I realize I have been slacking and not written a word in this blog for a long time. Life has been pretty stressful lately. I've just started a new job and, being only one full week into it, there is still much I have to learn. The week prior to that I was sort of wearing two hats, trying to train my successor while being trained for my new position. Every day I go to work and have this big feeling of being both overwhelmed but excited. I start out with a fear that I won't know what to do and end the day with a satisfaction when I realize that I did know. It's a good feeling.
Because my new job, Director of the Community Intervention Center, comes with some prestige I have gone "all out" so to speak in making my new office livable. Normally, being a small not for profit means that our office furniture is either donated, hand me downs or the cheapest used stuff we can find. I decided to purchase my own so that I could get some nicer things. I got two nice chairs for office guests to sit in, a comfy office chair for me that won't fall apart in 6 months, and a small refrigerator so I can bring my lunch to work. My old boss left me a Keurig which I have been putting to good use! And he gave me a really nice torch lamp so I am not at the mercy of fluorescent lighting all day. I got some cool travel posters (Sweden, of course!) and decorated with some photos of family and friends. It's a pretty comfy, good looking office, if I say so myself. I do enjoy going there.
So little by little, I am becoming more confident in my job duties. I'm finding my stride and I do feel my new boss appreciates me so that's a plus. I still feel stressed. The days are busy though and the time flies by which is something I do like. I don't feel like time crawls which, I have to admit, I did feel on my old job at times. So far, I haven't had much down time.
I think I have this. I have a feeling I will be good at this. I'll keep learning and growing and I'll get there. I'm going to be okay.
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Ups and Downs...
Today is National Down Syndrome Day.
I started my career in human services as a "teaching parent" which is a title unique to the agency I work for. We are a national trainer for a technique called the Teaching Family Model which is a very effective way to teach life and communication skills to people who lack them. As a "teaching parent", I was hired to work with adults with developmental disabilities in their own home and assist them on a daily basis to learn the skills they needed to get by day to day. Because of the severity of their developmental delays, these guys needed 24 supervision and care but there was much they could and did learn to do for themselves. This first job gave me a solid understanding of Down Syndrome and the nature of that disorder.
Down Syndrome is a disorder from birth that has overall the same characteristics for everyone who has it. Though the degree of their retardation may vary they share some physical attributes that make Down Syndrome easily identifiable. Usually, their heads are slightly smaller. They may have shorter fingers and stunted feet. Their tongues may be larger than the inside of their mouths which causes them to sometimes protrude slightly and can make clear speech difficult. They generally have almost or slanted eyes which, in less enlightened days, caused them to be called "mongoloid" at one time. Also in those days, women who gave birth to a "mongoloid" baby were told that their life expectancy was almost none existent and that, if they were to live, they would never be able to learn anything at all. Most doctors at that time suggested life long institutionalization from birth and, sadly, that's exactly what many families did.
But there are other characteristics that are shared by people with Down Syndrome that they didn't realize then yet I have experienced first hand through my career. People with Down Syndrome have, overwhelmingly, an enormous capacity for life. They enjoy themselves wholeheartedly in almost every aspect of their lives. If they work, they work hard and love every minute of it. They make dear friends and care about them deeply. They have favorite bands and music and TV shows and foods and clothes and books and actors and...you know what? They are a lot like everyone else. There is one aspect in which people with Down Syndrome are very different. In my experience, people with Downs have the largest capacity for love that I have ever seen. I have gotten the most sincere hugs and pats on the back from people with Down Syndrome. When they love you, they really love you! And they will let you know it. Somehow, knowing that someone is out there that cares that much about you, shows you every time how much they really like you and always want to be around you makes you feel pretty darn good about yourself. Like a rock star!
A few years into my career I changed jobs and was now working in case management as the "relocation specialist". This meant that I was given the task of going into the local institution to see who was left behind and to make plans to move them into less restrictive, more integrated community settings. Years before a major push for inclusion had cleared the institutes of most of the people with Down Syndrome. Because, you see, they have the ability to learn and easily moved into group homes and supported apartments throughout Wisconsin. They did not have the "death sentence" those doctors predicted long ago. In fact, they were living longer than anyone had imagined. At Southern WI Center, the nearest institution to where I live, there was then mostly highly behavioral individuals who would require multi-staffed homes and specialized programs in the community. But I also found a small, birdlike woman with Downs. She was wheelchair bound, unable to speak, profoundly retarded. She had been left there as an infant and was now in her mid-50s. She had long outlived any one's expectations. I was given the task of assessing her to find a group home placement in the community that could meet her special needs. As I looked into her very extensive file at the center I discovered that she was the sister of friend of mine. Amazingly, she had been placed there so long ago that she now had siblings in the community who were completely unaware that she even existed. Her mother, who had the difficult decision to institutionalize her so many years before, had chosen to keep that secret from them and passed away before any of them knew. I found the ideal group home for this lovely little lady where she was well cared for and was able to go places she had been denied for her entire life. Best of all, i got to reunite her with family that were thrilled to meet her for the first time. They've made her an integral part of their lives and the love she feels, though she cannot speak it, is so clearly evident in the hugs and smiles she is able to give them.
People with Downs, with their love of life, laughter and people, are the some of the best people I have had the pleasure to meet. I feel honored to have worked with so many. They strive to do good all the time. They want to be the best at their jobs, the best friends, the best athletes, the best at what they love to do. They are brave individuals who can light up a room and make others feel so deeply loved. If you've never had the opportunity to meet someone with Down Syndrome I urge you to seek out a chance to volunteer at your local Special Olympics for one season. Just one. You will walk away a changed person. One with a whole new perspective on life and what's really important.
I started my career in human services as a "teaching parent" which is a title unique to the agency I work for. We are a national trainer for a technique called the Teaching Family Model which is a very effective way to teach life and communication skills to people who lack them. As a "teaching parent", I was hired to work with adults with developmental disabilities in their own home and assist them on a daily basis to learn the skills they needed to get by day to day. Because of the severity of their developmental delays, these guys needed 24 supervision and care but there was much they could and did learn to do for themselves. This first job gave me a solid understanding of Down Syndrome and the nature of that disorder.
Down Syndrome is a disorder from birth that has overall the same characteristics for everyone who has it. Though the degree of their retardation may vary they share some physical attributes that make Down Syndrome easily identifiable. Usually, their heads are slightly smaller. They may have shorter fingers and stunted feet. Their tongues may be larger than the inside of their mouths which causes them to sometimes protrude slightly and can make clear speech difficult. They generally have almost or slanted eyes which, in less enlightened days, caused them to be called "mongoloid" at one time. Also in those days, women who gave birth to a "mongoloid" baby were told that their life expectancy was almost none existent and that, if they were to live, they would never be able to learn anything at all. Most doctors at that time suggested life long institutionalization from birth and, sadly, that's exactly what many families did.
But there are other characteristics that are shared by people with Down Syndrome that they didn't realize then yet I have experienced first hand through my career. People with Down Syndrome have, overwhelmingly, an enormous capacity for life. They enjoy themselves wholeheartedly in almost every aspect of their lives. If they work, they work hard and love every minute of it. They make dear friends and care about them deeply. They have favorite bands and music and TV shows and foods and clothes and books and actors and...you know what? They are a lot like everyone else. There is one aspect in which people with Down Syndrome are very different. In my experience, people with Downs have the largest capacity for love that I have ever seen. I have gotten the most sincere hugs and pats on the back from people with Down Syndrome. When they love you, they really love you! And they will let you know it. Somehow, knowing that someone is out there that cares that much about you, shows you every time how much they really like you and always want to be around you makes you feel pretty darn good about yourself. Like a rock star!
A few years into my career I changed jobs and was now working in case management as the "relocation specialist". This meant that I was given the task of going into the local institution to see who was left behind and to make plans to move them into less restrictive, more integrated community settings. Years before a major push for inclusion had cleared the institutes of most of the people with Down Syndrome. Because, you see, they have the ability to learn and easily moved into group homes and supported apartments throughout Wisconsin. They did not have the "death sentence" those doctors predicted long ago. In fact, they were living longer than anyone had imagined. At Southern WI Center, the nearest institution to where I live, there was then mostly highly behavioral individuals who would require multi-staffed homes and specialized programs in the community. But I also found a small, birdlike woman with Downs. She was wheelchair bound, unable to speak, profoundly retarded. She had been left there as an infant and was now in her mid-50s. She had long outlived any one's expectations. I was given the task of assessing her to find a group home placement in the community that could meet her special needs. As I looked into her very extensive file at the center I discovered that she was the sister of friend of mine. Amazingly, she had been placed there so long ago that she now had siblings in the community who were completely unaware that she even existed. Her mother, who had the difficult decision to institutionalize her so many years before, had chosen to keep that secret from them and passed away before any of them knew. I found the ideal group home for this lovely little lady where she was well cared for and was able to go places she had been denied for her entire life. Best of all, i got to reunite her with family that were thrilled to meet her for the first time. They've made her an integral part of their lives and the love she feels, though she cannot speak it, is so clearly evident in the hugs and smiles she is able to give them.
People with Downs, with their love of life, laughter and people, are the some of the best people I have had the pleasure to meet. I feel honored to have worked with so many. They strive to do good all the time. They want to be the best at their jobs, the best friends, the best athletes, the best at what they love to do. They are brave individuals who can light up a room and make others feel so deeply loved. If you've never had the opportunity to meet someone with Down Syndrome I urge you to seek out a chance to volunteer at your local Special Olympics for one season. Just one. You will walk away a changed person. One with a whole new perspective on life and what's really important.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Learning Swedish for fun and torture...
So, in my grand scheme of things, my plan is to one day live and work in Sweden. In order to do this, I have been told, that while the entire country speaks English it is very important to know how to speak passable conversational Swedish. Several months ago I purchased what, from everything I read, was the best self learning program for this - the Pimsleur Approach. I eagerly started in on the lessons when it arrived and did very well except that the lessons only ended up with me knowing how to ask for very basic directions and how to ask someone to come back to my place for a drink! All that may be useful if my plan was to go to Sweden, ask how to get to the nearest bar and then pick up the occasional one night stand - none of which is on my itinerary! Ha!
After this I tried MANY internet sites that stated I could learn to speak Swedish by reviewing what was posted there. Well, that didn't work. There's something to be said for actually being able to hear how these words are pronounced which, of course, none of the sites could accurately do. I subscribe to a blog called Swedish, Now! which is helpful...always has a good list of interesting words and phrases to practice but, again, without hearing the pronunciation I have no idea if I'm saying them correctly.
The other day I ordered yet another set of CDs that will teach me more about this language. Actually, I was quite surprised at the completeness of the set since I didn't pay that much for it and it covers a wide variety of words and topics. Useful things that I will use when I am there living day to day. It is exactly what I was hoping for.
It helps that I have a natural Swedish speaker that I can try this all out on from time to time. It doesn't help that he takes great delight in laughing at my failed attempts at pronunciation! He's a little shit when it comes to that but I love him too much to get really mad. I'll teach him! I'm going to learn this language and when I do, I'll talk all day, everyday, for hours on end, in Swedish, until it drives him completely crazy! Hahah!
Thing is, when I do get to settled down with a residency permit, I will be able to take Swedish for Immigrants for free in Stockholm. I suppose I could wait until then to learn but, at this point, I feel I'm getting a jump start on the language that can only help me when I'm job hunting. And at the end of the day, because I know that it will be some time before I am actually able to move there to live, all of this learning makes me feel just one step closer to my dream.
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