Care Practices

Challenges for 1Ls include:

-Moving to a new state or city for school
-The curve
-Making new friends
-Adjusting to the socratic method
-So many cases to read and brief!
-Time management: there are only 168 hours in a week

Maturational losses- leaving behind friends from undergrad, family, a pre-law school job

Challenges for 2Ls may include: -Clinic
-Writing a comment for journal
-Balancing activities such as the Moot Court with academic obligations
-Thinking ahead towards the job market

Challenges for 3Ls may include:
-Comparisons with some friends getting job offers early while others are still applying for jobs
-Concern about taking the bar and passing the bar
-May have some more time on your hands, so how to use the time wisely and effectively

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American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed., text rev.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787

Betts, S. E. (2021). The ABCs of self-care: Your guide to creating a happy, healthy & more peaceful life. Balboa Press. [1]

Dell'Osso, L., Lorenzi, P., Nardi, B., Carmassi, C., & Carpita, B. (2022). Post Traumatic Growth (PTG) in the Frame of Traumatic Experiences. Clinical neuropsychiatry, 19(6), 390–393. https://doi.org/10.36131/cnfioritieditore20220606

Dietrich, R.A. (2026). Defending the defenders: Emotion management in public defense lawyering. Manuscript in preparation

Figley, C. R. (Ed.). (1995). Compassion fatigue: Coping with secondary traumatic stress disorder in those who treat the traumatized. Brunner/Mazel.

Jaffe, D., Bender, K.M., & Organ, J. (2022). “Its okay to not be okay”: The 2021 survey of law student wellbeing. University of Louisville Law Review, 60.

Krill, P. R., & Anker, J. J. (2026). When demands equal distress: An updated understanding of lawyer mental health and well-being. Journal of affective disorders, 415, 122479. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2026.122479

Rainville, C. (2015). Understanding Secondary Trauma: A Guide for Lawyers Working with Child Victims. American Bar Association. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_interest/child_law/resources/child_law_practiceonline/child_law_practice/vol-34/september-2015/understanding-secondary-trauma--a-guide-for-lawyers-working-with/

Stamm, B. H. (2009). Professional quality of life: Compassion satisfaction and fatigue subscales, Version 5 (ProQOL) [Measurement instrument]. Center for Victims of Torture. https://proqol.org/

World Health Organization. (2019). International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems (11th ed.). https://icd.who.int/ [1, 2]

When you are under stress, do you sometimes engage in:

Negative stress management behaviors:

When you are under stress, do you find yourself either deliberately or accidentally:

Over-using tobacco, alcohol, or vape
Drinking too much coffee or energy drinks
Overeating or under eating
Watching excessive amounts of television or scroll social media compulsively
Shoping compulsively or spend too much money
Speaking or acting in angry ways towards family, friends, or others
Withdrawing from people
Entering denial/pretend that everything is fine

Positive stress management behaviors:

When you are under stress, do you find yourself making time for:

Regular, restful sleep
Regular physical movement
Supportive self-talk
Humor/fun
Approach coping rather than avoidance coping
Contact with important people in your life (inside and outside of law school)
Expressing negative emotions if you need to
Naming your wins and celebrating your successes