An Introduction to Conscious Care and Support

A Centre for Conscious Care’s Guiding Principles

To optimally meet the holistic support needs of individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities and/or a mood/mental health disorder:

• Core competencies
• Traditional support practices
• Behavioural management strategies; and
• Accountability systems are essential, BUT are just not enough - Equally essential is that supporters and leaders must have:
  • Mindful presence
  • Personal & professional emotional maturity e.g. emotional self-regulation skills
  • An uncompromising commitment to wanting to help others
  • Authentic compassion for all others, even when we don’t feel like it
  • The most current evidence-based prevention and management interventions* necessary to compliment valuable, however incomplete strategies

What is The Focus

This introductory workshop will have two main themes:

• Supported individual’s improvement of inclusive quality of life, including effective non-behavioural interventions to prevent and rapidly de-escalate behaviours of concern.
• Enhanced supporter job satisfaction, safety, plus meaning and fulfilment in their roles.

Topics Covered:

1. Introduction of workers and leaders to mindful emotional maturity
   1. Emotional competence
   2. Mindful self-regulation skills
   3. Self and others' awareness
   4. Empathy/unconditional respect and kindness
   5. Meaning, purpose and heart, i.e. clarifying reasons for commitment
2. The most current evidence-based support strategies:
   1. Sensory integration – how to assess and meet needs
   2. Gastrointestinal (GI) health – nutritional and supplement requirements
   3. Post-traumatic stress disorder, healing and recovery
   4. Brain coherence to power up the brain to a higher level of cognition
3. Mindful development of unconditional compassion

Immunizing supporters and leaders against the 4 Outs to mindful support individuals “to be all they can be.”

Supporter Challenges – The 4 Outs

On some days, many supporters and leaders may wonder, where will my strength come from?

“Their needs just don’t wait until I am rested and my heart is open and resilient.”

On these days, the mind and heart may silently cry out…

• “I never dreamed that it would be this hard. I fear that I’m burning out.”
• “I want so much to have more patience with him/her. I feel so badly losing it/freaking out again.”
• “I want to give him/her so much more, but I just have to tune out.”
• “Oh no, I’ve just spaced out again and missed much of what she just said.”

Help!

When these cries happen, kindness is often replaced by unconscious indifference or overpowering rigid reactions to ever-increasing needs and insecurities.

Let us help you ensure that these ‘cries’ and concerns are minimal and do not lead to even greater suffering for community members, carers, support workers, and leaders.

Who is this For?

Families and carers, support professionals, leaders, therapists and anyone with an interest in making a difference in the lives of others.

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Centre for Conscious Care

Australian Facilitator: Michaela Kennedy

Over 30 years of experience in the disability sector – direct support, team leader, area coordinator, departmental manager and senior leadership.

She is passionate about all people having a place to belong in this world and that we need each other to make it better for all.

*CCS applies simple and practical research discoveries from the disciplines of mindfulness, neuroplasticity, social neurobiology, emotional freedom therapy, nutrition, GI health and biofeedback and integrates these sciences with what is relevant to conventional behavioural management.