Demonstrating Empathy in Challenging Situations

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<div&gt;Chapter Six starts by introducing the following strategies that foster empathy&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;when caring for people who are difficult: choosing not to judge; imagining what it is&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;like to be the other person; listening to their story; understanding that acting out is often&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;a desperate cry for help; and taking a step back when conflict happens. The focus of the&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;discussion then moves to the topic of substance use. Impediments to substance use&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;recovery are identified as: the use of stigmatizing language, client self-shame, therapist&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;stigma, counsellor burnout and compassion fatigue. The following treatment modalities&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;that support recovery in people who use substances are explored: non-judgement and&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;acceptance; clinician empathy; teaching social skills and empathy to clients; and&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;meaning centered therapy (MCT). MCT is specifically recommended as an adjunct to&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;other current and relevant treatment modalities for substance use, because it is&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;evidence-based, person-centered, responsibility focused, and associated with positive&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;outcomes. It is established that the greatest factor in creating a positive outcome for any&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;client with substance use, regardless of theoretical premise is counsellor empathy. The&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;second portion of the Chapter illustrates effective ways to communicate care to people&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;who are seriously ill or dying. Three specific case studies of lived experiences are&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;presented. In the first narrative, a nursing instructor takes a time out to gather her&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;emotions after a startling incident. The second story concerns the importance of&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;offering palliative care when a cure is no longer an option. In the third case study, a&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;doctor shares a story of how a dying patient taught him some valuable lessons about&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;life. In the Case in Point, a nursing student learns to stop judging people with substance&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;use. An exercise in tolerance and acceptance is proposed, followed by an additional&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;teaching strategy on how to respond with empathy when faced with challenging&lt;/div&gt;<div&gt;circumstances.</div&gt;