Dear Therapist:
Thank you for taking your time each week for this column. I have found it to be very enlightening and educational. I am 33 years old and not finding fulfillment in my current occupation. I am considering going back to school to obtain a degree in social work. I have always been interested in helping people and people seem to gravitate to me when they need help solving a problem. I am curious as to what type of person you think makes a good therapist? What personal qualities would indicate that someone might make a good therapist? Are there any challenges in the profession that you think someone considering it should know about? I know these are not "therapy" questions but I hope that you would still share your thoughts on this matter. Thank you.
Response:
As with any profession, some people are more suited to social work than others. That being said, again as with any profession, there are different types of people who do well within the social work field.
Social work has many facets. Most generally, it is split into two aspects: macro and micro. While macro work refers to focus on institutions, communities, and the like, micro work is what most people associate with social work practice. This includes diagnosing and treating mental disorders. Social work programs typically include the understanding of clients’ societal and community influences in their instruction. One of the aims of social work is to combine the scientific method and science-based practice with a clear sense of the client’s perspective. This is perhaps part of the reason that the field of social work often attracts compassionate people.
One of the distinctions often discussed within social work education is that between sympathy and empathy. Whereas the former essentially refers to one’s emotional reaction to another’s plight, the latter is the ability to share another’s perspective, largely by identifying—as fully as possible—with his feelings, needs, issues, insecurities, and circumstances. The field of social work endeavors to minimize the practitioner’s own feelings (sympathy) and expand his ability to fully understand each client from that client’s perspective. Although there are many aspects to this, perhaps most important are: a) the interest in obtaining as complete a psychological/emotional view of each client as possible; b) the ability to place yourself in the other person’s shoes; and c) the ability to compartmentalize—to separate your own emotions from those of the client. This last is especially crucial; the inability to separate your own feelings, needs, and insecurities from those of the client will likely lead to inefficient (or even harmful) practice. It can also easily cause problematic emotional issues for the practitioner, and result in burnout. Compartmentalization can also help the practitioner avoid emotionally taking his work home with him.
You refer to a lack of fulfillment in your current occupation. This can be due to a variety of factors. Many people feel unfulfilled because they don’t enjoy what they do, or because they want to believe in their vocation. Perhaps you want to enjoy what you do because you believe that helping others is important. If this is the case, and you feel that the above goals and capabilities resonate with you, social work may be a profession to consider.
-Yehuda Lieberman, LCSW
psychotherapist in private practice
Brooklyn, NY
author of Self-Esteem: A Primer
www.ylcsw.com / 718-258-5317
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