Page 44 - Social Media Musings

Social Media Musings – Part III My Reflections on the Practice and Life
Mental Health
Some of our stress in our profession is the rush of it all. Set your alarm for a half hour earlier from now on. That will help.
I have found in my practice that humor overcomes fear and stress and laughter is an antidote for a setback or unpleasant surprise.
Lawyers struggle to be open about and seek help for depression because so many see mental health disease as a weakness. I’ve heard from lawyers, too many, that depression isn’t a real disease and that those who struggle with and suffer from depression just need to snap out of it. We as a profession have to do more to accept that depression is a disease and treat those suffering from it as if they were suffering from cancer or another physical disease.
Large caseloads can cause lawyers to simply react and only address the urgent and ignore the important. If you’re a young lawyer, and you have too much work, let your supervising attorney know. Having too much on your plate leads to missed deadlines and precludes one from being proactive.
Take care of yourself. Water your flowers. Tend your garden. Nurture yourself. Law is a demanding profession and you need to take care of yourself to survive it.
Law firms can help lawyers cope with mental illness by understanding what it feels
like. The movie Horse Girl on Netflix puts the viewer in the shoes of mental illness and refuses to take them off until the viewer knows what it feels like to wear them. Take the time to recognize the signs of mental illness and understand what it feels like to better help your lawyers and staff.
We, as lawyers, are trained to look at every action, omission or statement by opposing counsel as a move or counter move - every letter, every e-mail, every word. Why did they say or write that? That’s fine for litigation. That’s terrible for personal relationships. Cross examining or interrogating loved ones, always looking for their motivation, treating every interaction or conversation as a fight for territory on a battle map is a recipe for disaster. Leave the job behind when you come home.
If you suffer from imposter syndrome, create a body of work that will remind you that you belong. Write. Get published. Speak. Master an area of law. Volunteer to argue motions and take depositions. Run at the enemy of imposter syndrome, not from it.
Create and maintain a contact list. This list will help remind you to reach out to them and stay in touch.
Build your pack. We all need friendship and colleagues. We all need a network and a support group.
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