Personal Statement For The Support Group

I am applying to your Masters of Clinical Mental Health Counseling program. I have earned my undergraduate degree in Biblical Studies from Mount Vernon Nazarene University. During my time earning my undergraduate degree I also minored in psychology. I am motivated to earn this degree because of the experiences that I have had while growing up in a home with a workaholic father and a bed ridden mother. This childhood has inspired me to work with those who are struggling emotionally and are in need of guidance and assistance.

I feel that I would gain the most and also be most passionate about the mental health challenge. For a long time the functions and processes of the human mind have fascinated me as I have learned about them not only in the classroom but from first hand experience. Psychology was my favorite course that I took in high school and although it is known to be difficult, I did not struggle with it because it is easy to learn something that captures your interest so deeply. And personally, since I was young I have struggled with and worked through clinical depression, working with therapists and psychiatrists to understand the inner workings of my own mind, and I learned how to cope with and overcome my own mental disorder. Learning about other disorders

I have chosen to enter the field of Mental Health Counseling at this particular time in my life because I would like to learn the skills needed to help people with their life and mental health issues. While attending the University of Saint Joseph during my undergraduate years I took various courses that have led me to making my decision. The courses I took focused on business, biology, social work, and psychology. After graduation I decided to take a year off and gain work experience in customer service and health care. I wanted to experience working with the people in my community. I was hired as a pharmacy technician at a Walgreens in Vernon. Working as a pharmacy technician has been a very rewarding experience for me and I learned a lot about people and their unique needs. I also learned about patient care and how to be pacient and understanding under stressful situations.

My passion and determination to undertake study within the mental health sector dwells from the insight I have been privileged to gain in my current role as a link care coordinator, working with people who suffer from a range of ailments within the mental health spectrum; from learning disabilities, Alzheimer’s, Dementia, OCD, Autism to name but a few.

Natalie: How do you communicate these goals and other information within your group? Do you typically speak face-to-face, via social media? Etc?
Savannah: We have multiple ways of communication. I would say, that we definantly use both social media and face-to-face communication. So every Thursday evening we have a group meetings in the basement and our whole staff gets there, including the CRE and other authorities. We discuss any upcoming events whether it is an even we are hosting in the great room for our residents or if it is move-in or move-out or seasonal breaks. We just discuss all of our major responsibilities and then we also get a lot of email from our CRE who is the person who is in charge of us. We just summarize what we 've learned as well as any new information. We also use Groupme a lot to communicate.

In my current profession, as a Targeted Case Manager for the Mental Health Center, I work with a number of human services programs. Such as, Medicaid, Medicare, SSI, SSDI, TANF, WIC, HRDC, LIEAP, Housing Authority, OPA, Family Service, Salvation Army, Harvest Church and Chase Hawks. I am responsible for assisting, advocating and linking my clients to resources that enhance and stabilize their lifestyle. I assist my clients with paperwork, advocating with community agencies, applying for resources, maintaining their current benefits, and assisting in obtaining Social Security. Whether, that be the initial application, subsequent paperwork, attending the clients hearing, and/or linking them with a lawyer to assist in the appeals process.

I firmly believe in myself, in my capabilities, in my skills, in my character, and in my integrity. I also firmly believe in my abilities to achieve my educational and personal goals. I intend to achieve my goal of receiving Master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling. I will pursue this area of study in college, focusing on the necessary course work.

There where many support groups that were very interesting, but I chose Coalition for Kids. Coalition for Kids is where children are able to come together and fellowship. However, this support group would be considered under the small group category. According to Hutchison (2015), "A small group is two or more individuals interacting with one another based on similar interests, goals, experiences, and need" (p.385). These types of groups are very beneficial because of how they provide socialization to children, self-worth, conversation, group support, and similarity. Also, there are older children who come to Coalition for Kids after school, while in the group circle they share how their day is going, provide prayer request or special thoughts,

Personal health and wellness are important factors towards life because without health, our quality of life would suffer greatly. There are many factors that contribute to health and wellness; some can be managed, but many are out of our control. Below are four main topic that caught my attention throughout the course.

My mother taught me that a key factor to being successful is having the right tools for the job. I learned what that meant to me in my early years at Southern Illinois University. Growing up, I was challenged by Dyslexia. A disability that made school difficult. Until college, I found ways around it.

Personal Statement I was drawn to the medical field due to my exposure to health implications faced by mother and myself. During my senior year at Montgomery College I diagnosed with thyroid disorder which led to hyperthyroidism. As a care giver for my mother who suffered from dementia my feeling was to build and maintain outstanding health care services which began to form. The affordability and quality of health care that my mother and I have received is something that I have always taken for granted as every citizen should have right to access to the highest standard of physical and mental health. My goal is to create an important contribution to the health of people in my community through efficient management and delivery of health care services.

I am applying to the University of Alabama’s Clinical Mental Health Counseling Master’s program in pursuit of a career in mental health practice. I hold the University of Alabama dear to my heart as I graduated with my Bachelor’s in Psychology, and I have several family members that are proud alumni. I am originally from Alabama, and I was a member of the UA football team from 2013-2016 until health conditions caused my premature retirement. I believe these familial and athletic ties to UA portray my dedication to the University as a whole. That being said, I am greatly interested in the field of mental health counseling because I have seen positive, real-world results of mental hygiene practice, among many other reasons.

Mental health counseling gives me a positive outlook regarding my life. I feel that Walden University will certainly prepare me to be an effective mental health counselor. The mental health-counseling program at Walden will prepare to care for individuals with various mental issues. I am positive that I will learn how to aid my clients with mental health problems through various programs and services. Being that its imperative to display excellent listening skills, memorandum, and deliver positive replies with kindness.

Healthcare is one of the largest growing fields with increasing demands every day. In the past, healthcare was thought to be a work force of doctors, nurses and other medical staff but it has evolved into a large industry with a need for managers and administration. This management and administration has brought a new skillset to the field that strongly interests me. I spent the first two years of my undergraduate education in pharmacy school but through my many job shadows I fell in love with the business side of the health industry. I became fascinated by healthcare administration because of the potential opportunities such as: the ability to combine my talents of leadership and organization with my passion of health; the capacity to analyze and predict future trends to help my organization stay ahead therefore becoming a leader in industry; and the capability to understand medical professionals and their skills to lead and direct them in ways that will create a super-team.

The author’s concept to include an educational component with each group meeting is a good idea to help me facilitate groups in the future. I agree with the author that providing education helps set the tone and direction for the group meeting. If I was going to lead a support group for care givers to prevent hospital readmission within thirty days, participates should be educated upfront regarding the expectations and objectives for the group meetings. Also, facilitating the groups at a neutral site will produce a more positive outcome for me as a facilitator. For caregivers to return to the hospital for a support group to prevent hospital readmission can cause a negative start for the meetings.