Conferences are Self-Care (Even for Introverts)

Every year, the EMDR International Association gathers 1000-2000 EMDR therapists together to learn, build skills, compare notes, and make new contacts. 

This year, I attended for the first time. 

I found the experience to be challenging and beautiful in ways I was not prepared for. 

Now that I've attended, I completely see the benefit of conferences in general for clinician burnout. 

But I also see some significant risks for providers too. Let's talk about it.

A good conference tackles several prongs of burnout prevention at once.

Increased clinical competence

This is the advertised benefit of course. You'll learn a lot. The authorities remind you not to drift too far from the standard. 

But if you only treat a conference as a information transmission exercise, you're missing a ton of other benefits. 

You see, there is an important and often overlooked correlation between a clinician's perceived competence and their work satisfaction. 

A therapist who knows that they do good work and knows HOW they get good outcomes is at a lower burnout risk than one who feels constantly underwater and overwhelmed in session.

A good conference, tailored to the skillsets of the attendees, supports effective use of each clinician's skills when they return home.

Moral Injury

A solid lecturer can not only share their knowledge, but their experiences. And over the weekend, the speakers who led with both MASTERY and VULNERABILITY had the most engaged rooms. 

It's safe to stand on stage and say “I'm very smart and I do amazing work.” It's risky to say, “This is the theory, this is what happened when I tried it for real, and I wish I had tried it another way. Here's why:...” 

If we want our newer colleagues, our supervisees, and our staff to bring their questions and mistakes, leaders need to model that same behavior.

Social support

If a conference is to go beyond educating the workforce and actually start to protect the workforce, it should facilitate deep discussion!

I got a huge benefit from the lectures. But I also got a huge benefit from walking up to my favorite expert, thanking them for their work, and telling them specifically how it impacted me and my clients.  

Maybe I cried a little. Maybe the expert did too. 

We both went home changed. THAT is one of the many forms of social support that's pretty hard to get via email.

Now, let's talk conference burnout risks, because there were at least 2:

Expense

Conferences are expensive and time-consuming. They require privileges like the ability to take days off, travel and secure extra help at home. 

Participants are exposed to large crowds and sometimes uncomfortable settings, and that can exacerbate health concerns, chronic ailments, and sensory issues.

This was the biggest and best work conference I've ever attended. The organizers were intentional, prepared, patient, and helpful. The hotel was top tier.

And I don't think my body or my budget could make this happen every year. 

The inner child problem.

On Thursday, a leading consultant reminded the EMDR Consultants that whenever someone’s skills are being evaluated, that is a highly activating and maybe even triggering event. Tapping into the flight or fight response of a little child who just wants to be loved.

And then, I couldn't unsee it the rest of the weekend. Fully grown adults forgot that they were in control of their own schedule, not pawns of the CE approval gods. 

A presenter couldn't attune to the warmth in the room because they were anxious not to skip a single fact.

Hundreds and hundreds of adults with activated inner children all bumping and crashing into each other. 

It's a hilarious image. Like a high school passing period but filled with hundreds of preschoolers, just let loose on campus and told, “figure it out!” Madness. 

And to be clear, this inner child problem hit me hard! Like clockwork, every genuine, warm conversation was met with a tidal wave of imposter syndrome that required self-regulation, creative problem-solving, and yummy snacks. 

If you've gotten a little disconnected from your skills, your purpose, or your professional community, I'd still highly recommend occasional attendance at a specialized, in person, event in your price range.

(The one you're required to go to for work may or may not be energizing, so take an active role in advocating to try other conferences.)

Use conference time not as a cure, but as a kickoff event, to put yourself back onto the path of the good work you've always been capable of (and may have forgotten to give yourself credit for in a while).