Better mental health thru automotive performance!

I think most people on this board know I'm a social worker, who works in the community and for those who don't SURPRISE!!! Anyway, my area of expertise is in mental health ( no I won't diagnosis you or your family). I make my paper working as a case manager for a local community mental health organization.

Now, my job is awesome! It basically allows me to support 13 wonderful and courageous folks in the community who battle mental illness every day. I get to help people live their lives and overcome! Now I do this in a myriad of ways! Yet for the most part this job entails me doing assessments, symptom management, dealing with day to day life stuff and me drowning in the bureaucracy known as medicare and medicaid, but most importantly I help folks stay out of the hospital and live as free a life as possible. Now for the most part I assist my folks in living out their interests to the best of their ability, but every once in a while the clients interest and my interest cross. Case in point this past week, I had a incident happen that was just really neat.

I support this one guy who I see every other week. He is a guy who battles a serious thought disorder that really makes it difficult to engage in conversations because he is afraid what others will think of him if he talks. ( A paranoid delusion) Well this guy is a huge Ford guy! I mean he loves Mustangs almost as much as Don ( I said almost...) Anyway this past week I provided him with a ride home in Mara's mustang because we needed to talk and he really feels comfortable talking on the ride home, plus he loves the car. Well we took off and proceeded to drive down the beltline to his house, as we were going out of the blue he mentions to me, Mike the mustang sounds slightly rough! He states it sounds like its missing slightly. Well, I listened and listened and listened, and couldn't hear anything! I figured it was not likely. Well, I told him I would check it out when I got back to the office Well I drop him off and proceed to my next appointment. Well I return back to the office and decide to check it out. SURE as Shit, the plug to the back was only slightly on, well I snapped it back on and boom the Mustang sounds instantly better!

So I chuckle and go inside and call my client to tell him his diagnosis was spot on! Man, you should of heard the pride in his voice! He starts talking 4.6 modular beast this, and Boss that! He started to razz me about my mopars! Man, it was really something to hear! Just for that moment it was like a cloud lifted! I wasn't talking with a guy who battled a serious mental illness, but a car guy just like us! It was really cool. It just showed me that sometimes the best medicine is being able to reverse the unspoken power dynamic and live a bit.

Anyway, thought you all would appreciate this small view into my world.

Mike

Very cool Mike. Its amazing what can take a quiet, nervous person and make them a little kid that won't shut up

At the beginning I was thinking negatively about reading ALL OF THIS , but I'm sure glad I did .

I definately appreciate the ability of the car hobby to help break down barriers and bring people who otherwise would never have a chance to interact together

Yeah thanks for reading I know kind of long winded, but important to explain it!


Mike

Thats awesome mikey. Your kind of work is greatly underappreciated.

Well if he can work his way onto here that would really test his metal! Nice work Mikey.

If he's nervous about what others may think about him based on what he talks about this is the last place I would expose him to.

No offence to the individual but everyone would need to be aware of it and be VERRRY careful of anything they post here. In person I think it would be fine but thats just my opinion.

Just saying.

True ^

Very cool Mikey!

when I used to see a psychiatrist (sp?) when I was a kid the only thing I would ever want to talk to him about was my dad's '86 MR2 or '66 Mustang. this kind of takes me back lol.

anyway that's really cool, and also really impressive. I don't think there's a single person in the world that doesn't have one thing (like cars in this situation) that can really make them open up.

That is fantastic!

However sometimes I think this website could drive people into that very same mental state. This is the last place the poor guy should be!!

holy shit, that had to have been an awesome feeling to hear him break out of his shell. I could only imagine how nice it felt for him as well once he got off the phone with you. Thanks for the story.

^ Agreed with Peaches!

I actually thought it was really nice and thoughtful for you guys to think about having it come over, it is real testimony to the general kindness and overall acceptance of people, we have on this board.

Unfortunately, I can't do that. The reason is because its kind of a subtle slippery slope. My role is to assist him in living out his dreams and make his life the best for him. Now if we develop a friendship, that relationship gets complicated for both of us. I lose my objectivity to assist him because he is a good friend, and he could inadvertently start to do things that I want because we are friends, instead of what he wants. See its kind of subtle,so you have to be careful!


Plus I like to able to let my hair down with you folks a bit. Yeah, it was pretty awesome to hear!

Mike

Oh you misunderstood me. I am saying that in no way whatsoever should anyone with that mental state be around this group of assholes. Being hear would most likely cause people to develop a mental disorder.

Well you do have to possess a 60 inch skin to survive here. Lol!

Mike

MikeyT wrote:

Well you do have to possess a 60 inch skin to survive here. Lol!

Mike

much respect. plain and simple.

Cool story Mikey!

Awesome work

That's awesome Mikey. It takes real dedication to do what you do, and I applaud your efforts to help these folks out.

This is a great story.
My girlfriend is going to school to be a social worker, at first i didnt really know what to think of it but this shows me how important of job it can be.

Very cool, Mikey.

very cool story

cool story Mike.

i so want to post a "cool story brah" pic but im not going to be that asshole.... this time. but it is a cool story.




brah