Social Worker Sharing

  I think unpaid carers are such heroes. It’s all good and well people saying it must be tough or they are good but since working in my role I have seen just how incredible they are. I have heard amazing stories from people who have slept on the floor to be there for a loved one or not gone to bed until the person has fallen asleep because they get anxious. They give up their time, energy, space, relationships, and lives to support the people that are important to them, and I applaud them. It’s all good and well me speaking to them and getting home care in place or respite but this doesn’t take away the strain that is on their shoulders. I may be able to try and help or see what can be utilised to give them a break, but they still come back to it. They still lose sleep because they are worrying if that person is okay, and I cannot even begin to imagine what that feels like. I am in a role that cares about people, and I definitely don’t always take my Social Work hat off at t...

  I was in a training session this week and we were discussing the idea of using Soundscapes in practice. Initially I was wondering what was meant by this and how I could bring this into my practice. As we discussed it further, I thought how interesting it was and what a difference it could make. We each shared a sound that makes us feel happy and I realised what an impact a sound can have. It can make you feel calm, sad, happy, frustrated, or angry depending on what it is. This could be helpful when trying to express how you feel. If someone struggles with verbal communication and you have spent time getting to know them, they may be able to tell you how they feel using a sound instead. There has been a lot of research done on the impact of music with people who have Dementia, and I was reflecting on this when I finished the session. How many songs have I listened to that give me a specific emotional response? It’s also interesting to gauge how you are feeling when listening ...

Self-care is so important; of course this isn’t just the case in Social Work. It seems that we live in a society that encourages the hustle, always being busy, fitting more into the day or getting paid for everything we do. When I am working, I put 100% into everything I do but I think it’s also important that once I log off from the computer at the end of the day that I can also switch off. I remember when I very first qualified and I was having a conversation with someone, and I said that I log off at 5 o clock and when I step away from my desk and close the office door I am done. They responded and said but you’re a social worker and I said that I am a Social Worker and when I am in work time, I will be the best one I can be, I won’t just switch off at 5pm if I am in the middle of something or I need to get something finished but whenever I do log off for the day it’s important that I can switch off from my cases. Don’t get me wrong my Social Work brain is running all of the t...

  When we discuss building relationships in Social Work training and practice. We usually mean the relationships we build with the people we support but actually we spent a lot of our time building relationships with everyone else. We spend a lot of our time speaking to other professionals, health colleagues and our own colleagues. I am fortunate to work in a community team where, as part of our working week we have peer review. Peer review is a really good opportunity to gain knowledge and information from the people who have specific gained knowledge. I know that if I am struggling with something, either process wise or general situation wise on a case I can call anyone in my team, and they will help. This is such an important part of Social Work practice that is not discussed enough. The support that you get from the people around you are crucial. We work in a field where you can’t get home at the end of the day and discuss with your spouse or family what is worrying you, ...