Our city commission is currently considering a funding cut to social service agencies in Manhattan. This is a huge deal to me--all of my working days have been providing social services to at-risk and needy members of our community.
CASA is one of the agencies who would be affected by the funding cut. Several weeks ago I blogged about how I got involved with CASA and how I felt when I was offered my current job at the school.
I loved CASA...I still do (otherwise I wouldn't still work for them!)...but why did I make the move to being a Prevention Educator to middle school students?
Most of the families we encounter through CASA are participating in interventions. Whether those clients require medical care, appropriate mental health services, someone to teach them the basics of parenting, engaging in case plans to end the cycle of abuse/neglect, trying to establish steady employment, receiving treatment for substance abuse or securing adequate housing...most of our families are in Stage 2.
With some of our parents, we are merely putting a bandage on their problems. The amazing thing is, with the guidance and love of a CASA, the children are supported and advocated for...this is what I refer to as Stage 1--prevention. By receiving the necessary services and stopping things before they get too far, many of the children can be saved from following in the parents' footsteps.
Unfortunately, you have days in social services where you're just plain burnt out. I'm not going to lie--I've had my fair share of those days. When I was approached with the idea of a job that helped me PREVENT some of these issues, I couldn't resist.
If you bear with me, I'm getting close to answering my question of "Why I chose to be a prevention educator?"
Witnessing what I have with CASA is obviously the first part of the answer.
The second part of the answer is harder to explain and stings a bit.
Growing up, I had the best uncle ever. And I'm not kidding. Okay, I may be biased...but really, he was the BEST uncle. He was the funniest person ever. We LOVED getting to see our uncle any chance we got. He was the best :-)
Long story short, my uncle fought a hard battle with addiction. It was scary not knowing where he was and if the unknown meant he was dead. There were times that we were scared for our own safety and had 'what-if' plans in place. I remember the shock of walking past him in our local gas station and not even recognizing him due to the physical toll the drugs had taken...and then I found myself wondering if my own uncle even recognized me? I remember the stints in rehab and wondering if it would really work "this time?" I missed our time together--spending the holidays together and laughing nonstop, checking out his horses or climbing around in his semi trucks...I missed getting to see my cousins, too. Time with the extended family just wasn't the same as it was impossible to ignore the elephant in the room--where's our uncle and what's going on this time? We had already lost our grandma at a young age and now we had to lose our uncle, too. But the hardest part was knowing how it tore at our mother. My uncle's addiction just wasn't fair.
The emotions I experience are still very raw and it's hard to think about those years without tearing up. When you love somebody so much, addiction hurts.
In Life Skills, we discuss the addiction process. I'm honest with my students.
Addiction is not a choice. I do recognize that the choice comes when a person decides to experiment with a substance. As my 6th graders say, "You can't be addicted if you never try it!"
But let's get real. We know people who drink. We know people who smoked a blunt once upon a time. It sucks that one person can socially drink...while another person can't drink because of the relapse that would result. It sucks that some people can engage in casual drug use and walk away from it...but one hit of a drug and another person could be addicted.
Addiction is physical. It's psychological. It's neurological. We cannot predict the way our neurotransmitters, namely the dopamine receptors, will respond when a substance is introduced into the body. Unfortunately, there is no crystal ball that tells ya whether or not you will end up an addict. Of course, none of my invincible tweens or teenagers seem to think it could happen to them...but that's when I bust out my 10-minute, basic discussion on the addiction spectrum and all the above mentioned components. If anything, I just want them to realize that it COULD happen to them.
My uncle is now in Stage 3--Recovery. He has an amazing and super fun wife who I am beyond grateful to have in our family. I feel like we have our uncle back. The entire family was "stormed in" together last summer and it was the most fun I had had in a long time. It was almost like old times...My uncle and his wife were able to attend our wedding this past September. Even though it was our "special day," deep down I was beyond excited that my uncle had survived the addiction and we could celebrate as a family. It's with every bit of energy that I pray both my uncle and his wife can remain in Recovery the rest of their lives.
So why did I chose prevention?
They say families of addicts become addicted to the addiction. However, I don't feel that's necessarily me. I realize that I cannot keep every 12 and 14 year old from picking up the bottle or picking up the pipe and risk getting hooked. All I can do is educate them and give them the tools to make the best decisions possible.
Honestly, I don't want anybody to go through the things that our family did. I don't want anybody to experience what my uncle went through. Some people aren't lucky enough to enter Stage 3...instead, addiction takes their life. Or some people get stuck in Stage 2 and as a result, find themselves receiving intervention services from our local social service agencies.
This entry has come a long ways from potential funding cuts--and I'm still not sure if I answered my own question very well. One thing I do know--I'm proud of the work that CASA and all of our cooperating agencies do. I hope I make a difference in the lives of my students...and I do know that I'm proud to have my uncle back :-)
Last but not least, I owe a big thanks to "Uncle" and his wife for letting me write this post and share my experience with his addiction.
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