Throwback Thursday: Working With Case Managers

            I know I was absent yesterday and that was just because I couldn’t get the column out in time. But at this rate it is only a matter of time before it is written fully. But on to more cheerful topics today. Today we are talking about my evolution as I have been working with case managers. But most people don’t know what a case manager is, so I figure we will start there. A case manager is someone who works with you on life skills and when you are between counselors can be there for you emotionally. Sounds simple right, but it can be so complex at times.

I’ve worked with a number of case managers since I was 18. Most of them I felt comfortable with and got along with. Some were better than others, but all were pretty good overall. It was a case manager who helped me find my first place to live, which was a room in the YMCA. It took a little while. And he had to work around obstacles but he managed to get me in there. He also helped me start to get services while I was fighting for my disability. Unfortunately, he left before that fight was over so he didn’t get to be there for the victory celebration. But I understand him having higher ambitions where he can do more to help his clients.

            I’m not sure who I got after him, that part is kind of hazy. But I know I ended up screwing up and being out of case management for a while. I came back into a different type of case management though I didn’t know it. Somehow communication about that part of it got messed up. But I know I got back into it around the time I got married since that is when I got back into everything again. Up until that point I had been just on cruise control for a year or so. Sometimes it is good to take a break. But when I got back in I realized quickly I was missing something I needed.

            It was when working with my current and longest case manager that I met an intern who showed me the type of counseling that I needed in my life. She showed me how counseling could be and that led me to change where I was getting counseling from and give a place I had walked away from a second chance. I’m glad I did I ended up with just the right counselor by doing so, but that is a tale for another time.

            It’s taken years to get to where I am now. And most of that is thanks to my case managers through it all being so patient with me. I’m a difficult case I admit. I make progress slowly, and sometimes I slip backwards. But I am trying hard to move far forward this time. It’s not easy and I still mess up at times, but I am working at it. And finding success slowly but surely. It’s hard to fight against my sleepy days but I try like heck. Sometimes I win and sometimes they do. My case manager works with me knowing what a struggle it is for me though, and I appreciate that. She works with me and is flexible and that means a lot to me. I’m not saying it is all roses and cupcakes, we do have our disagreements at times. But we work them out by talking them out.

            But alas as always I have gotten long winded. Though please feel free to leave questions and comments below. And if you want to have my columns appear in your inbox everyday enter your email in the box below where it says follow by email. As for me I’m going to get a drink and finish up some schoolwork that is due tonight. *Tips his hat and walks out the door heading for the kitchen before heading to the study. *