Attorney Wellness

• Citation: Vol. 25 No. 5 Pg. 0064
• Publication year: 2020
• Pages: 0064
• topic: Business of Law,Civil Rights,Health Law

Attorney Wellness No. Vol. 25, No. 5 Pg. 64 Georgia Bar Journal April, 2020

Mindfulness Meditation to Combat Stress and Promote Civility in the Law

What exactly is mindfulness? An attorney-turned-wellness consultant shares her strategies for practicing mindfulness to reduce stress and promote professionalism in the legal field.

BY DANIELLE "DANI" BERRY

In his inaugural address at the height of the Cold War, President John F. Kennedy said, "So let us begin anew—remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is subject to proof." A core concept of professionalism in the law is civility or how we treat others, including lawyers, judges, clients and the public.^[1] Zealous representation of clients has been misconstrued as behavior that is intimidating, antagonistic or rude. We see and accept this behavior from members of the Bar. Why? I believe this is a result of the well-being crisis in the law, and I believe the path out of this crisis begins with mindfulness.

The Well-being Crisis

To be a good lawyer, one has to be a healthy lawyer. Sadly, our profession is falling short when it comes to wellbeing. The . . . studies . . . reveal that too many lawyers and law students experience chronic stress and high rates of depression and substance use. These findings are incompatible with a sustainable legal profession, and they raise troubling implications for many lawyers' basic competence. Th[e] research suggests that the current state of lawyers' health cannot support a profession dedicated to client service and dependent on the public trust.^[2] (emphasis added)

Not all stress is bad. "Mild to moderate levels of stress . . . can actually enable peak performance."^[3] Negative consequences, is like cognitive decline, strained relation-3 ships, incivility, anxiety, alcohol abuse ° and burnout, among others, arise as stress g becomes overwhelming. As our stress ? levels increase, our tolerance to be triggered by stress decreases. Once triggered we often revert to conditioned (mindless) reactions that appear automatic.

A mindful response to a stressful event includes taking a pause, considering the present moment by observing sensations in the body, etc., and taking right action. Often times, with a mindful pause, one's initial (over) reaction to a stressful event will pass and a more civil (mindful) response will arise.

What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness is simply being fully aware of what...