Is reverse parking catching? Watch out for more clues?Thursday, September 29, 2011
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Loneliness and social isolation
There are some great resources on the Internet. This one at seniors.gov.au is very relevant to my discussions about social inclusion:
Increasing your physical and social activity is the key to dealing with loneliness and social isolation. Ageing can often lead to social isolation as a result of increased frailty, lack of mobility, and the loss of friends and family. The resulting feelings can lead to depression and a range of physical symptoms such as sleep disorders, lack of appetite and lower energy levels. Here are symptoms and strategies for dealing with loneliness.
Experiences of loneliness can range from a vague feeling that something is not right to an intense deprivation and deep pain. Loneliness is not the same as being alone; it is the feeling of being alone and being sad about it. While everyone feels lonely some of the time, it is only when you feel trapped in your loneliness that it becomes a real problem.
Loneliness is a passive state, and as such people contribute to their loneliness by letting it continue and doing nothing to change it. To do so is to embrace the feelings of loneliness which leads to a sense of depression and helplessness which in turn leads to a more passive state and more depression.
The keys to alleviating these feelings are to admit and express feelings of loneliness which in turn lead to recognition of the connections to other aspects of life where changes can then be made.
Naturally, becoming more active is the main way to deal with loneliness. Contact friends, family or counsellors/pastors if suitable to help deal with the feelings of loneliness, especially if it is from bereavement.
Getting involved in clubs and associations with people who have similar interests can divert loneliness, widen networks of friends and increase social skills, provide structure and routine so that there are things to look forward to, and be enjoyable.
If you find you are having difficulty dealing with feelings of loneliness on your own, talk to a counsellor, local pastor or religious leader.
Increasing your physical and social activity is the key to dealing with loneliness and social isolation. Ageing can often lead to social isolation as a result of increased frailty, lack of mobility, and the loss of friends and family. The resulting feelings can lead to depression and a range of physical symptoms such as sleep disorders, lack of appetite and lower energy levels. Here are symptoms and strategies for dealing with loneliness.
Experiences of loneliness can range from a vague feeling that something is not right to an intense deprivation and deep pain. Loneliness is not the same as being alone; it is the feeling of being alone and being sad about it. While everyone feels lonely some of the time, it is only when you feel trapped in your loneliness that it becomes a real problem.
Loneliness is a passive state, and as such people contribute to their loneliness by letting it continue and doing nothing to change it. To do so is to embrace the feelings of loneliness which leads to a sense of depression and helplessness which in turn leads to a more passive state and more depression.
The keys to alleviating these feelings are to admit and express feelings of loneliness which in turn lead to recognition of the connections to other aspects of life where changes can then be made.
Naturally, becoming more active is the main way to deal with loneliness. Contact friends, family or counsellors/pastors if suitable to help deal with the feelings of loneliness, especially if it is from bereavement.
Getting involved in clubs and associations with people who have similar interests can divert loneliness, widen networks of friends and increase social skills, provide structure and routine so that there are things to look forward to, and be enjoyable.
If you find you are having difficulty dealing with feelings of loneliness on your own, talk to a counsellor, local pastor or religious leader.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Social Inclusion as part of Person-centredness
I can still remember my first part time job as a teenager, working in a garage. I use the word garage because back in those dim dark days you could go to the same place to buy a car, get it fixed, and fill up your car with petrol. My job was to clean the greasy floor in the workshop, sweep the display area, and keep the service area tidy.
My dad had taught me that you should always fill up the car battery with distilled water, so it was a bit of a shock to be told by my boss that even though the bottle said “distilled water”, my job was to fill it with water from the tap.
This new workplace had its negatives but it also opened me up to experiences that helped to contribute to my development as a person. I was learning the importance of participating in a wider community than I had previously known, and as a result of that discovering more about the world in which I lived, and my own attitudes towards that world.
As we work our way in this blog through the principles of being person-centred, we come to social inclusion. Social inclusion fosters the development of participation, citizenship and contribution within the community. In doing so, natural and meaningful relationships can be formed.
When a person begins receiving a health or community service from a service provider there is a danger that everything is focussed around the immediate needs of the individual and how that impacts on the service provider. The result can be a withdrawal from other social activities and the result of that can be a loss of personal identity and independence.
By encouraging a person receiving services to maintain their existing social networks and even expanding those networks, we are acknowledging an important part of that person’s individuality.
How do you perceive social inclusion can contribute to being person-centred?
My dad had taught me that you should always fill up the car battery with distilled water, so it was a bit of a shock to be told by my boss that even though the bottle said “distilled water”, my job was to fill it with water from the tap.
This new workplace had its negatives but it also opened me up to experiences that helped to contribute to my development as a person. I was learning the importance of participating in a wider community than I had previously known, and as a result of that discovering more about the world in which I lived, and my own attitudes towards that world.
As we work our way in this blog through the principles of being person-centred, we come to social inclusion. Social inclusion fosters the development of participation, citizenship and contribution within the community. In doing so, natural and meaningful relationships can be formed.
When a person begins receiving a health or community service from a service provider there is a danger that everything is focussed around the immediate needs of the individual and how that impacts on the service provider. The result can be a withdrawal from other social activities and the result of that can be a loss of personal identity and independence.
By encouraging a person receiving services to maintain their existing social networks and even expanding those networks, we are acknowledging an important part of that person’s individuality.
How do you perceive social inclusion can contribute to being person-centred?
Monday, September 5, 2011
Soar with the Eagles
Thanks to Bank of Ideas for this week's story. It just had to be told as part of my theme of finding people's strengths:
A man found an eagle’s egg and placed it under a brooding hen. The eaglet hatched with the chickens and grew to be like them. He clucked and cackled, scratched the earth for worms, flapped his wings and managed to fly a few feet in the air.
Years passed. One day the eagle, now grown old saw a magnificent bird above him in the sky; it glided in a graceful majesty against the powerful wind, with scarcely a movement of its golden wings.
Spellbound the eagle asked – “Who’s that?”
“That’s the king of the birds, the eagle,” said his neighbour. “He belongs to the sky. We belong to earth – we’re chickens.”
So the eagle lived and died a chicken for that’s what he thought he was.
(Anthony de Mello)
A man found an eagle’s egg and placed it under a brooding hen. The eaglet hatched with the chickens and grew to be like them. He clucked and cackled, scratched the earth for worms, flapped his wings and managed to fly a few feet in the air.
Years passed. One day the eagle, now grown old saw a magnificent bird above him in the sky; it glided in a graceful majesty against the powerful wind, with scarcely a movement of its golden wings.
Spellbound the eagle asked – “Who’s that?”
“That’s the king of the birds, the eagle,” said his neighbour. “He belongs to the sky. We belong to earth – we’re chickens.”
So the eagle lived and died a chicken for that’s what he thought he was.
(Anthony de Mello)
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Just another cog in the wheel
I went to a Medicare the office the other day for the first time. When I walked in the door I was confronted by a touch screen kiosk where I could indicate the reason for my visit. After making my choice a ticket came out of the machine and I realised that I was now identified as person number A235. I sat down in the waiting area and watched the numbers on the large screen on the wall changing from time to time to the sound of an electronic voice announcing that number B146 could move to counter five.
All I wanted to do was change my personal details and get some money, but I had the distinct impression that I was no longer a real person with the capacity to manage my own affairs, to plan, to think, to dream, to hope. I was now cog that looked like every other cog in the great bureaucratic wheel of misfortune.
While the process was established, no doubt, to facilitate a smooth customer service experience, it had the effect of disempowering and disengaging the people who use the service.
One of the principles of person-centredness is recognising a person’s strengths. That means that the lowest common denominator is not good enough. As we walk alongside people our thoughts are not on their disability, their weaknesses, their failings and their disadvantage, but on their strengths, their capabilities, their achievements and their contributions.
All I wanted to do was change my personal details and get some money, but I had the distinct impression that I was no longer a real person with the capacity to manage my own affairs, to plan, to think, to dream, to hope. I was now cog that looked like every other cog in the great bureaucratic wheel of misfortune.
While the process was established, no doubt, to facilitate a smooth customer service experience, it had the effect of disempowering and disengaging the people who use the service.
One of the principles of person-centredness is recognising a person’s strengths. That means that the lowest common denominator is not good enough. As we walk alongside people our thoughts are not on their disability, their weaknesses, their failings and their disadvantage, but on their strengths, their capabilities, their achievements and their contributions.
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