A Month In

So I just graduated with my BA in Clinical Psychology in May. I got married a week after I graduated and a month ago I finally got a job! I spent the summer playing video games, cooking for my husband, cleaning the apartment, and trying not to fall into a depression of not having anything to do. I wanted a job in my field and I was determined to apply to everything and anything that could help me learn more about the human person and how to help them. I applied for nursing homes, prison work, etc. I must have sent out over 40 resumes and job applications. The only reason I got a job was through networking. My husband happened to be interning at a youth treatment center (which was my dream job for where I am) and they were (still are) severely understaffed. He handed them my resume and less than a month later I was interviewed and hired! I was ecstatic!

My position is as a Behavioral Specialist/Behavioral Aide. The center where I am is a day treatment program where kids will come instead of school. It's a step between school and an alternative school. We give them an hour for school then have three hours for psycho-education, group counseling, and et cetera. I love it. I walk out pretty much everyday thankful for what I'm doing and smiling. They say that your dream job is something you would do for free and I don't even feel like I'm working when I'm there. One of the things they told me when they hired me was that they wanted me to use my creativity with the kids and to run wild with it. I've used Pinterest to look for ideas but I realized that my best lessons were when I allowed my creativity to run wild and I really looked at each child I was catering to and tailored our lesson for them.

Now, don't get me wrong, working here is hard. Really hard. Most of our kids have Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), Conduct Disorder, severe ADHD, bipolar, or psychosis of some form. It's a blessing when we get someone with autism or depression because those tend to generally be easier to handle and will listen and pay attention to the structure of the program. Most of my days are spent chasing kids around, trying to de-escalate situations, trying to teach them (or even just reach them that day), writing note after note about the day and its events, or calling a child's parent to discuss the treatment plan. It's intense. I love it. I hate sitting on my butt all day and I was a kid with a hard past who struggled a lot. I love that I'm able to relate to them and see past the hurt to try and help them. I think that's one of my greatest assets. Working with these kids brings the best out of me and has helped me on my journey. I also need a coping mechanism so I decided to start this. Hopefully I can help people and give people ideas along with letting out some much needed steam. I will never be using names and will adhere to the HIPAA privacy rules. I hope this helps people!

Much love,
Mrs. K