(What is RSS?)How many moons has it been? Still, finally I’ve found a way to do this. I am taking a course called WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Planning) and during the class a week ago one leader of the course asked me to help instruct a teen version. Only time will tell, but I pray this may work out.
Well, I finished everything I needed to do and am ready to begin my group. I also heard of KUTO where I can volunteer to answer a crisis/suicide hotline & give presentations of mental health/suicide/self-harm. In order to do this I need to go to their 50 hour training course and they need to aprove my applications. Age won’t be an issue because they ask for people over 15 which I meet but transportation may be since I’d have to be there 4-8 hours a week after the training & I live about an hour from the volunteer place. Also the phone rings an average of 3 times a day and there are 4 volunteers a day so the chances I will actually get a call a very slim. I’m just trying to way the pros and cons but it looks like a great opportunity.
~Jen
Well, I wrote the rough draft for my history project and am about 15-30min. to completing it, my teacher said “this isn’t a paper, it’s a book” when i handed it in. I hope that’s a good sign, lol. “The Bipolar Child” is intresting so far, it’s really long but my plan is to finish it tonight or tomorrow and have the paper writen tomorrow. “Illusions” isn’t quite as intresting but it’s short so I’m almost finished. All of my papers are due on Friday, so I hope I’ll be ready to begin recruting members on Saturday and hold our first meeting next saturday. I’ve already got one girl signed up, and have planned many activities. “The Bipolar Child” has tons of suggestions.
I actually emailed the library and they will let non-profit organizations rent a room for free. That’s amazing, so I guess we’re an organization now: But I am not crazy. I’m so excited, I decided I’m going to put signs out and try to get people to sign up. I don’t want to have the first meeting untill I get a couple things out of the way being
A. Finish my history reaserch paper on the history of mental health services
B. Finish my psychology book review on “The Bipolar Child”
C. Finish my philosophy paper on whatever I can think up either the book Illusions or if I have time I’d like to analize all the works of Daniel Quinn.
Well, I’m on my way. I wrote a sketch of what I plan for this group and have been studying like crazy with magazines, watching psychiatry grand rounds, reading every book I can get ahold of, and attending every support group I can find. :)
So I’ve desided before I can do this I have to read at least 3,000 more pages about mental illnesses and probley at least 100 on comorbid substance abuse. I’ve been attending some support groups for mentally ill adults with Bipolar and Depression but I think I’d like mine to be much differant. I’m trying to figure out the top 11 disorders I need to know about
Bipolar
~Schizophrenia/Psychotic Disorder
~OCD
~ADHD/ODD/Conduct Disordr
~GAD
~Major Depression
~Dissociative Disorders-
~Asperger Syndrome/Autism
~Tourette Syndrome
~Eating Disorders
~Borderline Personality Disorder
So here’s what I have to choose from right now
1.Is There No Place On Earth for Me- 333 pages Schizophrenia
2.The Quiet Room-270 pages Schizophrenia/Bipolar
3.Sybil-450 pages Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality)
4.Anxiety and Panic Attacks,245 pages GAD and Panic Disorder
5. Thinking in Pictures, 245 pages, Autism
6.Mad In America, 333 pages, History/Anti-medication mental d/o
7.Psychopharmacology,120 pages, Substance abuse
8.Why Does Everything have to be perfect,186 OCD
I was working on Mad in America but I’m thinking I’d like to read something differant with more information on specific disorders. Most of these are memoirs, I think I’ll read Is There No Place For Me and The politics of Psycho drugs because I just finished reading a book about Parinoid schizophrenia in relation to drug abuse…..I think I’ll start with Is There No Place For Me with the first 77 pages today.
Jen
