Harvard Law has taken a ‘cold, hard’ look at issues affecting their student body, one of which is student mental health. The ‘grisly reality’ is that, in a survey taken last year, a quarter of the student body reported suffering from depression. Read more here.
The ‘Grisly Reality’ Behind Mental Health Issues At Harvard Law School
Lawyer Burnout and the Finish Line Problem
This blog by attorney turned therapist Will Meyerhofer discusses how a constant stream of fresh, time-consuming challenges, what he terms the “finish line” problem, contributes to burn out in the legal profession. As Mr. Meyerhofer explains, it is very difficult to, upon successfully completing a marathon (and giving it everything you to do so in the process), be told that you must be ready to run a new one almost immediately. Read it here.
Did Law School Bullying Contribute to a Recent Graduate’s Suicide?
The newest installment of The Struggle, a series of blogs examining the many challenges students face at law school, this sad story is a stark demonstration of the corrosive effects of stereotypes and stigma as two middle-aged, single mothers seek to navigate the rigors of law school in the midst of those who dismiss them because of their sex. Read it here.
6 Tips for Lawyers On Maintaining A Positive Outlook
Whether you’re Biglaw or SmallLaw or government law or stay-at-home-parent law, there are a few things that are important to pay attention to every day. Keeping a positive outlook is one of them. Attorney Garry T. Ross offers up some great ideas on how to do just that. Read his blog here.
3 Practices for Letting Go of Looping Thoughts
Jenna Cho, lawyer and author of the book, “The Anxious Lawyer” writes, “The ability to gently let go of negative looping thoughts has been perhaps one of the most powerful and unexpected benefits of having a regular meditation practice. Research indicates that meditation can help us process and decrease the impact of negative emotions, such as anger. If you find yourself stuck in an endless negative thought loop, here are three practices that you may find useful.” Read the entire blog here.
Beyond Biglaw: Embracing Stress
Attorney Gaston Kroub blogs in Above the Law: “The general consensus is that many lawyers lead stressful lives. Whether it is the pressures of handling deals, the emotional toll of counseling broken families in a matrimonial dispute, or the general demands of life as a litigator, stress is an ever-present condiment on the sandwich meat that is a lawyer’s life. At the same time, lawyers are generally considered to have plenty of experience managing stress, due to their having survived law school, the bar exam, and even today’s broken job market for recent graduates.” Read the rest of his blog.
The Struggle: When Your BigLaw Firm Forces You Out Because of Your Depression and Alcoholism
A lawyer writes about her experiences as a law clerk and lawyer at a BigLaw firm: “In law school, my anxiety level slowly ramped up after my first year. I was at a second-tier law school, and I knew grades were absolutely critical. I thought everything would get better when I landed a BigLaw gig. The BigLaw firm, though, was a haven of high-functioning (and not so high-functioning) alcoholics.” Read the rest of the Blog.
The Struggle: Law Students Suffer From High Rates of Depression and Binge Drinking
The Above the Law website reports: “Once law students graduate, these problems do not improve, but seem to only get worse. According to a study conducted by the American Bar Association and the Hazelden Betty Ford Clinic found, one in three lawyers say they have a drinking problem, and 28 percent of them suffer from depression. Among those who reported problem drinking, 27 percent say their problems started in law school. Read the News
3 Lies Lawyers Should Stop Telling Themselves
Lawyer and author of the new book, “The Anxious Lawyer: An Eight-week Guide to a Happier, Saner Law Practice Using Mindfulness,” Jenna Cho writes that lawyers tell themselves three big lies: that they aren’t good enough, that more is better and that they must sacrifice themselves and their well-being for others. Read her Blog
Stop Living in Misery: You Deserve Better
From Above the Law, lawyer blogger Jenna Cho writes, “When you decided to go to law school, was it your aspiration to hate your job, hate your life, and live in misery? Of course not. Which begs the question: why are so many lawyers unhappy?” Read the Blog
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