Podcast Summary: "3 Creative Ways to Practice Self-Care During the COVID-19 Crisis"

Private Practice Startup Podcast — Episode 182 (April 18, 2020)
Hosts: Dr. Kate Campbell & Katie Lemieux
Guest: Julia Arau, Self-Care Coach & Group Practice Owner

Overview

This episode focuses on self-care strategies for therapists and helping professionals experiencing the unique stresses and emotional toll of the COVID-19 crisis. Hosts Kate and Katie welcome Julia Arau, who shares her own experiences with burnout and offers three creative and tailored approaches to self-care, emphasizing body, mind, and soul/spirit practices.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Navigating Burnout & the Need for Self-Care

[07:54–13:25]

• Julia recounts her personal history with burnout as a schoolteacher, home sales professional, and group practice owner.
  • Her most recent burnout hit after attending a professional conference, where she realized she couldn’t absorb any more information or serve others until she restored herself.
  • “I could only last through one training out of like the whole one three-hour training. I could not focus, I could not think about another counseling related topic. … So I realized the importance of self-care in Kauai, and thus the coaching business, Self Care with Julia, was formed shortly after.” – Julia [09:04]
• The co-hosts relate experiences of compassion fatigue and the difficulty of separating personal and professional lives during the pandemic.
• Shared sense of helplessness and sensitivity to the emotional weight of clients and world events.

2. Building a Creative & Personalized Self-Care Plan

[13:25–15:33]

• Julia stresses the importance of using individualized approaches, including:
  • The Enneagram, wellness wheel, and personality inventories.
  • Encourages breaking down self-care into “smaller measurable steps.”
  • Suggests focusing on “three things you need to accomplish in a day” to reduce anxiety and foster a sense of control.
    • “If we focus on maybe just the day … pick or prioritize three things … that can be helpful and really break down some of that anxiety.” – Julia [14:22]

3. Measurable, Grounded Daily Self-Care

[15:33–19:07]

• Hosts share their own “Me First” morning routines and how prioritizing self-care helps ground them for the day.
  • “If I don’t get those essentials done, I’m not always grounded and as clear.” – Katie [15:02]
• Distractions from working at home are common and intentional structure is key.
• Acknowledgement of accountability and planning as tools for sustainable self-care.

The Three Creative Ways to Practice Self-Care

1. Care for Your Body

[19:14–21:16]

• Establish or maintain physical routines (e.g., restorative or yin yoga, walks, grounding).
• Use all senses during activities: “What you’re smelling, what you’re seeing around you, what you’re hearing.”
• Improvise with home equipment if necessary (towels or blankets can replace yoga props).
  • “Restorative yoga right now … with the props, the towels, all those different things … is really a good thing to de-stress right now.” – Julia [19:57]

2. Nurture Your Mind

[21:16–22:58]

• Meditation helps “rewire” anxious or negative thoughts.
• Gratitude journaling even for small things.
• Practice digital detox: limit news and social media exposure.
  • “If you know that you are someone that soaks things up like a sponge, it’s important to take care of yourself right now.” – Julia [21:16]
• Time-capping media consumption (e.g., “30 minutes watching the news at the most during the day”).

3. Feed Your Soul/Spirit

[22:58–24:25]

• Mindfully engage with nature; be present with all five senses.
  • Finding art, kindness, or beauty (like a chalk drawing saying “We love the Earth”).
• Authentic moments and connections, especially those intensified during this crisis, are nourishing.
  • “That’s the soul stuff right there, right? … Participating in or witnessing those acts of kindness, that to me is really fulfilling.” – Katie [22:58]
• Childlike curiosity and presence can foster grounding and melt away anxiety.
  • “It’s forced me to be so present in the moment, and all the anxiety, all the big problems, the stress and the unknowns… just kind of melts away and I can be fully present.” – Kate [23:45]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Burnout and Empathy

• “It’s hard to not soak that all in right now. And it’s a lot. Right now we really got to take care of ourselves.” – Julia [12:26]

On Small, Measurable Action

• “If we focus on maybe just the day … pick or prioritize three things … that can be helpful and really break down some of that anxiety.” – Julia [14:22]

On Digital Detox and Mindfulness

• “Maybe setting a timer for spending maybe 30 minutes watching the news at the most during the day…” – Julia [21:16]
• “If you take away anything ... it's teaching us to be mindful and to be present in everyone's lives right now. It's huge.” – Julia [24:25]

On Unexpected Calm in Crisis

• “Just embracing and feeling and experiencing that… because to me, that’s the soul stuff right there, right?” – Katie [22:58]

Resources & Freebies

• Julie’s Free Tool: “21 Free Tools to Prevent Burnout in Your Work and Personal Life”
  Get it at juliaayraud.com/preventburnout
  [25:08]

Timestamps of Key Segments

• [03:14] Julia introduces herself and her background.
• [07:54] Julia shares her personal burnout stories and the impact on her career.
• [13:25] How Julia structures self-care coaching and the value of personalization.
• [14:22] Detailed suggestions for breaking self-care into smaller, daily measurable steps.
• [19:14] The integration of body, mind, and soul self-care strategies.
• [21:16] The importance of mindfulness, digital detox, and gratitude.
• [22:58] Mindful presence, authentic connection, and “feeding the soul.”
• [25:08] Julie shares her free self-care resource for listeners.

Takeaways

• Self-care is vital—especially for helping professionals—during crisis and beyond.
• Customization and creativity ensure self-care practices are sustainable and meaningful.
• Small, consistent routines across body, mind, and soul keep burnout at bay.
• Mindfulness, gratitude, and connection to self and others are powerful tools for resilience.
• Listeners are encouraged to pause, slow down, and notice unexpected sources of joy and beauty, even amid difficulty.

For more resources and Julie’s free guide, see the show notes at theprivatepracticestartup.com [25:27].