As a single mother who has confronted issues like poverty, financial hardships, homelessness, and single parenting, I am committed to helping individuals achieve personal growth and I am determined to enhance the well-being of individuals from diverse backgrounds, such as the homeless, disabled, elderly, single mothers, and those with a mental illness. As a result of my own personal experiences, I am familiar with the constant despair and frustration to those struggling to survive. I am convinced that increasing our own sense of empowerment can make the difference between a future of despondency or one filled with hope. I am applying for the Master’s in Social Work because I am dedicated to pursuing my life mission: helping others in embracing their inner potential to make a positive life transition. Preparation for my personal goal began while I worked at Harbor View Adolescent Center as a Youth Counselor. My primary work responsibility involved my serving as a positive role model for adolescents, ranging from ages twelve to eighteen. The adolescents encountered issues such as physical and sexual abuse, abandonment, drug and alcohol abuse, bulimia, depression, and severe behavioral problems. At times, the position was extremely stressful: however, I discovered that I had the ability to connect with the adolescents and develop strong emotional ties. While working with them, I focused on several areas of treatment, including social skills, vocational skills, and independent living skills. My main ambition was to help build their self-esteem and improve their sense of security. I am especially interested in doing graduate work in the area of helping children and families. I especially see these groups as oppressed and vulnerable and I believe that I can serve the public effectively. As a youth counselor and case manager, I have gained valuable experience in listening to people and improving the quality of lives for others. My career goals specifically targets the vulnerable , oppressed, and poverty stricken individuals who will benefit from improvement in their quality of live. I want to ensure that these groups of individuals have the opportunity for services, resources, and much needed guidance.
Personal strengths: There are several aspects of my personal strengths that I can bring to the field of social work. Some of my personal strengths include that I am highly caring, in regards to other individual needs and feelings. I also speak Spanish fluently. I believe that I can bring my language ability of being bi-lingual to the field of social work in that I will be able to help meet the needs of Spanish speaking clients from culturally diverse populations.
Academic Strengths: As far as my administration abilities, I am very efficient with reports, quarterlies, and paperwork.
Social workers are guided by a professional code of ethics on advocating for social justice, change, equality, human rights, and well-being of all individuals. This includes, but is not limited to, the disadvantaged, poor, vulnerable, and oppressed individuals ; the most helpless in our society. Our roles as social workers is to empower these individuals function more effectively , to help them develop the necessary skills to effectively cope with the complex issues in their everyday lives. Therefore, I am committed to helping build a society that functions to treat all individuals with respect and equality. All individuals have a fundamental right to live with human decency, but society is structured such that not all individuals have equal access to such necessities such as food, housing, education, safety, and employment. As social workers, it is our responsibility to ensure that individual needs are met so that they can be self-sufficient and able to make the best possible choices for themselves.
Diversity means different things to different people. For me, diversity is and never was a bad thing. Diversity is the differences in the decisions that we make, the way we think, act, behave, and choose to live our lives. For this reason, I respect every individual for who they are regardless of our differences. Some people make excuses to discriminate based on differences such as race, culture, and ethnicity. Instead of discriminating each other, we need to be involved in celebrating diversity and differences. We can do this through being open to learning from individuals, from other cultures, and through understanding value of diversity itself.
For instance, I feel that my cultural background helped me to be better relate to the clients that came from the same background and different backgrounds as well. I am biracial. My mother is Mexican and my father is African American. I was raised in a community in which the population was mostly Spanish. From that aspect, I learned how to speak fluent Spanish from my own culture and also by my family. I am culturally competent in my language ability to speak Spanish. This helps me to be

For anxiety problems. Which i have. Social and GAD. I’ve been taking klonopin for 3 weeks 2-3 mgs a day, and had no side effects yet. It works well for anxiety issues. I’m starting a relationship with this really beautiful and smart girl now, and i can finally act like myself – talented, passionate, empathetic. I am familiar with most of the drugs there are. Tried almost all of them. Legal, which i prescribed for myself as a treatment for depression and anxiety, and illegal which i used to have fun. And non of them, which include amphetamines, opiates, cigs and alcohol did not made me addicted – mentally or physically. Strange, but my body works this way. I can drink every day for a few weeks straight and stop without any cravings. But i am well aware that benzos are one of the most addicting things you can find, and that is the reason why i ask this question. My body and mind never failed me before, and not that i am scared now, but hearing some success stories would not hurt. And by long term i mean a couple of years or so.

He has been acting erratic and strange for the last 3 weeks and it had gotten progressively worse. Then, my father hurt my mother and cut himself the other night. I called the cops and he was put in the Behavioral center here in town for 4 days. They said they can’t keep him any longer and are talking about releasing him. He is very angry at the whole family and thinks that we have joined together to take away his rights and lock him up. He has made direct threats but has pretty much said as much. I am afraid he is violent and will do something to hurt himself or my mother if he is released. He has a criminal background, destructing property. He has never been violent to people before now. The doctors are saying they can’t do anything more and are going to release him. He is diagnosed with depression, social anxiety, and schizo-effective disorder. What can I do? Is there a way to get him treatment against his will? He needs substance abuse treatment for alcohol but he is refusing that as well. He is conviced he is fine and we are the crazy ones. Please let me know if there is something I can do. Apparently we can’t Baker act him for some reason. I need serious answers only please. Cruel jokes aren’t needed. Thank you.
Thank you all for your comments. I think it’s important to say. I DID call the cops. They are the ones who took him to the metal health center. He is a drunk, and has been for 20 something years. However, he has never been a “mean” drunk. This was definitely a metal breakdown. He wrote “Help, Help, Help,” on the calendar. The mental health center does not seem to think he needs metal help, regardless of his disorders. They believe this was all a result of the alcohol. The alcohol was to cope with his breakdown, not the cause. They have told my family there is nothing more we can do to force him to get treatment. I just can’t believe there are no laws or processes to have someone held for metal care when they are obviously experiencing a mental breakdown. Again, thank you for your comments.

In support of To Write Love on Her Arms, you should write “love” on your arm on November 13th, 2009, National To Write Love on Her Arms Day. This is not an event that you ATTEND, you just simply write “love” on your arm in support.

http://www.twloha.com

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I’m writing a personal statement for Social Work graduate school.
I’m having a hard time relating my homeless experience to my wanting to become a social worker. This is what I have so far.

Because I was once homeless myself, I am committed to helping others achieve personal growth and take an interest in their own well-being. I find that helping others is rewarding in itself and as long as I can make a positive difference in someone’s life, I will know that I have contributed to that person’s efforts to change his or her life. As a result of my personal experience, I understand the constant despair and frustration experienced by those who find it challenging to cope with everyday life and problems. I am also convinced that increasing one’s own sense of empowerment can make the difference between a future of despondency and one filled with hope.

I grew up in a single parent family household with my mother, with whom I frequently had arguments. When I found out I was going to have a baby, my relationship with my mother deteriorated further. There was too much family conflict so I left. Eventually, however, I found myself homeless. Needless to say, being homeless was a constant struggle. Months later, I found a shelter on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles, which was the worst part of the experience for me. Here I was- homeless, about to have a baby, with no money and no place to live. I felt alone and felt that nobody cared about my situation. At the shelter I met a social worker, and she helped ease my concerns. I told her of my situation with my mother and she was there for me when I needed someone to talk to. She encouraged me to resolve my conflict with my mother and go back home. When I moved back home, I made a sincere effort to heal my relationship with my mother. Six months later, I found a job as a counselor, working with adolescents who have experienced similar situations to mine. I was able to save enough money to move into my first apartment. From this experience, I learned that I had the ability to persevere through my most challenging times. I developed empathy for people struggling with everyday problems, and, most of all, I learned the importance of having support from my family. Overall, social workers make a remarkable difference in overcoming life’s challenges.

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Pleeease take the time to read this…

Long story-I’m 19 year old female and for 6 years I have been bulimic. I’ve gone to treatment, got counceling and nothing has seemed to help. Anyways it’s really really bad now and my body is in really bad shape (says the tests at the nutrition clinic) and I guess i’ve basically excepted the fact that bulimia will be the end of me.

On top of that, I am extremely depressed. There are days I can’t get up and around…all I can do is sit there expressionless, and emotionless. I graduated high school and the next year started college. Not even a month later I was forced to go on medical leave for my ED. I also often “self-medicate” with alcohol. Around the same time as the medical leave (september 09) I got a DWI and have since gotten my license taken away. This forces me to be cooped up at home all day, alone (family is at work and school) bingeing and purging more than ever before. I honestly cannot stop myself, and it’s one binge after another. (I’m not overweight or anything, just average. 5’6.5″, 132 lbs)
In January, I started dating my current boyfriend. I have always had issues with searching for acceptance of guys, thus doing anything to get it…(mainly just in the past year). My boyfriend is a good guy, but I guess deep down I know we aren’t right for eachother. I cannot imagine how I would handle myself if we were to break up, and I would honestly be afraid to find out.

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1)A bipolar person is rapid cycling. This means he is up really high one day, then down another. He is on medication but still fluctuates. He does not take vicodin or other drugs (alcohol, caffeine, etc). He feels very bad when he’s down

2)The same person controls his “up” mood, and takes vicodin when he is down. He feels good when he is down.

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I am 38, mother of 4, and 3 step children (all living with me ages 2-17). I have a supportive family, but have been battling depression for almost 20 years if not longer. My dad was an alcoholic vietnam vet so I know I have a touch of secondhand PT SD due to the alcohol and guns. Been to many Dr’s. for treatment all to no avail. 2 hospital stays (one due to cutting in depressed state) and other for vicodin addiction (the only thing that ever kept me from being depressed and feeling happy and energetic). Now on Pristiq, adderal xr, and today dr. wants to add wellbutrin (been on it already). I feel so hopeless to the point I wonder if I am actually going crazy. No dr has given me an exact diagnosis..just more pills. Esp, the week before my cycle, is SO bad. I visualize killing myself, think about what I would write in suicide notes to my kids, etc..I cry and get angry. I would never do that to my babies. It feels like my soul is in a constant state of torment and I want to feel better for myself and children. I feel foggy headed half of the time waiting for the next time ” I don’t feel right”..can anyone relate? I have been to psychiatrists, therapists, Dr’s for the last 10 years. I feel I truly am mentally exhausted and the stress of raising these kids with a husband working his butt off just to pay bills is crazy. Sometimes I feel like such a bad mother, a loser, for thinking such bad thoughts but sometimes I can’t get them out of my head, esp. at night.
Please don’t be mean and leave nasty comments for fun….this is very serious to me. I am in such a bad spot and feel like I can’t get out.

I have a drinking problem and badly want to stop. I’ve been looking for a number for a hotline where I can speak to someone about my options and my depression, but can’t seem to find one. Any help on the phone number for an agency?

Because of my own personal experiences, I want to work in a rewarding career in which I can give back to the community by my making a positive difference in the lives of individuals that need help to cope with every day life problems. For instance, from my own personal experience with life problems, I feel that I can relate to those individuals who find it challenging to cope with everyday life problems. This is my story:

I grew up in a single parent household with my mother who I was constantly getting into arguments with. So, when I found out that I was going to have a baby this just made things that much worse. The discussion of my having a baby resulted in a terrible argument with my mom. From the result of the argument, I ended up homeless. I stayed at my friends house for three or four days at a time and sometimes it got so bad to the point that I would sleep on benches at the park. This was the hardest thing about being homeless because I had no place to go. Eventually, I found a homeless shelter at “Skid Row” in downtown Los Angeles. This was the worst part of my experience. I had to share an open area with a room full of people. The hardest part about being homeless was that for the most part I was alone. It wasn’t until I met a social worker there at the shelter that helped me through my most challenging time in life. I will always remember her for what she did for me. She was there for me when I needed someone to talk to. I told her my situation of my having family conflict with my mother. She encouraged me to resolve my differences with my family and go back home. So, when I moved back home things were difficult because I just had my baby. This was still difficult for me because I did not have a job and a place to live. It wasn’t until six months later that I had found a job as a Youth Counselor at a level-14 group home facility. I started working and saved enough money to move into my own apartment.
From this experience I learned two things about myself: that I persevered through a challenging time in my life and having support from a social worker makes a difference in the world. As a result of my own personal experiences, I am able to relate to the constant despair and frustration experienced by those who find it challenging to cope with everyday life. I am convinced that increasing one’s own sense of empowerment can make the difference between a future of despondency and one filled with hope.

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