Therapist, Heal Thyself? A Study of Self-Care Practices among Therapeutic Service Providers

Missoula, Montana, is the largest city in western Montana and a social service hub for more than 110,000 residents of the surrounding county and beyond. Whether nonprofit, government agency, or individual provider, each social service offering has its own model of change and form of therapeutic services designed to ensure the best life possible for its clients— but how do the leaders of these organizations also try to make the best lives for themselves and their staff? In this research project, I will investigate this question, analyzing and comparing the self-care practices—formal and informal, public and private, personal and institutional—of five Missoula leaders whose professional settings offer therapeutic services