A Practical Guide to Wellness: Understanding Secondary Traumatic Stress

Presenter: Nikola R. Alenkin, PhD, LCSW

2 CEUs

This presentation will focus on four key areas:

1. Understanding components of stress
2. Coping and its role in stress mitigation
3. Development of a personal wellness plan
4. Top 5 tips for those in helping roles

Learning Objectives:

• Understanding Stressors and its etiology including secondary stress
• Understand Coping and positive and negative coping
• Development of a Wellness Plan

About the Presenter:

Dr. Alenkin, LCSW earned his BASW from California State University, Los Angeles in October 1996 and his MSSW from Columbia University (New York) in 1997. His Doctorate in Social Policy and Social Research was granted in June 2011 from Loma Linda University. Dr. Alenkin has held various professional and clinical positions within the federal government and the private sector. He has been employed as a supervisory social worker for the Dept. of Veteran Affairs and a previous program director for Skid Row Housing Trust. Dr. Alenkin’s specialty is in the area of service utilization and delivery to homeless populations, as well as national and international poverty issues, veteran populations, secondary stress and self-care.

His current research focuses on aging veterans and PTSD treatment outcomes, which was funded in the past by the John A. Hartford Foundation. He has conducted research in the area of secondary stress/compassion fatigue, mindfulness interventions with clinicians, clinical practice with survivors of genocide, and transgender populations. He was a recipient of the CSU Chancellor's Doctoral Incentive Program which funded his dissertation research/program, a past participant of the John A. Hartford Foundation ChanAGE Agents Washington DC Policy Institute, and was recognized by the California State Assembly for his work. He has published materials in the Journal of Social Work, a chapter in a textbook and policy briefs and white papers. he is a life-long learner and dedicates his work to expansion of education and mentorship.