewers
- Preface
- How This Journey Came to Be
- Encouragement for the Journey
- Acknowledgements
- Special thanks to:
- About This Book
- Evolve for Root Strength
- Elsevier eBooks
- Part 1: Coming to Know Through the Research
- Part 1. Coming to Know Through the Research
- Introduction: Humans First, Caregivers Second
- Human First
- Caregiver Second
- The Fallout of Burnout
- Treatment-Resistant Mental Health Conditions
- Responding to the Call: Forging a New Path Forward
- Chapter 1. Root Strength: Sense of Coherence and Congruence
- The Conceptual Framework Behind the Roots Theory
- Vision for a Deep-Rooted World
- Navigating Global Threats
- Spirituality in the Roots
- The Journey Ahead
- Making the Most of the Journey
- Practices Are Not Prescriptions
- Circling With Unconditional Positive Regard: Cultivating a Community of Practice
- Reconciliation: Stepping out of the Box
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Cultivating Habits and Centring
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Coming to Know How to Thrive
- Chapter 2. Coming to Know How to Thrive
- Thriving
- The Meeting of Human Needs as a Precursor to Thriving
- Polyvagal Theory and Perceived Unmet Needs
- Cultivating Choice: Drop by Drop Until the Cup Overflows
- Congruence as a Requirement for Thriving: Reconciling Our “Real” Versus “Ideal” Self
- Congruence Between the Heart and the Mind
- Strengthening Practice: Cultivating Heartful Social Coherence
- Thriving in the Mind: Working With Our Neurology
- The Dance: Navigating Obstacles to Congruence
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Digging Deeper Into Sense of Coherence and Thriving
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Coming to Know About Stress
- Chapter 3. Coming to Know About Stress
- Stress
- Diffusing: Stepping Back From the Stress Response (Nonattachment)
- Finding Our Way Home in Community: Polyvagal Theory
- Empathy and Vicarious Trauma: Hurt Too Close to Home
- Attuning Practice: Empathy and Me—Harmful or Helpful?
- Strengthening Practice: Escaping the Empathy Trap
- Emotional Labour in the Workplace: Fake It Till You Can’t Take It?
- Attuning Practice: Deep Acting With That Thing That Makes Your Heart Sing
- Effort–Reward Imbalance: Not Worth the Effort
- Workplace Hostility: Eating Our Young
- Shame: When We Don’t Measure Up
- Perfectionism: The Pressure to Perform
- Homogenization: A Black and White World
- Physical Violence: A Disturbing New Normal
- Heavy Workloads: Too Busy to Breathe
- Taking Personality Into Account
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Moving Into Felt Sense
- Part 2: Coming to Know Through the Felt Sense
- Part 2. Coming to Know Through the Felt Sense
- Chapter 4. Attuning to Your “Roots”
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Moving From a Focus on the Mind to a Holistic Way of Being
- Viewing Human Needs and Stress Through a Different Lens: Chakras
- Attuning and Clearing Practice: Working With Chakras
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Strengthening Congruence With Self-Compassion
- Chapter 5. Strengthening Congruence with Self-Compassion
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Unconditional Positive Regard in Relationship
- Healing Thy Caregiving Self: Self-Compassion as Medicine
- Self-Compassion: An Antidote to Workplace Hostility
- Brain Chunking and Harmful Habits: Weaving in Self-Compassion
- Emotions in the Workplace
- Mindful Superpowers: Curiosity and Self-Compassion
- A Fresh Look at Self-Care/Self-Kindness
- Moving Through Discomfort by Accepting and Softening
- Strategies to Tune Into Your Highest Purpose
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Attuning to “Signal”: Clearing the “Noise” and Managing the Weather
- Chapter 6. Attuning to “Signal”: Clearing the “Noise” and Managing the Weather
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Recognizing the Fight–Flight–Freeze–Fawn Responses
- Interrupting Stress
- Interrupting the Parasympathetic Response: Freeze–Fawn
- Getting Unstuck: The Signal of the Significant Thing
- Anxiety: Signalling Us to Remember Who We Are
- Desire as Signal, Obligations as Noise
- Strengthening Practice: Finding Sanctuary and Responding to the Root of Desire
- Additional Stress Reduction Activities
- Going Back to Move Forward—Using EMDR, CBT, DBT, and Other Exposure Therapies to Reduce Stress
- Immersing in Felt Sense Through Expressive Writing
- Soaking in the Inner World: Moving Through the Layers
- Clearing Practice: Reframing Thoughts and Uncomfortable Emotions
- Managing Our Emotional Weather
- Using Humour to Cope With the Weather
- Clearing Practice: “Shake It Off”
- Navigating Hostility and Horizontal Violence Among Co-workers
- Tom’s Story
- Attuning to Self
- Clearing Practices: Coping With Bad Weather
- Clearing Practice Tip: Using “I” Statements
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Strengthening Sense of Coherence
- Chapter 7. Strengthening Sense of Coherence: Mindful Reorientation
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Sense of Coherence and Mindfulness
- The Science of Mindfulness
- Mind Wandering
- Training the Brain to Be Mindful
- Making and Breaking Habits
- The Why and How of Meditation Practice
- Technology: Supporting Mindfulness
- Mindfulness Tools: Neurofeedback and Binaural Beats
- Attuning to Self: Goals That Align With the “Real” You
- Common Challenges With Mindfulness
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Strengthening by Tilling the Soil of Our Childhoods
- Chapter 8. Strengthening Our Roots as We Till the Soil of Our Childhoods
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Unconditional Positive Regard: The Fertilizer for Deep Roots
- The Child-Centred Upbringing
- The Impact of Childhood Adversity
- Raising Children in Community
- Working With Attachment Tendencies
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Strengthening Our Self-Soothing Capacities
- Chapter 9. Strengthening Our Self-Soothing Capacities: Calm at the Roots
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Soothing With Loving-Kindness
- Loving-Kindness Recipes to Boost the Brain’s “Happiness”
- Soothing With Touch: Self-Holding
- Soothing With Optimism
- Soothing With Gratitude
- Soothing With Forgiveness
- Navigating Order (“Signal”) and Chaos (“Noise”): Navigating Within Complexity
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Clearing Trauma—The Unresolved Weather of the Past
- Chapter 10. Clearing Past Trauma: The Unresolved Weather of the Past
- From Suffering to Bliss: Transforming Trauma to Grit
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Managing Emotions and Resolving Trauma
- Working With “Gut” Reactions
- False Evidence Appearing Real (FEAR)
- Nurtured by Nature
- Brains That Thrive: Managing Anxiety and Depression
- Treatments for Anxiety and Depression
- Working With Trauma: Additional Strategies
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Aligning With Calling
- Part 3: Aligning With Calling in Community
- Part 3. Aligning With Calling in Community
- Chapter 11. Aligning With Calling: Roots Over Fruits
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Visioning With Two-Eyed Seeing
- Living a Calling
- Living Our Calling With Congruence
- Cultivating the Courage to Live Our Calling
- Cultivating Confidence With Meaningful Life Roles Outside of Work
- Authenticity Versus Assimilation
- Living Our Calling by Developing Authentic Habits
- Living Our Calling by Recognizing Old Narratives: Is it True? Is it Personal?
- Living Our Calling While Navigating Homogenizing Cultures
- Spirituality and Living Our Calling
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Attuning for the Journey Ahead: Connecting Root Systems
- Chapter 12. Aligning in Community: Connecting Root Systems
- The Challenge: Orientation
- Turning the Tide With Like-Intentioned Communities of Practice
- Connection to Others: Intertwining Roots
- Codependence Versus Interdependence
- Organizational Visioning
- Visioning Compassionate and Trauma-Informed Workplaces
- Leadership: Role Modelling a New Way
- Navigating Conflict With WITS
- Recognizing Patterns Cultivates Choice
- Effective Mentors: It’s Not About Perfection
- Educators as Cultural Seed Tenders
- The Challenge: Navigation
- Putting It All Together
- Final Words
- Appendix A. Resourcing With Deep Roots
- Appendix B. How Practices Promote Sense of Coherence and Congruence Development
- Appendix C. Objectives Within the Journey
- Glossary
- References
- Index
- Looking Back and Looking Forward: A Personal Note From the Author
- No. of pages: 400
- Language: English
- Edition: 1
- Published: December 9, 2021
- Imprint: Elsevier
- Paperback ISBN: 9780323778695
- eBook ISBN: 9780323778701
SD
Shannon Dames
Dr. Shannon Dames holds a doctorate degree in Education, and has worked in various capacities related to nursing, program development, and research over the last 20 years. She is a professor and researcher with the Nursing program at Vancouver Island University, and a forensic nurse examiner with Island Health. The program of research that she is focusing on centres on articulating the most significant factors that will enable meaningful and sustainable culture change in health care. Her efforts centre on seeding culture change from a bottom up (personal resilience) and top-down approach (systemic resilience).
Dr. Dames is an academic journal article author, Elsevier text author and contributor, and a keynote speaker. She continues to facilitate workshops that focus on the experiential development of the core factors that enable humans to thrive. She comes to this work motivated to provide the tools necessary for us to address the international mental health crises we are facing in health care and beyond. Dr. Dames has received multiple grant awards to support her ongoing program of research, which includes collaborative endeavours with the health authority, academic institutions, and the BC Centre on Substance Use.
Affiliations and expertise
Professor, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Hath Professional Investigator for the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research/Lotte and John Hecht Memorial Foundation, Director of Research and Development for Roots to Thrive, Vancouver Island University, Nanaimo, British Columbia