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Something not Talked about by Lawyers

3/2/2010

1 Comment

 
Do you have difficulty finding balance in your life? Do you neglect your own needs in the service of your work? Do your personal relationships take a back seat to obligations of the job? Do friends and family complain that conversations with you feel more like cross examination?

Lawyers, as a profession, are at a high risk for depression, suicide and substance abuse.

The behaviours required for success in the law can be contrary to those that contribute to mental health, a sense of well-being and satisfying interpersonal relationships.

In broad terms, legal work often calls for suppressing your emotions, involvement in relationships imbued with conflict; unrealistic self-expectations and a lack of balance between work and interpersonal relationships and leisure which are all behaviours that tend to contribute to depression, isolation, stress and anxiety.

If this is you, or someone you know, then something is clearly not right.

There is a way to get balance into legal work and life. But for now, more on the
Black Dog in the link below.

For more information, go here: http://www.lawyerswithdepression.com/TheLawPractice.asp
1 Comment
Wesley Clark
3/2/2010 07:18:45 am

I would direct anyone attempting to understand the depression epidemic (both within the legal profession and in our society in general) to study the ideas of Bruce Levine.

For instance, in a Counterpunch article, Levine writes: “Schools are routinely places where kids — through fear — learn to comply to authorities for whom they often have no respect, and to regurgitate material they often find meaningless. These are great ways of breaking someone. Today, colleges and universities have increasingly become places where young people are merely acquiring degree credentials — badges of compliance for corporate employers — in exchange for learning to accept bureaucratic domination and enslaving debt. ” ( http://www.counterpunch.org/levine12042009.html )

I agree that the legal profession does allow for a certain amount of freedom in fashioning a legal career that fits an individual’s character. However, I would also argue that many of those people drawn to the legal profession dive in without understanding the true constraints imposed by the government monopoly on “law”. Some of the best and brightest minds enter the legal profession with dreams of changing the world and revolutionising the way people interact.
But the legal profession’s expectations are crushing for many of these people, who after being saddled with debilitating debt are forced to fit their round personal peg into the square hole of the legal profession just to pay the bills.

I think there is also an argument to be made that the depression epidemic has sprouted from social conditions in general and that, given the uber-awareness and analytical capabilities of those who enter the legal profession, the profession is obviously going to be predisposed to having higher rates of depression. In my opinion, society breaks people and coerces them to tow the line in order to get ahead or maintain status. There is simply not enough freedom for people to find who they are supposed to be and, beyond that, society is organised in such a way as to destroy the adventurous motivations of people from a very young age.

In short, I see this problem as a combination of the shortcomings of the broader society we’ve built and the legal profession itself. Our profession certainly exacerbates the issue by forcing so many arbitrary expectations upon the practicing lawyer. But those narrow limitations arise from a society that allows ultimate authority to define too much of each citizen’s life.

In days past, visionaries and dreamers had the western frontier to explore when they found society too oppressing. Now, there is effectively no escape which is a painful realisation for any idealist who believes things could be done differently somehow.

In today’s world, we expect everyone to be utilitarian: suck it up, get the job done, and don’t complain.

In the legal profession, trying to do things differently is a huge risk even if one believes she has morality or justice on her side. That is a crushing reminder of the limitations on being a lawyer in today’s hyper-controlled world.

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    After many years paying lawyers,I became one in 2005 Just in time for the largest upheaval in the law since records began. Brilliant. Exiting times ahead.

    Disclaimer.  The thoughts, ideas and comments on this Blawg ("Blawg - a legal Blog) are my own and not to be confused (unless otherwise stated) with anyone else and certainly not of anyone in the Firm where I used to work and they are not the views of the firm where I used to work.

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