Relational Practice: a social work podcast

Co-Regulating the Frontline: Why We Need a "Rose" for Every "Jodie"

In this episode of Relational Practice: A Social Work Podcast, Dr. Jodie Park and Rose Mackey go beyond the catch-all term of "stress" to explore the specific psychological injuries that social workers sustain on the front lines. We often feel that our exhaustion is a personal failure, but today we reframe it as a predictable biological and ethical response to a high-pressure system. Drawing heavily on the work of Vikki Reynolds, we dismantle the "Just Stressed" myth and look at why burnout is often actually "Ethical Conflict", the pain of being forced to work against our own professional ethics. In this episode, we discuss: * The Injury Spectrum: Distinguishing between Vicarious Trauma (a shift in your worldview), Burnout (systemic exhaustion), Compassion Fatigue (nervous system drain), and Spiritual Pain (moral injury). * The "Zone of Fabulousness": How to stay connected to your clients without becoming enmeshed in their trauma or disconnected like a "bureaucratic robot". * Boundaries as Physical Safety: Why saying "no" and choosing your meeting environment are high-level clinical tools that protect your nervous system. * Radical Self-Compassion: Moving away from "performative" self-care (like bubble baths) toward "Ethical Resistance" and collective accountability. * Justice-Doing: Finding small, subversive ways to honour client dignity within rigid systems to jumpstart your own resilience. Whether you are feeling the "Sunday Scaries" or struggling with a sense of "Moral Injury," this episode is a call to reach out to your colleagues and start practicing collective care. Show Notes & Resources * Visit our website: relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au [http://relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au] * Connect with us: Join our community on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. * Get in touch: Email your stories to Relationalpractice01@gmail.com [Relationalpractice01@gmail.com]. * Featured Concepts: * Vikki Reynolds: "The Zone of Fabulousness" and "Justice-Doing". * Kristin Neff: The framework of Self-Compassion (Common Humanity vs. Isolation). * Polyvagal Theory: Understanding "Dorsal Vagal" shutdown and nervous system regulation. Editing by Angus Pinkstone Music by Hannah Park Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review to help us grow our community of relational practitioners!

Relationship First: The Key to Safe DV Disclosure

In this episode of Relational Practice: A Social Work Podcast, Dr. Jodie Park and Rose Mackey are joined by Professor Joanne Spangaro, a distinguished researcher and academic leader whose career is defined by a deep commitment to addressing gender-based violence (GBV). With a professional journey that began in 1984 as a sexual assault counsellor, Jo brings over four decades of frontline experience to her high-impact systemic research. We dive into Jo’s influential work as a researcher, specifically her critical examination of the implementation and impact of routine screening for intimate partner violence (IPV). We discuss the nuances of how survivors decide to disclose abuse and why the health system's response must be rooted in relationship-building and cultural safety. In this episode, we discuss: * Screening Research & Implementation: The background and evidence-base for domestic violence screening tools. * "Deciding to Tell": Jo’s research into how women decide to disclose experiences of abuse when asked by healthcare professionals. * Indigenous Health & Cultural Safety: Factors influencing Australian Aboriginal women’s decisions to disclose violence and the necessity of clinical safety. * Implementation Tips: Practical considerations and tips for practitioners implementing screening in their own fields. * Navigating Complexity: Understanding the risk factors and implementation challenges associated with IPV. Whether you are a practitioner in health, child protection, or private practice, Jo’s insights offer a powerful look at how research can translate into safer environments and improved service delivery for survivors. Show Notes & Resources * Visit our website: relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au [http://relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au] * Connect with us: Join our community on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. * Get in touch: We love hearing your practice stories! Email us at Relationalpractice01@gmail.com [Relationalpractice01@gmail.com]. * Featured Guest: Professor Joanne Spangaro, a prolific author of over 60 peer-reviewed works and an expert in domestic violence practice. Please remember to subscribe, rate, and review to help us continue bringing these vital conversations to the social work community! Editing by Angus Pinkstone Music by Hannah Park Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review to help us grow our community of relational practitioners!

Permission to be Human: Moving from Blame to Systems Thinking

In this episode of Relational Practice: A Social Work Podcast, Dr. Jodie Park and Rose Mackey tackle the heavy weight of professional fallibility. We often feel that because we work with human lives, we aren’t allowed the luxury of being human ourselves, leading to those 3:00 AM "mistake loops" in our minds. Using the seminal work of Professor Eileen Munro, we dismantle the idea that errors are simply acts of incompetence. Instead, we explore how the high-pressure environments of child protection and social work naturally trigger cognitive biases and mental shortcuts. In this episode, we discuss: * The Core Conflict: Balancing fast, intuitive reasoning with slow, logical analytic thinking. * Reasoning Traps: How "Confirmation Bias," "Availability Bias," and "The Primacy Effect" can skew our assessments of families. * The Systems Approach: Why we need to stop asking "Who messed up?" and start asking "Why did this mistake make sense at the time?". * Building Skilled Intuition: Using supervision as a "lab" to socialize our thinking and "de-bias" our practice. Whether you work in child protection, hospitals, schools, mental health, aged care, or any frontline role where human complexity meets high-pressure decision-making, this episode is a reminder that professional integrity isn’t about being perfect. It is about being transparent in your reasoning and brave enough to treat mistakes as an inevitable part of a system built on uncertainty. Show Notes & Resources * Visit our new website: relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au [http://relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au] * Connect with us: Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and our new YouTube page. * Get in touch: Email your practice stories to Relationalpractice01@gmail.com [Relationalpractice01@gmail.com]. * Featured Citations: * Munro, E. (1999). Common errors of reasoning in child protection work. * Munro, E. (2011). The Munro review of child protection: Final report—A child-centred system. Editing by Angus Pinkstone Music by Hannah Park Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review to help us grow our community of relational practitioners!

The Mirror and the Rearview: Navigating Reflection and Reflexivity in Social Work

In social work, we are often taught to "reflect" on our practice, but there is a deeper, more transformational layer called reflexivity. In this episode, Jodie and Rose break down these two distinct but interconnected methods for professional growth. Using the analogy of the Rearview Mirror (looking back at an experience) and the Mirror (looking at ourselves in the present moment), we discuss how to elevate our practice across any setting. Grounded in Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory, we explore how to move from simply observing a situation to truly transforming our professional identity and the way we hold space for others. In this episode, we discuss: * The Core Distinction: Why reflection-on-action and reflection-in-action require different internal muscles. * Kolb’s Cycle: How to use "Reflective Observation" and "Abstract Conceptualization" to turn everyday practice into lasting wisdom. * Power & Integrity: How being reflexive helps us stay ethical and aware of the "taken-for-granted" assumptions we bring into the room. * Practical Tools: Simple ways to integrate critical reflection into your supervision and daily routine. Join the Community: * New Website: Visit relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au [http://relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au] to find episodes and our Ambiguous Loss printables. * Connect & Watch: Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and our new YouTube page for regular videos and practice updates. * Your Stories: Email us at Relationalpractice01@gmail.com [Relationalpractice01@gmail.com] or use the contact section on our website. Music by Hannah Park Editing by Angus Pinkstone

The Silent Dialogue: Why What Isn't Said Matters Most

In this episode of Relational Practice: A Social Work Podcast, hosts Dr. Jodie Park and Rose Mackey dive deep into the most essential tool in a practitioner’s toolkit: the art of truly hearing what isn't being said. They are joined by Ross Judd, an expert in communication and organizational culture, and the author of Listening: A Guide to Building Deeper Connections. For social workers on the front lines, whether in child protection, disability, or crisis intervention, clients often "test the waters" with surface-level complaints before sharing their true stories. Ross introduces his R.E.O.S.T.A.R. process, a powerful framework designed to help practitioners break through these barriers, avoid the common "fix-it" trap, and build radical empathy. Key highlights of this conversation include: * The R.E.O.S.T.A.R. Process: A step-by-step guide to recognizing surface comments, empathizing with underlying emotions, and asking powerful questions to uncover core values. * The Integrated Values Iceberg: How to remain self-aware of your own biases and values so they don't "block" what a client is trying to communicate, especially in high-stress environments. * The Heavy Gift of Listening: A candid discussion on how to stay open and listen deeply to heavy stories without losing yourself in the process. Whether you are navigating high-conflict family dynamics or trying to connect with a defensive client, this episode offers practical strategies to move beyond the paperwork and build life-changing connections. Find Ross’s book at https://rossjudd.com/listening/ [https://rossjudd.com/listening/] Connect with us: * Email: Relationalpractice01@gmail.com [Relationalpractice01@gmail.com] * Web: https://relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au/ [https://relationalpracticeasocialworkpodcast.com.au/] * Socials: Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube for more content and practice stories. * Support the show: Please subscribe, rate, and review to help us reach more social workers. Music by Hannah Park Editing by Angus Pinkstone