A World of Empathy — One of America’s Front Line Healthcare Workers
Rachel Cantrell is one of America's frontline healthcare workers and has been committed to helping others during the COVID-19 pandemic. She is passionate about providing healthcare and helping her patients understand their care.
Rachel works as a phlebotomist and is moving towards becoming a nurse practitioner. She also spends time volunteering every week. Rachel became part of Great Life Mentoring “because of their focus on helping children with mental health disorders.” She struggled with her own mental health growing up and learned to deal with it in a positive way. Rachel was also a witness to her mother, who volunteered as a mentor to a child in need, and the outcome for that child was positive. It caused Rachel to believe that she could help someone in that way, as well.
Empathy is one of the most critical ingredients in mentoring, and Rachel has it. She is aware, can understand another person’s feelings and emotions, and acknowledge their experience. Research suggests empathy is more predictive of client outcomes in mental health treatment than the particular therapeutic approach (Moyers and Miller 2014). It is one of the most critical ingredients in whether or not a young person’s mentoring has a meaningful impact on their life.
Rachel really enjoys listening to and mentoring her friend through Great Life Mentoring. She says they have a lot in common and are “developing a meaningful relationship.” She continues, “it takes time and dedication to establish real trust. I can't wait to see what the future holds for us when we get to meet in person again (after the state’s pandemic restrictions are lifted). I honestly love our outings together.” In the meantime, Rachel and her friend have been seeing each other virtually.
As a determined person who is active and healthy, Rachel starts her days at 5am with a run, yoga or other workout. She is also a long-distance runner who is happiest when she’s in nature. Running outside allows her to take in the environment. She loves hiking, snowshoeing, trail running and biking—“anything that allows me to take a deep breath and enjoy the view.” Rachel has run two marathons, but she’s not stopping there. She even hopes to complete an Ironman triathlon one day. With a close friend who has done this, she is being encouraged and empowered to do the same.
Rachel is a strong person, so it’s no surprise her favorite quote is from Bruce Lee: ”Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one." She loves this quote because, she says, “we are not in control of our environment and the things life throws at us. All we can control is our reaction to the challenges we face, and sometimes these are hard to deal with, but ultimately, this can allow us to grow and mature from these challenges.”
Rachel has endurance, she has heart, and her daily actions are making a world of difference for those around her.