Helping others to help yourself

Why we choose the job we do.

For many people a job is a means of earning an income to live on. Geography and availability of work limits many people’s choices so they take what work they can. But some of us do have choice and for those of us that choose professions where we are of service to others, it’s important that we understand what it is in ourselves that we hope to heal by helping others.

Anyone who has heard me speak will know about my mother traumatised by world war 2 and unable to move on from her emotional wounds. Therefore it makes sense that I do what I do as part of healing the past and seeking resolution.

When a person is unaware of what they are trying to heal, cure or resolve and is unable to talk about it or make the link, the chances are that their job is serving as a personal theatre where the unresolved can be acted out over and over again through the clients or service users while the professional influences the outcomes. A great example of this happened recently when I heard someone talk about the difficulty of growing up in a family with a severely disabled sibling. It was no surprise to discover this person had become a social worker.

Some Native Americans believe that our actions affect the seven generations in both directions. This means that we have the power to change the trajectory of our lineage by releasing from the past pain. I have the power to forgive old enemies, transform beliefs and release pain that has held preceding generations captive and will release the future generations from carrying the burden.