Welcome fellow social workers and those in the helping professions,
We often find our co-workers and colleagues to be a good resource when we are stuck on a difficult or challenging situation. The vision for this blog is to create a virtual setting to expand conversation to the web. What are some of the theories, research, resources, and anecdotes that have helped me think differently about a challenging situation in social work. My hope is that sharing these things will help you as well. After all clinical social work and helping others is a calling. Can we picture ourselves doing anything else??
I ended up being “stuck on” social work by accident. As an undergraduate, I majored in psychology. I was heavily into research and wanted to get a doctoral programs in psychology. I almost applied to doctoral programs but my GPA and GRE’s were not outstanding. My undergrad adviser talked to me about getting a masters degree to prove myself for a doctoral program. So I “settled” on social work. The short story is I fell in love with the direct interaction of meeting with people. Direct clinical social work practice, however frustrating, has become a passion of mine. There are certainly days when I wonder, could I use my skills for some other profession that is not that personally draining?
Then I have days with a parent who was struggling with her son’s ADHD symptoms. Providing her with some symptom education and developing a plan “saved her life”. The sense of relief on her face was so rewarding. That is why I am “stuck on social work”. Think about what got you “stuck on social work”? I hope that my posts will continue to create energy in what got you “stuck” on helping others, so that we can continue to stay “stuck” together.
Sean 🙂
