Announcer:
This episode is brought to you by the University of Louisville.
Greg Wright:
Welcome to Social Work Talks. My name is Greg Wright. People are more stressed out than ever. You can thank our device of political arena, the pandemic, and economic uncertainty for much of that. As a result, social workers are facing more anxiety on the job. But how could they learn to live with it and even overcome it. Today, we are talking with Washington DC school social worker, Darryl Webster. Darryl Webster was named 2007 Father of the Year, a USA Today National Hero, and is the 2018 NASW Maryland Chapter Social Worker of the Year. He is also author of, "I Think I'm Going Crazy: Proven Strategies for Managing Stress, Overcoming Anxiety and Depression." Welcome to Social Work Talks, Darryl. How are you doing, man?
Darryl Webster:
I'm doing well. Thank you, Greg. Thank you for having me.
Greg Wright:
You have lived with anxiety and a depression issue yourself. And I wanted our listeners to know how did that happen?
Darryl Webster:
Well, in my twenties, that's when I first experienced anxiety disorders and depression. I was comorbid with them both. Actually, I had a number of anxiety disorders that I experienced at that time. I had a generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks. I experienced social anxiety disorder and agoraphobia all at the same time. And it happened at a time when I was going through a lot of first in my life. I had my first job as a child protective social worker in Washington DC, at a time when DC was the murder capital of the nation, we were dealing with the crack cocaine epidemic. I had my son during that time. I got married to my high school sweetheart. And I purchased my first home, which was my family's home. And it was a wonderful home, but it was a money pit. So it was a tsunami of stressors and responsibilities that were all thrown on me all at the same time.
Greg Wright:
Yeah. Wow. So how did you end up overcoming that though, Darryl? And how long were you actually in it before you got out of that situation?
Darryl Webster:
It took me a few years to get a grip on the anxiety disorder and major depression disorder that I have. Anyone that has experienced anxiety disorders and depression will tell you it's a very debilitating mental illness that is very insidious in a lot of ways. And it took me some years of coming to understand what I was dealing with because when it first happened, I was clueless as to what I was going through. I didn't know what my body and mind were reacting to. And ironically, my mom was a retired psychiatric nurse and I had picked her up at the airport when I was in the midst of it all. And I told her I wasn't feeling like myself. I was feeling out of sorts.
I was having these strange feelings ... mentally and so forth. And she told me that, "You sound like you're going crazy." And it freaked me out because I'm expecting her to give me some reassurance that I was going to be okay. But although she was a mental health psychiatric nurse, she didn't understand the nature of anxiety disorders. And so, through bibliotherapy, reading about anxiety disorders and depression, and seeing a psychiatrist, and eventually as a last resort, I took medication. I was able to come out of it within a few years and that's been over 25 years now and I've never had a relapse.
Greg Wright:
Yes. So you were a child welfare social worker. And I was wondering if anxiety is a part of that job, normally so. Is it a routine thing and were you also seeing it with other social workers you were working with in a child welfare area?
Darryl Webster:
My job at the time was very stressful. Again, DC was the crack cocaine... dealt with the crack cocaine epidemic. I was on the front lines. I was going into homes and seeing things I've never seen before. Kids being sexually abused and physically abused. I'm a very sensitive person. I internalize all of that stress that I was being exposed to. And I expressed secondary trauma as it related to that. And it impacted me on a great, deep level.
Greg Wright:
Yes. So now we're in a period in our nation where we have a pandemic, there's a lot of racial unrest. Economically, we are in a bad shape. So is that a factor you think why a lot of folks now, and social workers are experiencing a lot more stress?
Darryl Webster:
Yeah. We've all gone through stress and levels we've never seen in recent history with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the racial unrest and division in the country with regard to the last administration. And all the division that was sewn around the country. We're seeing rates of mental illness that we've never seen before. In fact, some mental health experts predict we will see a tsunami of mental illness in the years to come as a fallout of everything that we're going through. A lot of people are experiencing PTSD as relates to just the insurrection that occurred on the Capitol. Just those images. I talked with a colleague in the school system, and she said that when she saw the siege on the US Capitol, it brought back all those feelings from nine 11. And I thought that was pretty, pretty deep that she would have that same type of bodily reaction that a lot of us had when those planes hit the World Trade Center.
So yes, the political ... and the pandemic occurring all at the same time, it's placing a lot of our population under a lot of stress. In particular social workers, because we're on the front lines rescuing and helping other people. And not only are we dealing with our personal stresses as it relates to what we are experiencing and seeing, but we're taking on the stresses of those people who we're helping. And so we need to really be mindful of self-care. Practicing mindfulness and going on walks and maybe practicing yoga and doing all types of things to just escape from the negative stressors that are going on in society right now.
Greg Wright:
Yeah. So could you tell us exactly what is mindfulness? How does that work? And also, how can a social worker practice that on a daily basis, Darryl?
Darryl Webster:
Yeah. Mindfulness really helped me when I was in the midst of my anxiety disorders and depression back in my twenties. I learned the power of diaphragmatic breathing, just understanding the power of the breath. A lot of people don't realize how important the breath there is unless you hold your breath and then you realize how we need to breathe. But a lot of us don't breathe properly. When you learn to just sit still in terms of mindfulness. Mindfulness is nonjudgmental, paying attention on purpose in the moment. Just coming to a place of rest and peace and be still with the breath and calming the body has a way of activating the para-sympathetic nervous system, which is the rest and relaxation part of the nervous system. And it also makes the sympathetic nervous system stand down, which is the fight or flight part of the nervous system.
So mindfulness is something very easy that could be done. You don't need any special room or place to have. All you need is a quiet space to be with yourself and with your breath and just learn to breathe. And of course, the mind is going to race. That's what the mind does. They say we have 65 to 70,000 thoughts a day, and most of them are negative and repeated thoughts from day before. But through mindfulness, learning to just sit still and tame the mind, the mind begins to come to a place of calm and inner peace. But unfortunately, we are a society of doers, doers, doers. We're always on the go. We never take that time to just deescalate and to calm our nerves.
Greg Wright:
Yes. So you have also said a walk is also a beneficial thing. I've actually read a few articles that say it's actually an excellent form of exercise. But how does that also play into our feeling of wellbeing, Darryl?
Darryl Webster:
A great question, Greg. I've practiced walking for years, especially because it's just a easy thing to do. I love walking in nature and green space. Research has proven that people who get connected with nature in terms of just being amongst the plants and the animals and just even walking in the sun helps to boost vitamin D and even serotonin. So walking in nature is a very relaxing activity that anyone could do at any age. Doesn't impact the joints in the body. And I've been doing it for many, many years, and it's really has helped me. I've often walked in nature and come home and took my blood pressure. My blood pressure went down dramatically after a long walk because nature is something that's attuned with our spirits. And when we are one was nature it's very relaxing.
Greg Wright:
Our faith is also a powerful tool as well. And it really doesn't matter what a person's faith is.
Darryl Webster:
As you said, it doesn't matter what your fath is just being connected with your higher power, whatever that higher power or source may be for you, is something that's very spiritual and it's a way of calming the body. I'm a spiritual person. I've often prayed and just use various mantras, just being at peace with one with the universe, and is very calming. And I have friends of different faiths that practice in their own religion. And at the end, we all get the same thing out of our faith, which is a sense that we are not in control, that ultimately there's a universal source or higher power that is supporting us and guiding us.
And when we make that connection with that source, it has a way of alleviating the burdens that we take on ourselves when we think we can control things, because ultimately we don't have control to a certain degree of a lot of things that happen in life. So when we pass those burdens on and those fears and those anxieties onto our higher source, or universal source of power and spirituality, it has a very de-stressing effect on our minds and bodies and spirits.
Greg Wright:
I was a journalist for a lot of years and I was out there. I was a reporter. I listened to a newscast daily. I read the news constantly. But now, I find that it actually makes me anxious. I was wondering, should we limit it?
Darryl Webster:
It's interesting that you said that Greg, because I am a avid news watcher and my wife makes fun of me all the time, because she say, "You come home, you'll watch the four o'clock news and the five o'clock news and the seven o'clock and the 11 o'clock news." Because I want to be informed in that and know what's going on in the world. However, I've learned to not look at so much of the news, because our minds are very reactive to those types of images and sound that we hear glaring across the screen throughout the day. And so what I learned is that I was conditioning my mind in a very negative way, and it was causing me a lot of stress that I was unaware of.
So I've learned to disconnect from the news as much as I used to, and just go into a place of mindfulness and meditation and not be so in tune to all of the negative chaos going on in the world. And since I've done that my blood pressure has gone down. I'm less anxious. I'm less worried about the future or fearful about the future because I am not bombarding my mind 24 seven with all of the negative news of future catastrophes that they talk about. And so, I would suggest that anyone if they want to get some clarity of mind and inner peace is to disconnect from any form of negative television or radio or anything of that nature that is causing them to have some angst.
Greg Wright:
Our social media. I hate to say this, but -- I grew up with a diverse group of people -- and I find myself arguing either on Facebook, Instagram, or whatever when a classmate or a friend, and we end up arguing. And I don't think that that's a good thing. So should we just avoid social media or just manage it better?
Darryl Webster:
I think we should manage it better. All of those forms of media have their place and they have a purpose. But when you over abuse anything, it could be detrimental to one's emotional, psychological, and spiritual health. I'm one of your Facebook friends and if you notice a lot of times I will deactivate my Facebook page just to give myself a mental break from all that I'm hearing from different people talking, whether it be politics or other types of negative news in the media. I quite frankly, don't get into debates with people about politics or religion or things of that sort, because people are too highly invested in those types of issues. And so it doesn't do me any good arguing with someone who was just hell-bent on their viewpoint about something. So I tend to stay away from those really highly charged emotional subjects.
Announcer:
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Greg Wright:
I want to turn back a bit to social workers. So if they're on a job and they are stressed out, how can a social worker find help?
Darryl Webster:
I would definitely say from my own experience, if a social worker or anyone for that matter, dealing with a lot of stress or particularly a mental health type of challenge is that they need to find a source of support that they trust. And that could be a relative, like a ... I spoke of my mom, who was a retired psychiatric nurse. On the job, if they have good rapport and they trust the relationship they have with their supervisor, they should definitely consult with their supervisor who could possibly refer them to EAP programs so that they could get some referral to a mental health therapist or other support in their area. Some people who are affiliated with churches could reach out to their pastor or if they're affiliated with synagogue and they can seek help in those areas. Even a trusted friend that they really do believe in and trust their judgment, reach out to them. But they definitely should not hold those types of feelings and fears inside if they feel like their minds and body ... something that they might not understand, and is making them think thoughts that they may want to harm themselves, or, oh, it's interfering with their life to a high level where they can't function on a day-to-day level. They definitely should reach out for help as soon as possible. Again, it's been 25 years since I had my mental health crisis. I've learned a lot through bibliotherapy and friends and educating myself. And I've proven that you don't have to live your whole life. And of course, everybody with mental illness, everybody's different. Everybody's body, minds, and experiences are different. But from my experience, I learned a lot. They talk about post-traumatic growth. I've gone through trauma and came out on the other side, having grown from it and learned from it. And I'm a much better person from it.
Greg Wright:
A lot of folks are much more isolated now. So it's really harder now to hang out after work or see a family member that you trust. So how can folks do this during a period where for the foreseeable future, or the next few months, will be isolated?
Darryl Webster:
We're fortunate that we live in a time and era where we have such technologies, where we can have Zoom calls and see people's faces and Teams calls and have those types of connections. Many, many years ago, you couldn't do that. So that's helpful. We could still come together and keep our social distance and see someone without necessarily violating the CDC protocols and just to be near them and let them know that you care. When the pandemic first started, I was really inspired by children of the elderly who went to elderly homes and stood outside their windows and put their hand up to the window just to make a connection with their elderly parents. And just that experience alone, even with that glass physically dividing them the oxytocin and the dopamine in each of those persons' brains were increased just because of, they could actually see their faces and look in each other's eye.
And so there are other things we can do, even with the limitations of COVID to be supportive and be attuned and let people know. Even talking on the phone with a very caring and kind voice at length, let someone know I'm here for you. That could go a long way in helping people to be less stressed out and to feel less lonely. Greg, let me say this before I go. I just wish that as a society, that we normalize mental health, mental illness to the extent that we can talk about it and that people can feel supported in a way where they do have these challenges, they will seek out help and not feel ostracized or ridiculed because they are dealing with a mental illness.
And one of my goals and platforms is to help as much as I can to de-stigmatize mental illness and this long time belief that many people have about mental illness. It's unfortunate. We have a lot of work to do to change that narrative as it relates to mental illness. Once again, thank you, Greg. Thank you for all the work that you've done and thank you to NASW for all the support of all of us as social workers.
Greg Wright:
Thank you, sir, for being a guest with us here on Social Work Talks.
Darryl Webster:
All right, have a good day.
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