When there is a conflict, people flock to one side or the other to support them, be it a divorce or an international conflict.\u00a0 For those working with those parties trying to find an amicable solution, there is an expectation to empathise but not judge.<\/p>\n
Listening to people who are angry, hurt and confused is hard without joining in.\u00a0 To listen properly one must let them speak, put one’s self in their position, feel what they felt.\u00a0 But to help fix the problem, one must not agree with everything they say as one would to a friend.\u00a0 This means inevitably internalising all their emotion.\u00a0 Then, when listening to the other party, doing that again.<\/p>\n
I have found it is incredibly tough to do this, especially when over an extended period of weeks.\u00a0 It is amazingly draining, not physically or just mentally, but emotionally and something else too.\u00a0 There is something drained internally leaving one unable to make decisions or think of anything.\u00a0 It becomes all-absorbing and nothing else gets in.<\/p>\n
There must be techniques to prevent or reduce this, or to alleviate it.\u00a0 Presumably those who conduct sessions at Relate or ACAS or in peace negotiations have tools and methods that mean they can keep working without exhausting themselves.<\/p>\n
I have tried searching online to find out what these are, but without success.\u00a0 Perhaps it is part of conflict resolution training or mediation training.<\/p>\n
Having recently spoken to a GP and a policeman about this, I find neither gets any form of training or support to deal with the emotional consequences of their work.\u00a0 People dying, mangled bodies, dealt with as part of their jobs, and no support.\u00a0 How poor is that?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When there is a conflict, people flock to one side or the other to support them, be it a divorce or an international conflict.\u00a0 For those working with those parties trying to find an amicable solution, there is an expectation … Continue reading