by Angela Barrios-Lucero, LMFT, ATR
Windows Facilitator, Wellness in the Workplace Toolkit Author
Upland, California
During COVID, I started tapping into photography as a form of mindfulness to address the burnout and compassion fatigue I felt, working with exhausted first responders who were themselves experiencing the effects of vicarious and secondary trauma. The inspiration for this workshop – Picture This – was developed from the many moments I would need a break and would find myself drawn to taking photographs.
Taking pictures allowed me to become more aware of what I needed in my workday. Noticing themes of rest/energy and movement/stillness in the photographs, I realized I was not moving my body enough. I began playing outside daily in nature, compassionately moving my body and implementing visual affirmations.
By helping me better attune to my needs, reflecting on the gifting me with opportunities to provide my body and mind with a recharge and reconnection to the present moment.
As I shared this with my colleagues, most of them with backgrounds in social work, marriage and family therapy, and clinical counseling, they were interested to try it for themselves. I invited them to a special virtual self-care hour where they were encouraged to notice how they took care of themselves through the use of photos to capture daily moments and feelings. I focused on the following workshop steps:
- Using your phone or any device with a camera, take photos of things throughout your workday that spark joy, or that you’re intuitively drawn to.
- Looking at the photos that you took, choose the ones you want to represent creatively on the worksheet using words, shapes, and colors. You can also use titles or captions to describe them.
- Reflect on what your creation reveals about your self-care and what you might need more of in your workday (e.g., movement, play). Are there ways that you could incorporate meeting your needs in a more intentional way?
Burnout and compassion fatigue show up in our bodies. What I began to observe was that the participants really honored their body in stillness or movement while listening to the meditative music. During the meditation one participant shared that they noticed their body needed attention, and sat on the floor to ground themselves. Having been given that permission to pay attention to their bodies, when the creative activity started they were able to really focus on the art whether they were drawing, coloring, or taking photos.
The workshop held a safe space for participants to acknowledge the benefits of being in the moment and honoring what they needed. One of my colleagues shared that it “provided the stressed body the ability to relax” and another person said it helped them to “get it all out.” Noticing in their artwork what brings them joy seemed to provide a sense of peace, and this was reflected in their smiles and relaxed body language in the group photo.
Photography can help you capture things you may never have noticed before. With this workshop, we get the opportunity to take photos of our everyday lives and moments we feel called to capture. Through these photos, we may start to notice the things that may be missing from our self-care, and find ways to more mindfully incorporate them into our daily routines.
Taking pictures helped me notice what my mind and body needed to transition through the highs and lows of a workday, especially during difficult times. My hope is that you too become inspired to use photography to support your self-care. Take a deep breath, release whatever is on your mind, and take a picture. You might be surprised by what you see.
by Angela Barrios-Lucero, LMFT, ATR
Windows Facilitator, Wellness in the Workplace Toolkit Author
Upland, California
Create Your Own Picture This Artwork!
Want to bring healing art programming to your workplace or community?
A Window Between Worlds (AWBW) supports hundreds of direct service organizations across the country to incorporate creative expression into their work with trauma survivors. With this blog we uplift the voices of our art workshop facilitators and participants. We invite you to take in this perspective, notice what resonates and explore how it may fit into your life.