I feel all of this on so many levels I hardly know where to begin. Thank you for writing it so honestly.
I may be working with slightly larger animals, and the added layer of having humans sit on or interact with them brings its own emotional complexity and teaching challenges into the mix. But at its core, I agree wholeheartedly with you about the necessity of continual learning and self-examination. The idea that the first behaviour we analyse should be our own resonates deeply.
What I find both inspiring and frustrating is how essential ongoing development is — and yet how inaccessible it can sometimes feel when it comes with significant financial barriers. The learning itself is liberating; the hoops around it, less so.
Your piece is a powerful reminder that refinement is part of the responsibility of working in any helping profession.
Yes - 100% on the financial barriers. I'm a big fan of all the research so kindly shared by scholars for free despite pay barriers and it's always a reminder for creators to keep putting things out there too. I'm indebted to all the people who helped me along the way for nothing. Oh, and the animals! They've been powerful teachers. I'm just writing a session on the therapeutic benefits of play, and reminding myself that the most instructional teachers have been the dogs themselves. All we have to do is watch. I was thinking about a dog I worked with - Burt. He'd got to the point where his guardians had called me because he'd sometimes go a day without even toileting, occasionally two. He had lost all his zest for life. Watching him as he showed us the things he wanted out of life, leaning into those things - that education was the most instructional of all. Much more than any course, anyway! Definitely a reminder to pass that on to those who wish to hear it.
I love the notion that it is a responsibility to keep refining. It really is.
I feel all of this on so many levels I hardly know where to begin. Thank you for writing it so honestly.
I may be working with slightly larger animals, and the added layer of having humans sit on or interact with them brings its own emotional complexity and teaching challenges into the mix. But at its core, I agree wholeheartedly with you about the necessity of continual learning and self-examination. The idea that the first behaviour we analyse should be our own resonates deeply.
What I find both inspiring and frustrating is how essential ongoing development is — and yet how inaccessible it can sometimes feel when it comes with significant financial barriers. The learning itself is liberating; the hoops around it, less so.
Your piece is a powerful reminder that refinement is part of the responsibility of working in any helping profession.
I feel all of this on so many levels I hardly know where to begin. Thank you for writing it so honestly.
I may be working with slightly larger animals, and the added layer of having humans sit on or interact with them brings its own emotional complexity and teaching challenges into the mix. But at its core, I agree wholeheartedly with you about the necessity of continual learning and self-examination. The idea that the first behaviour we analyse should be our own resonates deeply.
What I find both inspiring and frustrating is how essential ongoing development is — and yet how inaccessible it can sometimes feel when it comes with significant financial barriers. The learning itself is liberating; the hoops around it, less so.
Your piece is a powerful reminder that refinement is part of the responsibility of working in any helping profession.
Yes - 100% on the financial barriers. I'm a big fan of all the research so kindly shared by scholars for free despite pay barriers and it's always a reminder for creators to keep putting things out there too. I'm indebted to all the people who helped me along the way for nothing. Oh, and the animals! They've been powerful teachers. I'm just writing a session on the therapeutic benefits of play, and reminding myself that the most instructional teachers have been the dogs themselves. All we have to do is watch. I was thinking about a dog I worked with - Burt. He'd got to the point where his guardians had called me because he'd sometimes go a day without even toileting, occasionally two. He had lost all his zest for life. Watching him as he showed us the things he wanted out of life, leaning into those things - that education was the most instructional of all. Much more than any course, anyway! Definitely a reminder to pass that on to those who wish to hear it.
I love the notion that it is a responsibility to keep refining. It really is.
I feel all of this on so many levels I hardly know where to begin. Thank you for writing it so honestly.
I may be working with slightly larger animals, and the added layer of having humans sit on or interact with them brings its own emotional complexity and teaching challenges into the mix. But at its core, I agree wholeheartedly with you about the necessity of continual learning and self-examination. The idea that the first behaviour we analyse should be our own resonates deeply.
What I find both inspiring and frustrating is how essential ongoing development is — and yet how inaccessible it can sometimes feel when it comes with significant financial barriers. The learning itself is liberating; the hoops around it, less so.
Your piece is a powerful reminder that refinement is part of the responsibility of working in any helping profession.