Well-Being Week in Law is here, kicking off Mental Health Month with a week of engaging events in the legal profession and a call to action for the month of May and beyond.
With stigma surrounding mental health issues finally starting to shift for the better across the US, attitudes toward some forms have worsened, and perceptions related to competence are a particularly pernicious consideration for legal professionals. Well-being challenges common in our culture are magnified in the legal profession, where all our society’s issues fall, and we’re continuing to see more firms and other employers do more to support well-being through policy and less formal culture change, which hopefully translate to reducing stigma around mental health issues in the profession.
WELL-BEING WEEK IN LAW IS HERE
The Institute for Well-Being in Law (IWIL) is dedicated to lead a culture shift in law to establish health and well-being as core centerpieces of professional success. IWIL evolved from the grassroots National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being behind the landmark report, The Path to Lawyer Well-Being: Practical Recommendations for Positive Change, and launched the first lawyer well-being week in 2020.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL WWIL 2022 EVENT SCHEDULE. We’ve collaborated with the Mass SJC Standing Committee and other local bar associations to offer free daily programs again for this WWIL, including exciting speakers for the opening keynote with Eilene Zimmerman and special closing session with Michael Curry. IWIL is offering live daily webinars that are free for all to attend, and the ABA’s daily webinars that are free to members. All WWIL events, along with our regular weekly well-being programming are included in the listing.
IWIL has curated Daily Readings, Videos, & Activities for Individual Participants here with a theme identified for each day:
- Monday, May 2 – PHYSICAL Well-Being
- Tuesday, May 3 – SPIRITUAL Well-Being
- Wednesday, May 4 – CAREER & INTELLECTUAL Well-Being
- Thursday, May 5 – SOCIAL Well-Being
- Friday, May 6 – EMOTIONAL Well-Being
MAY IS MENTAL HEALTH MONTH
STARTING TUESDAY, MAY 10TH at 12pm! MINDFULNESS & SELF-COMPASSION TOOLS FOR LEGAL PROFESSIONALS: 4-Part Series – Weekly Each Tuesday from 12pm – 1pm with LCL MA’s Dr. Tracey Meyers. Research has found that mindfulness and self-compassion practices can improve quality of life and decrease feelings of burnout, isolation, disconnection, depression, and secondary traumatization. We also have guided practices you can explore on your own:
Our licensed staff clinicians at LCL MA are here for lawyers, law students, judges, and other legal professionals in Massachusetts year-round. And as always, we invite readers to explore resources by our blog categories and tags listed on the sidebar to the right. Other great starting points have been published by IWIL and ABA COLAP:
- IWIL 31-Day Mental Health Challenge for May
- IWIL Mental Health Resource Guide
- ABA Well-Being Toolkit for Lawyers and Legal Employers
Related Resources
Building Resilience from Trauma in the Legal Profession [Panel Discussion Video] (LCL MA, 2022)
Mental Health Month Resources Listing (LCL MA)
Free & Confidential Consultations:
Lawyers, law students, and judges in Massachusetts can discuss concerns with a licensed therapist, law practice advisor, or both. Find more on scheduling here.
