Therapeutic Alliance

This week, I really enjoyed the therapeutic alliance assignment.  Speaking with Kristin was a great experience.  We shared our struggles and how we overcame it.  I felt as if I had carried this heavy burden for many years and released it off my shoulders.  Active listening was very helpful.  I could feel that she was honest and truly empathetic and understanding.  Listening to her struggles, I have gained a new positive outlook on life and better understanding of people in situations similar to her.  It made me feel more grateful for life too.  Through all this, I realized a big connection between our life and Jeannette's life in Glass Castle.  I do not want to ruin the story, so I will not disclose the details.  However, I must say that Glass Castle is the best book I have ever read and enjoyed.  I hope everyone could experience what I felt through therapeutic alliance.

Big Accomplishments = Big Rewards

Working so hard day and night has been tearing me apart.   Sometimes I feel like I am burned out and wonder how long I can continue this journey.  After orientation, I drove six hours to get home and I realized life is short.  In order to rejuvenate my well-being and spirit, I need to reward myself for my accomplishments.  Be wary not to over-indulge though.  I rewarded myself three big gifts for one big accomplishment.  This feels so new to me; I need to setup a proper reward system.  Unfortunately, I am the judge, the jury, and the verdict; balance of power is non-existent.  I will write down my accomplishments and rewards then separate them into three columns, big, average, and small.  For now, let me try small rewards on any weekend, average rewards once per month, and big rewards every semester.  Maybe by posting my accomplishments and rewards side by side, my colleagues can keep me in check.

For now, I will consider movie night as a small reward, bowing plus dine out to be an average reward, and buying something over a hundred dollars to be a big reward.  Hopefully, my plan is not just silly to most people.  Try this out; maybe you can rejuvenate yourself and feel more motivated.

Excited

This week, I am excited to finally study and learn about social work.  Every course relates to one another.  I know these courses would help me a lot in my future career.  I am also very glad to have attended the orientation.  The information was very helpful.  The twelve hours of drive back and forth was definitely worth it.  Since learning "how to become a successful student," I have successfully committed a daily schedule that includes reading a book at the park while my children roam on the playground among other children.  It is rather soothing and relaxing; I might extend the routine from Monday and Wednesday to Monday through Friday.

I chose Social Work because I really enjoy helping people.  My first job, KFC, I enjoyed training and coaching new team members for success.  As a waiter, I found time to help my fellow co-workers even if I was too busy.  Finally, I had an epiphany when I was a sales insurance agent.  I realized I spent more time helping seniors with their medicare, medicaid, and mortgage than selling policies.  It was truly heartfelt when I saved a retired senior's home by helping her adjust her loan.  I did most of my general education at City College of San Francisco, then recently, my prerequisites to transferring to Humboldt University were done at College of the Siskiyous, Foothills College, and Consumnes River.  I really love children and enjoy making them smile and laugh.  I hope the administration burden would not take away too much of my time with the children as a child welfare worker.