Welcome to the Lightkeepers podcast.
I'm Clayton Vandiver, your lightkeeper,
with a show dedicated to everyone
who wants to get the most quality out of life
that they can.
My co-host, as always, Charlene,
our very own TAME licensed clinical social worker,
certified in the state of Florida.
We invite you to join the conversation this week,
which is about professional versus amateur support.
Just who is that person
and what qualifies them to help me?
And so much more on this edition
of the Lightkeepers podcast.
MUSIC
Before we start, I'd like to invite you
to please leave your questions or comments below.
We always love to hear from you.
Questions this week will be answered during our next show
that appears online every Wednesday evening
at 7 p.m. Eastern.
The Lightkeepers podcast is an exclusive production
of a Guiding Light, Inc.
We'll tell you more about a guiding light
at the end of the podcast,
but we don't have much time,
so let's get right into this week's conversation.
And what does it mean to the general public
when you say, who is this person?
Are they professional?
Are they amateur?
How do you know?
So that's a very good question.
So the best way to know if you're working
with a professional is to ask them
what their qualifications are
and find out if they're licensed.
If they are licensed, there's going to be a record of that
that can be found online.
Like, for example, I'm licensed
through the State of Florida Department of Health.
So if you go online and do a search
for State of Florida LCSW license lookup,
it'll take you to a website
where just by typing in someone's name,
you can verify that they have a license.
Okay, that's a good idea.
Well, how does the general public find that information?
You just type a search?
You just do a search online for whatever state you're in,
whatever their profession is, and license lookup,
and it'll take you to a website
where you can put in their name
and find out whether or not they are a licensed individual.
Okay, and you can find information
about both medical and counselor personnel?
Correct, correct, because technically as a counselor,
I am a medical professional.
That's why I'm licensed through the Department of Health.
So that's an important distinction.
Even though I'm a counselor,
what I do is considered medical care.
Okay, well I've heard some folks say
it's sort of like you're looking for either a professional
and you don't want a witch doctor.
I've heard that term used in the industry.
So what would constitute a witch doctor?
How do you define that one?
So for example, if you were injured,
injured, would you call up grandma, uncle Bob,
neighbor across the street,
or would you want to call your primary care physician
or maybe go to an urgent care clinic?
An amateur is someone who works
based off of their personal experience, a witch doctor.
Okay.
When you are in need of support, therapeutic support,
you want someone who has been clinically trained
and they've been through the classwork,
they've been through the testing,
and they have been approved to be safe to provide that care.
I say this all the time when people ask me,
hey, I've got a camcorder, I've got a camera on my telephone,
why can't I just shoot my own professional videos?
And the people who sell camcorders and cell phones
sort of throw that word professional around a lot
because they think, if we say that,
then we can charge more for it,
or they'll think they can do more than they really can.
But when they make a Hollywood film,
they spend many, many millions of dollars
and they use cameras that cost as much
as some very luxurious cars.
And don't you think they use cheaper stuff
if they could get away with it?
And if they didn't need it,
don't you think they'd stay out of film school
for anywhere from five to seven years?
Hey, maybe we know something that the average guy
on the street doesn't about making films and movies.
I'm sure it's exactly like that in the medical community.
If I needed to amputate an arm,
I certainly wouldn't grab the first chainsaw I saw.
Well, and it goes a little deeper than that
because there are places online, for example.
There are some wonderful resources online,
especially if you're grieving.
For example, there's one particular website
that in the past has trained volunteers
to provide online bereavement support.
The problem is is grief can be complicated
and not everyone is qualified or should be qualified
to provide grief support
because there's a lot that can be affected.
Absolutely.
And someone who is not trained,
who doesn't know how to look for potential influences,
maybe a past history of substance abuse
or a personality disorder or a mental health illness
that might complicate that bereavement,
what they're doing is not just unethical,
it's not just negligent,
it could be down outright dangerous.
I understand.
And is it just that they might assess the needs incorrectly,
refer someone to the wrong resource,
perhaps even rope them into a network of pals
that stand to profit?
I know there are some unethical people out there.
How much damage can they really do?
They can do a lot and not even meaning to.
People go into this wanting to provide that support,
that amateur support,
they go into it with the best of intentions.
But you know what they say,
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux said that the road to hell
is paved with good intentions.
And so they mean well, they really do.
They really do.
But that's not always the best course of action.
They can cause a lot of harm emotionally, mentally
and can make an already difficult time
a lot more difficult and distressing.
How does the person listening and watching
know where to turn for information about
who might be a professional and who might be a witch doctor?
Well, and that's again where you have to be very careful.
There are a lot of resources available online,
resources available to support you
through end of life process.
There are people out there that call themselves death doulas
that are out there to provide a wonderful support service,
a wonderful needed service
where they're supporting people who have been diagnosed
with a terminal illness or their family
as they go through this time.
But the problem is is these people
are not being properly vetted.
There's no specific training for them.
And so a lot of these people are amateurs
that have come into the field through personal experience
that want to be able to help others.
And if you're someone who is like that,
that wants to provide that support,
I applaud that and I encourage you to volunteer
with your local hospices or hospitals.
That's a wonderful outlet for you.
But if this is something that you want to do
for a living full time, go to school,
get trained how to do it.
That way you're not putting others at risk of injury,
mental or physical, and you're not putting yourself
in danger of litigation because in some states,
in some states it's actually illegal
to provide therapeutic support without a license.
Very, very good point.
And we were talking before the show a little bit
about sometimes a psychiatrist
is different than a psychologist
and one does one thing, one does another thing.
Can you share a little bit about that?
Absolutely.
It ties into what you were just saying.
And a lot of people don't know the difference.
A psychiatrist is a doctor who is trained
on how to prescribe medication
to treat mental health issues.
Okay, a medical professional.
Exactly.
Sort of a, yeah.
Someone who focuses on the medication side of things.
Right, okay. Like a pharmacist.
Gotcha. Versus a therapist,
a psychologist or a licensed clinical social worker
or a licensed mental health counselor.
These are people who cannot prescribe medication
because they're not trained in the medication side of it,
but they are trained in providing that therapeutic support,
that counseling, which a psychiatrist is not.
So it would be unethical if you were to be
prescribing medications because that's not something
you've been educated to do.
That's not something you're able to do.
Not just unethical, but highly illegal.
And that's why a common phrase that you'll hear
in the clinical world is stay in your lane.
And what that means is don't do something
that you're not trained and licensed to do.
As a licensed clinical social worker,
I would not even fathom giving someone medical direction.
I may give them medical advice in terms of,
hey, ask your doctor about dot dot dot,
but I would never say this is your diagnosis,
this is what you need to do because I'm not trained.
And that's something we do right here.
We say every week, this is a conversation about conditions
and health and situations that you might face,
and definitely seek the advice of your own medical personnel,
your own personal counselor, your own personal advisor,
who knows your unique needs and situation
and can best advise what's best for you.
Because this is just a conversation
to sort of stimulate the possibilities
and not in any way to give you advice
that you should follow,
except in seeking professional help
and asking that personal counselor
that knows your situation,
hey, do you think this might apply to me
or do you think this might help me?
Or what could I do better?
It's just like in my line of work,
if you're wanting to make a little home movie,
you might seek the professional guidance
of someone who went to film school
and used their advice, their best practices,
because they're certainly gonna know more about it
than the guy that just got his first cell phone and said,
oh, video, click, hey, look, it makes pictures.
And there's a lot of areas that this overlaps onto
that people don't realize.
I'm gonna give you a wonderful example of that,
something that is a little pet peeve of mine.
When someone creates advanced directives,
which we talk about a lot here on the show
because they're so important,
which is basically advanced directives
are the documents that you put into place
to direct what type of medical treatment you would want
if you were to become seriously ill
and not able to make your own medical decisions.
So think living will, medical power of attorney.
People go to attorneys to have these done all the time.
And that's great, attorneys know the law.
But they don't know medicine.
And they don't know those medical procedures.
And so you have someone with legal documents that say,
if I become seriously ill,
I do not want any extensive measures put into place
to keep me alive.
What defines extensive?
Some people say-
They're not necessarily gonna know
what an extensive measure is.
Exactly, and some people say,
well, I don't want tubes or machines.
Okay, you don't want a tube or a machine to keep you alive.
What if there's an opportunity of recovery?
What if you only need that machine temporarily?
What if the doctor doesn't know
if it's temporary or permanent?
Is your loved one gonna know what to do?
They're gonna look at the paper and say,
well, he said he didn't want anything extensive done,
so sorry.
That's a very, very good point.
And it also gives us an opportunity
when you're wondering who to turn to and who to look to,
you know that the professionals at a guiding light
are there to train professionals
in doing many of the things that we're talking about.
Exactly.
And so if you see someone who has been vetted
and who has the guiding light symbol
that we have on our coffee cups,
you know that they are going to be someone
that is not operating like a witch doctor.
They actually not only know what they're talking about,
they can refer you to other professionals
that they are confident in their capabilities.
Absolutely.
So that's the sort of thing that we try to do here
is connect people to resources
that can give them the best service in their lives.
Knowledge is power.
Quality of life is the whole purpose of this show
and our conversations.
Now, we don't have much time,
but this episode leads us to a perfect opportunity
to mention that several listeners
have been asking about us personally and our backgrounds,
you know, what makes us professionals
instead of witch doctors.
That sounds like something we might,
we got into that just a little touch today.
You got a feeling for, hey, I'm really a video guy
and you know, a broadcaster,
and this is really a medical professional,
mental health specialist.
But it sounds like something we might spend
a little bit more time with
and in helping our viewers and listeners understand
who we are and what our interests are and our backgrounds.
Maybe we could do an entire show about that.
Yeah.
Let's dedicate next week to that.
How about that?
We can do that.
Well, it's always good to be willing to talk
about quality of life because every single one of us
will face some of these issues someday,
either not prepared at all or very well prepared indeed.
From joining us here on the Lightkeepers podcast
each and every Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. Eastern.
The Lightkeepers podcast is an exclusive production
of Animation Studios and is brought to you
by a Guiding Light, a 501c3 nonprofit organization
dedicated to education and information
that allows informed preparation
for living the very best life possible.
The mission of a Guiding Light is to provide education
for professionals and information for everyone else
about life planning, available guidance and counseling
that helps individuals and their family navigate options
that improve the quality of their remaining days.
The organization is committed to training professionals
through scholarship grants when needed
who will help you find the best information
and options to meet your planning needs
that are available in your area
so you can be aware of your choices.
Confident in your decisions and at peace
that you've made the very best decisions
to live life on your own terms.
Visit the website at aguidinglight.org
or make a tax deductible contribution
that helps others find the information
and resources they need.
You can send your check to the address
that's right below me right now.
We're so grateful for your support
and sincerely hope you'll join the conversation
in coming weeks.
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I'm Clayton Vandiver, your light keeper.
We'll see you next time.
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