In this episode we cover another difficult reality of working in shelter and rescue. Join myself and Dr. Tara as we discuss all aspects of grief and loss, including bereavement and more. this episode discusses some difficult ground so feel free to take your time, skip past it or do whatever you need for yourself (a key theme of the conversation). Sadly, it can certainly feel like shelter is a difficult place to work currently and I am personally very grateful for the work Dr. Tara and her network does with Shelters and Rescues to support their staff and volunteer’s.

About Dr. Tara

Dr Tara Quinn-Cirillo is a Chartered and HCPC (Health & Care Professions Council) Registered Counselling Psychologist and Associate Fellow of The British Psychological Society.

She has over 20 years’ clinical experience and uses her in depth knowledge of mental health and disability and human behaviour, to inform her clinical work.

Her purpose is helping people to understand and manage their emotional wellbeing and empowering them to. She specialises in helping people formulate both new and longstanding conditions and helping people take a fresh look at longstanding issues. She believes in robust evidenced based assessment and treatment. She takes pride in her approach combining compassionate and evidenced based practice in order to empower people to create a core shift in managing the difficulties they face. She specialises in supporting people following adverse life experiences.

Dr Quinn-Cirillo has a special interest in bringing the principles of psychology to communities to help them cope with adversity and support each other with mental wellbeing. She achieves this through her media work and philanthropic and humanitarian projects she is involved in. She regularly appears in a variety of media outlets including TV and Radio and print publications. Dr Quinn-Cirillo is also a Psychological First Aid Responder with the British Red Cross.

About Human Animal Welfare Alliance

An innovative and unique alliance spearheaded by Psychologist Dr Tara Quinn-Cirillo and fully supported by the All-Party Parliamentary Dog Advisory Welfare Group (APDAWG). Utilising the skills and passion of mental health professionals, as well as those in the animal welfare sector, to create a core shift in how the emotional health of those working in animal welfare is addressed and protected. We aim to create a direct, measurable, and hugely positive impact on the animal welfare sector in the UK. What we Provide

We are developing the UK’s first Emotional Health Toolkit specifically for animal welfare workers. This will be digital and include a variety of resources to help staff manage their emotional health.

Hosting emotional health safe spaces for shelter workers.These are supportive & informative sessions for UK based shelter staff to help them think through the current issues they are facing in their work & the impact this may be having on their own emotional health & wellbeing. We provide a safe & compassionate space for staff to be heard & for us to then identify their future support needs. We want to introduce staff to evidenced based effective psychological models to empower them to effectively manage stressors & demands impacting their emotional & physical health.

Providing targeted mental health training sessions on topics including stress, anxiety, overwhelm & burnout, and vicarious trauma.

Offer 1:1 telephone debrief calls as required for staff members in individual rescue organisations during discrete traumatic events. Utilising a trauma informed approach with the aim of reducing emotional distress and increasing psychological safety.

Links

Dr T- https://drtara.co.uk/

HAWA- https://drtara.co.uk/hawa/

Chronically Under Touched — Why I Waited 12 Months for A Hug-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zi_hm0-zrgk&t=3s

Blue cross pet loss support- https://www.bluecross.org.uk/pet-bereavement-and-pet-loss