There are many reasons why I went into this profession, one of the main reasons is because I grew up in a single parent home and my mom was an addict. During my adolescent year of my life I wasn’t a good student. I didn’t like school, because it was hard and challenging. From time to time I had to meet with my schools counselor; they would randomly ask me questions and facilitate various assessments. Now that I look back at things her job was to locate my areas of concerns and reasoning why I was doing so poorly in school and community settings. At that time I was a child and wasn’t fully aware, but now that I look back I am happy that she saw more in me than a dumb child. Throughout my career my pass has allowed me to display signs of empathy and understanding of the circumstances at hand.
My journey started over 5 years ago during my undergraduate years. In Columbia, SC I volunteered my time at local foster homes, shelters and group homes. There I had the opportunity to engage with children and families that were homeless; at that point I knew I wanted to work in the Human Services Field. After graduating with my Bachelors Degree in Social Sciences, I moved to Charlotte, NC to work at a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility. My role was a Mental Health Technician, soon after I gained my Qualified Professional status, which was needed for one to obtain the lead role on the milieu. April of 2009, I graduated with my Masters Degree and was promoted to a Clinical Therapist position; I also earned my MA credential.
The previous environment I work in was a residential setting. I was the therapist of 12 male clients; my objective was to gain rapport upon admission and meeting the needs of my clients. It is my duty to maintain the client’s safety, address all treatment needs, maintain appropriate documentation and incorporate all aspects of treatment (ex: school, job, home and community).
Prior to resigning from my last job, I constantly battled my decision to either leave or stay. For an extended period of time I was place in various situations that compromised my ability to provide good practice to my clients. My argument with the company was in regards to maintaining safety and compliance on my unit; unfortunate for my client whom was teased continuously and stabbed in the eye with a nail found on the premises. Words cannot express the way that I felt, but I can say that I did everything in my power to keep him safe as well as maintained appropriate documentation. After being lied to by my employer, about reporting this incident to the state, I was able to learn the truth when the story was covered by the local newspaper. The way this incident and others were reported in the newspapers, one can’t help but to think, what are the social workers and therapist doing? This situation really scared me, because I knew of the possible lawsuits for poor practices. This lesson also taught me that insurance is a necessity, because you never know what may happen, and in my case without it I would not be able to afford a lawyer.
At this point I’m taking a break and showing more interest in things that I enjoy doing and makes me happy. This blog will assist me to articulate my emotions of the past and present; rather than holding them inside. I don’t consider myself to be an open book; where I’ve learned that I tend to hold grudges. So for Mental Health and Health care has to take a back seat in my life, for now it’s all about CHANEL!!!!!
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