Compassion Fatigue – Running on Empty

Joe Dias “Mr. D Counseling- Austin, TX” has worked in the Mental Health field for fourteen years in various capacities, and for nearly a decade as a licensed clinical counselor. He first started working in Phoenix, AZ with refugee adolescents coming in from Latin America unaccompanied at a halfway house. Following his six-month Practicum, Joe completed his clinical studies working with Phoenix-area teens convicted of felony gang offenses and remanded to an alternative educational setting.

Upon moving to the Austin area in 2005, Joe quickly landed a counselor position with the Council for AtRisk Youth (CARY) specializing in violence prevention in a group setting for AISD middle schools. His career progressed to becoming a “Transition Specialist” for AISD’s Alternative Learning Center (ALC), crafting his own job description which helped leverage a position within the school district using grant funding with the Federal “ACCESS” grant for Safe and Healthy Schools. For three years, he helped shape best practices within the district for Secondary School Administrators, students and families as well as partnering with District Superintendents to help improve removal/transitional practices and policies for “Tier 3”, high-risk students. These counseling and case management efforts helped him forge vital experience and exposure within the school district, juvenile judicial system, clinics, and the community at large.

Mr. Dias spent seven years total working with students and families within ALC to help advocate for students and families as a liaison between schools, courts, and community partners. In those years, he expanded his specialization not only as a case manager but also by working with families in groups for Drug Prevention and Intervention services, both as an author of curriculum and as a facilitator. After leaving AISD with 10 years of service, Joe was recruited by Houston’s Memorial Hermann PaRC as a Clinical Program Specialist where he led the clinic at the Austin IOP providing treatment services for patients seeking help in recovering from drug/alcohol addiction and dually diagnosed mental health needs. Further, he became a liaison among the recovery community when needs arose for best practices related to patient care, interventions, and case management, helping as a clinical consultant within his field.

During his time with AISD, Joe began his own private practice (Mr. D Counseling) offering a broader range of services to include; adults and college students, couples, elementary-aged children/families, divorce mediation and child custody, addiction/dependency, grief and loss, OCD, depressive and anxiety disorders, among other dually diagnosed clientele. Currently, Mr. Dias has moved into his newest role growing his practice full-time and supervising several Clinical Interns, enjoys presenting within the community at various hospitals, committees, and annual conferences. Finally, Joe moonlights as an adjunct professor at St. Edwards University for a variety of Psychology coursework having taught and written curriculum within the field of Abnormal, Addiction, and Cognitive Psychology.