Visiting Freud ... This Shall All One Day Make Sense

Mornin ... How’s everyone? We’ve been out and about, but primarily still lurking. Eh, a comment here or there. Not sure how this works in our minds. We’ve long since abandoned the idea that we need to comment for all the entries. It’s more like I need just to check in with how everyone is holding up.

I find myself thinking ... is this person ok? Might be how I manage the time with the clients too. If time allows a moment or two, we’re looking into their faces to see that they are ok. It seems a bridge of sorts. I realize that my actual time is reserved for the matters that press most strongly. On average, our clients are able to handle the day to day fare through their other relationships.

There was one individual last week that stopped by and stayed about 45 minutes. This was unusual because she has had a tolerance before for staying about 10 minutes. We worked through a 12 minute exercise that she enjoyed enough to ask if she could repeat it. Hehe, the time was granted. I still believe that most problems the clients have can be resolved with attention. So, when it is called for, we usually yield.

Whoops, it works for kitties too. They can go on an on with the fulfilling of normal routines, but periodically they ask for some special time and attention. I think they are playing some game with us though. It seems if I give a little attention here, the other one wants some there. *Sigh* You give as best you can ... keeping in mind the real competition is that my fingers seem most often in want of returning to the keyboard. Ahh, what a romantic relationship that is!!

Yesterday, was a little different in that Sister was out of the building for the majority of the client’s day. She went with Group 1 to take in the sights of Navy Pier. It’s been arranged so that this whole month one group goes every Monday. I’ll find out today what they all thought of the Omnimax theater’s presentation. Not sure even which show they watched. It is always an experience though they enjoy repeating.

Due to this adventure, we had the other three groups on our own for lunch. We’ve often proved an ability to get everyone’s lunch through the microwaves, but it took a little adjusting to get everyone happy. Kind of wonder what has happened to them prior to coming in that they are so on top of each others nerves. We are likely to hear, "She’s looking at me, he’s laughing too loud, or she is bothering me!" Hehe, most often this is resolved by spreading people out more favorably. Sometimes they get bunched up and appear to be sitting in each other’s laps.

It’s not hard to discern the one that needs the most attention. After the food is all heated, there is an allowance of time to just be sitting next to the person with the most needs. We like to be present to them to offer reassurance that everything is going to be ok, while they regain their composure and ability to self control. As this occurs, we step back while keeping a watchful eye. Hehe - the other eye is usually kept on one of the lower functioning client who likes to sneak the food and drink of his less watchful peers. Eh, it’s a vocation!

Usually, Sr. Tess takes the group who finishes first outside to the courtyard that is spacious and with chairs, tables and plenty of room for basketball. We stay back and watch over the stragglers. Yesterday it seemed we needed another solution since I couldn’t be at both ends. Even with those gone, there are about 25 people remaining.

So, I announced we would be staying in. One of the individuals suggested after a moment that sometimes they get to play music and dance. We thought, "Great idea!" She had with her a CD of Michael Jackson that we slipped into the machine. It turned out to be a very good bit of time. If there is one thing that the majority of individuals at our Center like, it is to dance. I liked the casualness of everyone paying attention to movement rather than each others behaviors. They appeared to enjoy the change of pace.

On Mondays we get into the center about quarter to 10, so there is not much chance of getting too much done before 11:30 client lunch. We figured that after 3 days of being off our schedule that we’d concentrate on getting that back up to par so we could know our real priorities and challenges. Then too, Sr finds herself sharing whatever it is that she needs.

I thought it kind of funny, but both her and our friend had done the same thing. Neither of them gave me a direct copy of a letter/request from House Speaker Madigan, but independently each decided I should read and understand the letter and help in editing the Center’s response. I think of it as having hands in many cookie jars :) Actually, its more I’m afraid of patting self on back. After so many years, people must think my opinions count for something!

I was grateful for having been given the opportunity to have attended a couple of legislative sessions during thatlast convention. I could grasp a few concepts of our State leadership. It’s kind of exciting to know that you are a part of a bigger pond. The minute changes that occur from one of their decisions to the next is expansive to one’s mind, albeit from the view of being a very small minnow.

I can imagine meetings held behind closed doors and public that give way to change. Every interest of each issue needs address. Reputations are made and lost. There are sharks out there! Best we support Madigan ... he’s the one responsible for money to build my office and purchase my wonderful computer :) Gotta just love the guy!!

After we’d gotten back to noting about 3 dozen tiny post-it notes to the schedule, we printed out a copy of what was immediately relevant. Two projects stood above the rest as far as urgency for the day. The first was to sort out issues toward introducing parents to the upcoming annuals and the second was to accept the new intake people to the Center and update them on criteria needed to be completed before a start date could be scheduled.

As easy as this might seem it wasn’t really. Both letters to parents had to be succinct, yet informative of the new rules due to a change in State requirements. After your couple of "master" letters are written, approved and translated, then they are used for the other 30 families with only minor adjustments. It takes a while and many, many edits. I spent the next five hours between the two.

The annual letter was approved when I caught Sr. Tess outside during one of our breaks. So we completed the four outgoing letters for July Annuals. We left the Intake letter on her desk for approval. Sr. is usually very good of reading over things before I get there the next morning. After the intake letters are approved, I will complete the next 10 and submit them to the our representative that helps over at the high school. Between us, we’ll make sure that all families complete the paperwork involved. Lots of work to be done before the new clients start in the fall.

Sister Tess pulled a little surprise. She hadn’t told us that she’d talked to the school principal and that the principal convinced her to take a problem client for a 30 day evaluation. I was brought up to speed by the rep. *Sigh* I hope Sr. knows what she’s doing. This is the individual that ran disobediently through the building during her intake appointment refusing to leave rooms she’d raided along with snatching up mailfrom the secretary’s and Sr.’s desk. Eh, what’s life without challenge :)

Then too, there is some consolation that all the new Intake clients (11 or 12) are going to be going to the other Q’s caseload. She’s putting on a big show, but the reality is that for the last three years, we had all the new clients on our caseload. Just the same, I left four weeks open during that time to assist her in getting everyone past their 30 day reports if necessary, after that each will need to have a meeting to establish goals for the upcoming year. It is a lot of work! This was the expected tradeoff for her not doing Staff Training.

So, a short story made long ... that covers me for the majority of time up to 7:30 pm. Sure do hope that Sr. gets the new teacher soon. It’s a change/increase of over 24% the Center’s "normal" functioning level.

I would hope today would be as productive, but it is already starting with glitches. Arrangements were made to meet the State inspector from the week or two previous at another Center to gain approval for funding of four more individuals who now have psychological reports completed. We put up a pretty big stink of not wanting to drive through the city looking for this place, so it was finally arranged that since Sr. And our friend had a meeting a block or two away, that I would travel and be "dumped" off by them with the necessary client files at 9 am. I will be picked up again about noon.

This only allows an hour to get something done. Hmm, arrangements will have to be made for the client’s lunch ... Sure hope the other Q is in for the day! This afternoon we’ll need to be progressing the letters started yesterday and preparing for the Staff Training that will be held tomorrow. I’m sure I’ll be much more efficient after we get started. Hmm, if I have a late day ... will be able to work 5 more hours. It would stand to reason then that 1:00- 3:30 pm be spent on the correspondence and 3:30 to 6:00 pm be spent on Staff Training. The last half hour is reserved for re-organization of the following day.

No problems here, right?

The only other thing that happened was that we accomplished another meeting with Dr. M. That went pretty good, we think. Casey was out the first 10 minutes with an additional shadowing of Annemarie. Then afterward I was out, Ann, was out, Kelsie was out, and Kate was out. Casey needed to be resettled on normal account and in addition accept the changes of Dr. M. Having painted one of his walls. This is chaos building material! Change is hard.

To each of our own abilities the remaining parts (all adult) discussed the events leading up to and around our small crises of Friday. The situation was progressed with each one. With the exception of Kate ... she was out at the end to gain more knowledge. She’s been progressing our psychological abilities with new concepts learned from Dr. M. He’s re-introduced object relations and began work on a concept of "mentalization."

He gave us a copy of an article written of object relations from the American Journal of Psychiatry. Since this looks like a pretty complicated 7 pages we figure we should take a few moments here to check this out. We’ll be right over here, k? ---------------->

Hmm, ok ... this is the introduction ... "This paper provides an overview of the theory, indicating the contribution of object relations – such as a basis for individual psychotherapy of severe disorders and a more effective understanding of countertransference – and its shortcomings – such as lack of an explanation for the effects of physical and cognitive factors on object relatedness." It appears to be "an addition to drive theory and ego psychology within psychoanalysis."

No problems here! Hehe, yeah right, ok ... lets try again.

Ok, so it seems its about "how individuals develop in relation to the people around them." Cool!

Key issues: 1-2) internalizing and externalizing relationships, 3) attachment and separation, 4) introjection and projection, 5) transmuting internalization ... transmute - to change to a higher form..  Seems like we'll have to better define differences between internalization and introjection, and then between externalizing and projection.

Hmm, ok contrasts Freuds drive theories ... Hmm, reduction of drives to Anna’s protection of integrity (defense mechanisms) hmm, something about self-and-object all-good and all-bad "camps" after having internalized and identify relationship of primary caretaker ... Yeeks ... that’s about a page and a half, but we’re out of allowed 15 minutes time. To be continued. :)