Client Quote of the Day

(to me) "You look better, like you gained some weight or something..."

Whoa, Stop the Presses!

Or maybe "hold the phone!" would be a better choice of phrase, as the presses do seem to be working which is precisely the point of this post.

Ah, maybe I should just get to said point.

I faxed some consent to release information forms out today in hopes of getting some hospital records for a file before I present it on Wednesday, knowing full well I'll be extremely lucky to see them before the end of the week.

But lo and behold, one hospital faxed the records to us within the hour! Within the hour!

I have never seen this before. I was so excited I wanted to tell somebody, and since my partner-in-crime is on vacation I went to make my supervisor my witness (I'm sure she didn't have more important things to do).

Of course they weren't the psychiatric records, they were some medical records we wanted as supporting documentation. It would have to be a medical hospital that we almost never NEED records from who would be timely about it. But hey, I'll take what thrills I can get! (sad, isn't it?)

Luddite Moment

$!*&^@**#!!! photocopier!

That is all.

I'm Back!

Let me rephrase that: I’m back.

While I’m not totally loathe to return to work after a delightful two weeks off (thanks for asking) I don’t totally dread it.

It turns out I missed some serious office place drama, which I’m kinda glad of. I’m not comfortable going into details at this point.

Coming back, I’m doing a lot of thinking about going forward. In the next few months, my current contract will end and I go back to my old position. I can’t say the thought really pleases me.

I’ve had a vague goal in mind of landing a new gig before that happens. However, that’s easier said than done, a reality that’s rearing its ugly head the closer I come to that deadline.

So I’m trying to handle this in the most social worky-way I know how: reframing! How can I make this job likeable? How can I make it work for me???

Only time will tell whether I’m helping myself, or prolonging the pain.

And of course, my fingers are still crossed that fate will smile on me and the perfect job will just fall into my lap from somewhere.

A girl can dream, can’t she?

En Vacances

Be back in two weeks!

Pause for Thought

Check this out --> Feminist Activists Find Peace in Thailand

I wanted to link to this article for a couple of reasons.  For one, feminism and VAW (violence against women) work are very important to me.  My training background is actually in assaulted women’s counselling, not mental health, although the two have obvious intersections.  I love learning about what feminist activism looks like around the world.

The other reason is that I found as I read this, I was contrasting the “retreat” experience they describe with the professional trainings and workshops I attend here in Canada.  The focus on “self-love and self-worth as an essential part of their work in the world” sounds really in line with my philosophy, but not my practice.  I certainly haven’t had many experiences in my professional life where there is such an emphasis on this sort of thing.  The perks offered to us at trainings usually max out at a free lunch, and possibly getting to go home a bit early. 

I don’t know much about Thai society or the culture of social service work there, so I can’t really comment on whether the needs of these workers would be different than where I am, and what they might make of their retreat experience.  But as the writer says, seeing “15 women grown napping together on the floor of a conference room after a lively plenary” would be “odd” to see in the U.S. (and I’m considering the U.S. and Canada to be more or less the same in this respect). 

It sounds nice.  But would it work?  Would anyone go for it?  I can imagine the mixed reactions of my co-workers – divided between feeling uncomfortable, and griping about how they could be making phone calls or getting assessments done instead.

Is this because we really don’t value self-care?  We talk a lot about avoiding compassion fatigue, but the general consensus seems to often be that we are responsible for this on our own time. 

On the other hand, is it because sleeping or meditating would be considered a private activity, and we would be asked to let our guard down to such a degree in a very public and shared space?  A lot of what they describe would be strikingly different from our typical professional activities and behaviours, and would (I think) demand a lot of openness to the experience.  Would this cross my boundaries?

I don’t know.  But I’m curious.

Has anyone experienced something like this?

Sibling Slip-up

When I meet clients for an intake assessment, I make notes on an unofficial “intake form.” It has prompting questions under headings like “medication” and “family history” with boxes giving me lots of space to write. I use it as a reference to complete the proper assessment on our electronic database later on. I often end up jotting things down in random boxes, as clients don’t always stick to the script.

So sometimes this happens:

Q: Are there any current family/marital issues?
A: brother, step-brother, step-sister.