Full Circle

For those of you who do not know, I moved into a new position at my job in January and so far I am loving it. With my new job came my very own office which I have never had before, but I have dreamed of for so many years. I have enjoyed decorating it and making it my own space. I am much more productive in my own office than before when I was sharing with all of my SASS girls. However, having my own office is bittersweet because I miss all my SASS girls. I don't get to see them and socialize with them as much as I used to. I feel very disconnected from them now that I don't see them everyday. I miss all of you girls. Even though, I miss my SASS girls, I am very happy to be in my new job. It has been a very long journey, but it was all worth it.

Here is a picture of my SASS girls that my good friend, Anneliese took at a recent party.


It all started back in High School when I took a psychology class that I just loved. I also have a lot of family who have emotional challenges that intrigue me. I began taking psychology classes in College and declared my major in psychology. My professors LFC had mostly research backgrounds which I was absolutely positive that I did NOT want to be a researcher. I hated research and statistics with the passion. We had a class and a lab that went on for hours every Wednesday afternoon. I knew I wanted to work with actual people and help them. I was very fortunate that my school had an internship program, so my junior year I interned at a crisis line/talk line/help line. My senior year I completed another internship working with victims of sexual assault. At that time, I really wanted to be a doctor and get my PsyD in Psychology, so I applied to graduate programs, but did not get into any of them. Probably due to my having a little too much fun my sophomore year in college. I was devastated at the time that I did not get in. But looking back it all happened for a reason. I was not ready to go into a graduate program at that point in my life.

Then I had to figure out plan B. Get a job and make some money. I got a job in a residential facility working evenings and weekends with adolescents. I enjoyed the clients but the job was really stressful. Two years later, I changed jobs to have some more time with my hubby and worked in Foster Care and Adoptions as a caseworker. I enjoyed this work too, but it was not right for me. I wanted to be doing therapy with clients. So, I decided to apply to schools to get my masters degree. I got into two schools Argosy and The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. I was ecstatic. I chose The Chicago School because of their reputation and the fact that I could take classes close to my home. I worked during the daytime and went to school in the evenings. I loved all of my classes in graduate school. My professors were all working in the field doing therapy with clients. It was a fantastic experience. My last year in school, I had the best internship ever. I counseled children, adolescents, and adults and got to do all different kinds of therapy. I loved it and knew that it was the best fit for me.

After I graduated, it took me awhile to find a job. I first worked at a hospital in the inpatient psych ward part-time. I did not really like this job, but I needed the money to pay those hefty student loans and I was helping people. I liked helping people, but the treatment in this job was too short-term. Clients were only there for 5-7 days. After a few months of working there, I got offered a job to work in the SASS program. I learned so much while in the SASS program. Now, I actually enjoy doing crisis work now which is something I never thought that I would say. I am also very confident in my abilities to do crisis work and therapy. I got my clinical counselor licensure almost a year ago. I love working with children, adolescents, and families. I feel very blessed to be in a job that I love and work with people that are not only my co-workers, but my close friends.

It was a long journey finding a job I love with fabulous co-workers. During my journey, there were times when I thought I would never reach my goal. No matter how long it took or difficult it was at times, I wouldn't change a thing. Each experience made me the person who I am today. Accomplishing this goal, gives me renewed hope that I will be able to accomplish other goals that I have been working on for awhile. Everything happens for a reason and I truly believe that.