Care for the Caring

CAMH Connexions

Spring 2006

Working on the support line of the McLaughlin Centre can be challenging. If a call is particularly difficult, it’s important for the volunteer to take a few moments to debrief and discuss it with the volunteer coordinator. This allows one’s batteries to recharge so the next caller will be met with renewed energy and empathy.

Carl* has just finished one such call. It has been difficult since the caller’s depression colours her entire perception of life. She cannot see the tremendous strength she has already shown in coping with her illness as well as she has, day after day. Carl, with a relative dealing with depression, does see it and tries, gently, to point it out.

Lisa Pont, the volunteer coordinator on duty, reassures Carl that he has handled the call to the best of his ability. “You showed empathy and you focused on strengths,” she tells him. Some more discussion follows and then Carl is ready for whatever the next call may bring.

Mandy*, another volunteer, says she finds it frustrating to be removed from the callers. “You just want to reach through the telephone line and hug them,” she exclaims. Overall though, her experience is positive and she finds it rewarding when she hears back from a few of the callers who phone on a regular basis. She knows she is helping and that her help is making a difference.

*Names have been changed.

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