Helping others, often beneficial to both helpers and helpees, starts with being as emotionally stable and prepared as possible. Surely, as a helper, your basic physical safety and security are essential but so are your emotional needs. If you are concerned about your own emotional resilience, seek whatever help you need prior to starting this program with your students. Learning, both academic and emotional happen much more effectively in a safe secure environment.

When it comes to emotional issues, it is hard to begin to help others until one has taken care of themselves. It is very difficult to take care of one’s self until some of the basics are covered, such as food, water, shelter, and safety. These have been called Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Please be sure that your basic needs are covered for yourself or your students before dealing with this program. Ask for help and get your basics covered first. You cannot learn effectively if you are hungry and cold or frightened and exposed to harm.

This program is first and foremost about helping students become aware of his or her emotions and how they can be affected by traumatic occurrences. That awareness is then followed by the knowledge and skills to take action ,to ask for help, and to work on their own issues and concerns. With the help of teachers or other professionals, students and their families can work on issues of awareness and seek professional help if at all in doubt. Users of this program do not become amateur psychologists, but they do learn that it is appropriate to ask for help from professionals and are encouraged to get it. They also can build their own Wellness Planner for their own emotional wellbeing and have it dovetail with their physical health and safety from the other Wellness Projects from InnerLink. Many students have a solid footing on their mental health and emotion. They may wish to be helpful to others and, can actually benefit from the self esteem gained by helping others. Students can aid others in their daily day to day activities by contributing to an environment of acceptance, encouragement, trust and caring. Also, these students can help raise the awareness or funds to be able to provide basic needs for others. In the “Helping Others Take Action” section of this program, it is hoped that a small but significant percent of the users will work to help others as an extra activity while maintaining their prime focus on personal emotional health.