Update to my Readers

It's been over four months since I have last written a blog post.  I thought I was done with the Social Work Diaries, but I guess it was not done with me!  I was just informed this week that my blog has almost two thousand views - the last time I checked it was more like a couple hundred!

And so this person who informed me thought I owed my readers an update on where I am in my Social Work career.  I could not help but agree.

I had to move for this new position which meant selling and also packing a lot of my belongings.  To be honest, about half of my stuff was in boxes anyway since there were several times that I thought I would just move back home because my career situation was so uncertain.  Anyway, within a couple of weeks I had bought a modest home and delved into reinventing my Social Work career yet again.

My expectations for this new job was not very high.  I just wanted a better Social Work job than the last ones I had.  Each day when there was not a new crisis to overcome, I was amazed.  I felt like I was in cloud nine!  I genuinely felt like I was helping my clients and that overall I was in a positive work environment.

I am sure there were a few snickers from the people who have known me since the start of my Social Work career.  Here goes Patti with yet another change!  But I kept my head held high and I had a positive attitude. I did't have a choice but to move forward.

For the first days and weeks I was still surprised that I liked my new job.  I didn't get that sinking feeling in my stomach or my head warning me I was in the wrong area of Social Work.  And whenever conflict arose with clients I had already dealt with much worse in the past so it was easily for me to handle these situations. Also, I admitted my strengths and my challenges to my co-workers and my boss.  Finally, I felt like I was being treated like a normal person, and not a Social Work superhero!

As I said before in my last post, my current position does not relate to Social Work 100%.  However, I use many of the skills I gained while obtaining my Social Work degree and working as a front-line Social Worker.  I have great people skills and I am unafraid when the going get's tough - as long as it's not too tough!

As there are many types of people, there are also many types of Social Work personalities - and positions available to them.  I don't know if some of my former co-workers were waiting for me to say that the other Social Work jobs I had in the past were too much for me.  It's true, they were stressful and challenging jobs but they are too much for many people and it was not worth the price of being exhausted all the time, being multi-tasked to death or having my safety put at risk.  To be honest, now when I talk to those guys I think they are a little envious when they see how stress-free I am.  And sure, I do have a wonderful job now but I had to go through many negative experiences to get it.  I figure in a way, I earned this position and I'm exactly where I'm meant to be.

And as for the future of this blog...I do have topics that come to mind occasionally so now that I am more settled in my life I have the time to write posts - just not everyday as I used to!

Lastly, for all the Social Workers hanging on by a thread out there.  A job is never worth losing your sanity, health or relationships over.  You can only be the best Social Worker you can be when you are in a job you feel comfortable in.  It may take many, many attempts before you find the right fit.  And it doesn't matter if you don't take the traditional Social Work career path as every one else: intervention, front-line, casework, or dealing with high risk clients.  The world always needs kind and determined workers no matter what area of Social Work they are in.