Job Stress Panel Discussion a Huge Success

Deadlines, dead kids and fast food lunches are the hallmarks of a career in journalism. On February 22, 2018, SDABJ hosted a panel discussion for local journalists about the toll the unique stress of our jobs has on our wellbeing. NBC 7 anchor Omari Fleming was joined by pyschologists Kenya Taylor and Tammy McCoy Arballo in a moving conversation that covered the challenges of staying unemotional while covering difficult stories. The therapists emphasized the importance of self care.  They started g with simple concepts like getting enough sleep and exercise and moved to more complex actions like taking part in critical incident stress debriefing after reporting on a huge story like a school shooting. The San Diego U-T’s Dana Littlefield expertly moderated the discussion. There were about 20 people in attendance. SDABJ has plans to offer more discussions to benefit working journalists.