Relentless Advance

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Fox Cities Showdown 2016

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After following a dry run at carb cycling and getting feedback from various sources, I altered my carb cycling. In the 16 weeks I have to get ready to hit the stage, I’m going to be smarter about my approaches.

My non-lifting days will be cardio days and I will keep my carbs at a moderate level. My three lifting days will add an additional 100-150 grams of carbs in a pre and post workout fashion.
My method is specifically tailored to my body and my experiences with carbs and weight fluctuations. I know that the greatest benefit to my process will be the added physical activity on my rest days.

I am doing this to strive towards a goal, to dream bigger than my comfort zone, to be fearful but take action anyway. I have a continual desire to be a role model for people I come in contact with. I know that by following my dreams, I give others the courage to follow their dreams.

Find the Need

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It takes more than passion to be an effective social worker.  You need to have vision, you need to seek out people who have been successful, and you need to keep up to date with professional development.

In all of the books I have read on being an entrepreneur, they always talk about finding mentors and learning from other successful people.

One goal for this blog is to go out and interview leaders in the community and discover their biggest needs while also highlighting the needs they address. I have started a list of topics relevant to social work advocacy and a list of community leaders. I hope to highlight agencies and services that the general public may not know exist in the community or their need with their client populations.

http://www.socialworker.com/feature-articles/career-jobs/3_Components_of_Turning_Passion_Into_a_Successful_Social_Work_Career/

Awareness of Inspiration Porn

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Once again, the local news has their own focus on a story that leads to more worry than good.  I saw this news story on Facebook and couldn’t stop myself from sharing it with my friends, with a short commentary on inspiration porn and people with disabilities overcoming obstacles created by others.  Reading things like this are suppose to motivate the average person to ask, “what is your excuse?” Then we start generalizing people with disabilities for not trying hard enough to overcome actual limitations. Instead of allowing people to arrive at the same destination with different routes, we tell them there is only one way to do things. We reinforce that there is a difference in worldviews between people with disabilities and people without disabilities. We champion people who try their hardest to return to the majority group’s version of living without accommodations.

There are two excellent resources I have been following which at first glance may seem overly PC but that assumption goes away with awareness of the complex issues being addressed.  Autism Wars on Facebook and realsocialskills on Tumblr.  Both focus on autism or neurodiversity/neurodivergence.  Just remember that labels are for people that need them, and a specific label may be offensive to one person and identifiable to another.  There is also a need to be aware that there is a growing number of parents that exploit their children’s disabilities all over the internet without their permission or without thinking about how permanent the internet is and what long term damage it creates for individuals.  My parents were always aware of keeping me out of a spotlight.  Keeping me off the talk shows and off the stage of the ADA signing with President HW Bush in Washington.

I spent my entire childhood rejecting accommodations and pleading with people to be treated like normal with the rest of my peers.  However, I had many accommodations.  I had my very own nurse who was regarded as a teacher’s assistant in Kindergarten through second grade. The real issue was that accommodations were not explained to my peers and kids with special needs were often separated from their peers and lumped together.  Also, integration was often seen as a negative because you needed school wide awareness and you needed specialized staff and social policies in place for service delivery.  Only once do I remember having an accommodation introduced to my peers with the level of awareness it required for them to understand why it was needed.  That was 4th grade and I was supposed to have jaw surgery, so I was learning how to use an alternative communication device which resembled a label maker.

I also remember being in freshman gym outside the pool riding an exercise bike all alone, watching my peers swim through the glass doors and having an alternate gym class that I never attended show up as a grade on my report card each quarter.

Be aware of ableism and how disability rights organizations are still leaving people on the fringes of society.  Educate yourself on the issues of parental exploitation of their differently-abled children.  Stop using disability as something that can be overcome or needs to be overcome.  Educate people on the purposes of accommodations and make those accommodations available to people, as an awareness that they are indeed available.

http://wbay.com/2016/01/02/inspiration-for-a-new-years-resolution/?cid=facebook_WBAY_TV-2
 

Resolutions are Decisions without Exceptions

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We all understand the cycle of new year’s resolutions.  The process of making resolutions remains a great general beginning point for decision-making.  Last year I began weight lifting and kept with it until it became like an addiction, because I started to see the results of my commitment. I saw a lot of other goals fail because I failed to put the effort and commitment in that I did with my workouts.

This year, I am much more ambitious with my resolutions.  The main goal for this year is to ACT! Taking action after a decision has been made.  The world is not open to people who contemplate, it is open to people who implement.  You should always have a goal, especially with a deadline.  People need the timeline and the finality to be able to work, achieve, and appreciate what has been accomplished.

For instance, competing in the 2016 Fox Cities Showdown in April is a very ambitious goal.  It feels too great of an opportunity for someone who has only been consistent with diet for two years or fitness for one year.  But I recognize the importance of working towards a goal and dreaming outside of my comfort zone.

There are many other various goals I have for 2016.  I intend to make many of them public through my various connected social media outlets.  For now, I commit to building up my personal brand and motivate others to achieve their goals through dedication and commitment. I hope you’ll follow my journey to success!

Professionalism and Ethics

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In Wisconsin, the social work profession is one of the most highly regulated job fields. After earning my MSW from an accredited university, i was required to obtain licensure with the state. I first had to pass a state codes exam and then apply, study, and pass the national ASWB Masters exam. Also to maintain my license, I need 30 continuing education hours. For me, still in the job market, I must pay for all of my trainings myself, without any agency funding assistance.  I do know however, that substance abuse counselors are required to complete 40 hours of training per biennial.
I am glad that other states are making licensing requirements more strict. As social workers we work with protected populations. It is imperative that professionals be held to a high standard and remain conscious of their professional standards, practices, and behaviors in and out of the office.
I very much take professionalism seriously in all aspects of my life. I have a very small group of Facebook friends and everything I post is for friends. Most of my Facebook posts are nature photos or workout/physique updates.
Unfortunately I see a lot of professionals who are not conscious about what they post or what privacy setting their posts are under.
Let’s be mindful of what our profession requires and the limits or sacrifices that are made for practicing in this field.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/12/17/dcf-fires-workers-who-failed-get-licenses/KMfgcEdkfEkHyD5yjNBw2M/story.html

Providing People with Tools

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Social workers are responsible for providing clients with the tools to change. It is the client’s choice to accept or decline the tools. If a client calls saying they haven’t eaten in three days, you don’t run over and buy them a sandwich. You give them the phone number and address for the local food pantry. You make sure they have sufficient transportation but you make it an empowering choice for them to make.
A professor I had, James Brown told it like this: You’re washing dishes and out the window you see someone digging a hole and then they jump down into the hole. You’re not going to join them in the hole, stranding both of you, you’re  going to give them a ladder so they can climb out on their own.
You have to allow people to make their own choices and take action by themselves. All the books I read about successful people share the idea that you need to take action and that no one is going to come along and motivate you to start. You take action and empower yourself which in turn empowers others to take action.

Crisis Response Starts with Service Awareness

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Police being called to assist in mental health crises is one of the issues that isn’t mentioned in the linked article below. Yes, police are called in these instances however, it should not be the first response for a mental health crisis call.
In my community, NAMI conducts a crisis intervention team (CIT) training. This training is also offered to other professionals and community members. The main failure in other communities is when consumers are not aware of other available resources for crisis response. The Fox Cities has a 211 number you can call that provides a list of community services which also includes the county crisis line.
If a family member called someone without a weapon who had a professional license and training, situations could be handled through dialogue and the therapeutic relationship that develops when professionals meet with clients in intake appointments. Using community crisis services may also offer insight into the client who may already have history with a professional. Also, many people who have experienced trauma can see police presence as a triggering event, furthering the breakdown of a crisis response.
I don’t necessarily blame police, I blame their training protocols and the quickness in which a weapon is used when responding to a situation. In no way do I think police shouldn’t remain vigilant or protective of their own safety. However maybe there can be less of an emphasis on the fact that police carry guns and guns can exacerbate a crisis situation. There are tazers and rubber bullets that can also be used when people are able to properly assess the level of immediate danger.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/12/29/why-police-calls-involving-the-mentally-ill-often-end-in-tragedy/

Substance Abuse Specialty vs. SAC-IT

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I have done a fair amount of research into the AODA certifications for WI DSPS licenses.
The Substance Abuse Specialty Authorization requires 135 course hours and 200 hours of supervision.  Professionals write it in their list of credentials as SAS or SASA. I looked at several professionals’ LinkedIn profiles and most with a SAS/SASA also have the SAC-IT credential.
The head of the AODA program at Fox Valley Technical College, Greg Delaney cautioned me by saying that sometimes people run into insurance billing issues with their credential. I spoke with a woman from DSPS and she told me that she could not comment on any issues people have found because they do not communicate with insurance companies. I also sent out inquiries to some agencies about whether they had hired anyone with the specialty certificate. Those inquiries have gone unanswered during this between holidays period.
The SAC-IT however, requires 100 hours of coursework and a letter of hire from the agency that will most likely supervise your hours for obtaining the SAC credential.
A specialty certificate consists of 11 course credits while the SAC-IT consists of 8 course credits.
The SAC credential requires 360 hours of coursework and depending on your previous education, between 2,000 and 4,000 hours of supervision. A masters degree provides 2000 hours of the required 4000 hours which leaves an additional 2000 hours required. A bachelors degree is 1000 and an associate degree is 500 hours. The SAC certificate consists of 14 course credits.
The specialty certificate and license may grow to be more acceptable in future years, especially if you work for the government, however with the over-saturation of the job market, i wouldn’t waste your time or money.

Snow and Public Transportation

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Tonight and tomorrow, Northeast WI is expected to get between eight and twelve inches of snow. I rather enjoyed not treading or driving through snow.
For the longest time, I used public transportation as my means of getting places. It was convenient at the time, it fulfilled my need to be independent, and it wasn’t expensive. For the longest time, I also had anxiety about driving which I unfortunately listened to.
With the snow coming in a pretty impactful storm, I think about all of the people who continue to require public transportation to get to work or to school or various appointments. I also think about the businesses and services that are not mindful of the bus schedules and weather delays.
I used to volunteer at the Green Bay animal shelter which is located in an odd spot, nowhere near a bus stop. It was quite the trek in the snow. I would volunteer on mornings when I had afternoon classes at UW Green Bay.
I also used the bus when doing night classes for my MSW. Classes would end at 9pm and the last bus would come at 9:30pm. I would get home at 10pm. Bus go-ers sometimes have to stand in driveways and streets in the winter because of snow piles, which can cause issues of safety especially when visibility is low.
When I worked at the Boys and Girls Club in the evenings, I would often walk the 8 blocks through downtown to the bus terminal to catch my bus, rather than waiting an hour to catch it a mere few feet from work.
Public transportation seems to be a dwindling service in our area. They have raised prices and cut hours and bus routes. There is little effort being made to connect people between the different city bus systems. Now there are more hourly routes and less thirty minute routes.
So I would ask that agencies and services be mindful of the transportation limits that clients and consumers have to deal with to hold on to that same level of independence and dependence that I once had to work around.

Police and Social Workers Team Up

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In the area that I live, there is a volunteer crisis response team. They work in partnership with the county’s crisis hotline and also the police. This is a prime example of how crisis response should be handled.
I also like that the crisis team of police and social workers in the linked story below primarily focus their efforts on community outreach and establishing relationships with people in need of services.
Not enough agencies do proactive community outreach with the client populations they serve. And sometimes, crisis services are disconnected from each other or only select clients qualify for certain services.
There is still institutionalization in this country. Clients with aggressive behaviors are not served in community-based agencies, rather they go to hospitals or institutions. I believe that needs to change. I believe trained, licensed professionals need to stand up for these clients and attempt to prevent institutional crisis responses.
What are your thoughts? Does your community respond to crisis in a collaborative and professional way?

Source: Police and Social Workers Team To Help The Troubled

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