Attending is being present with another person giving your full attention to what they are saying and feeling.

At Telecare, we purposely create an environment that allows our volunteers to attend to hurting people. By following several principles, our listeners help callers feel cared for, taken seriously, respected and ultimately heard. Our approach is one that any caregiver may follow. Here is a page from our toolkit.

A crisis line worker prepares a caring environment in advance before responding to incoming calls. The groundwork is developed intellectually - through the volunteer training and ongoing learning; emotionally - through being unhindered by any personal issues that once caused an upheaval of feelings; physically - through the space being optimal for confidentially and satisfactory for comfort; and spiritually – in trusting that through God’s Spirit His resources are near.

At the start of a shift, crisis line listeners clear their mind and heart of personal thoughts and feelings in the moment in order to accommodate the issues the caller is sharing. Distracted listening is not fully attentive. We encourage our volunteers to pray for God’s blessing before receiving the first call.

Our experience is that listeners who prepare themselves to attend to others come to this truth:

• Attentiveness to the caller builds rapport
• Rapport leads to trust
• Trust leads to sharing
• Sharing leads to healing

May we all begin by attending, and see how the Spirit leads.