Community Living Month on May, 2024: Therapuetic communities good or bad?

May, 2024 is Community Living Month 2024. Community Living Month - Minister's Visit to Kelowna Community Living Month - Minister's Visit to Kelowna

Therapuetic communities good or bad?

hi Stephanie. therapeutic communities are designed to treat people who have borderline personality disorder although some are for patients who have an eating disorders. treatment is residential and can take anywhere from 8-24 months. yes individual and group therapy are important parts of the treatment but that is not the only reason for choosing to live in a therapeutic community.

the hardest part is living as a 'family'; with the other residents. if you cut or OD at home you probably have no-one getting angry with you. BPD makes people selfish so a large part of the treatment is simply working on maintaining relationships within the group. at home it is easy to drop a friend if they do get angry that you have harmed yourself. it is easy to be cross with them and make yourself the victim.

in a community you will most likely have to apologise to the whole group, and staff, and then listen to what they think about you and how they feel. this is a new experience for many people with BPD and it takes a lot of guts and courage not to run for the hills or cut again. when other coping mechanisms are no longer available such as alcohol, drugs or sex then rage may follow.

therapeutic communities provide treatment every waking minute by expecting everyone to try to live in harmony, do chores, participate in group therapy, go to bed at a reasonable time and wake up at a normal waking time. if a person has spent years abusing substances, self harming and putting themselves in dangerous situations it can be the worst trigger if another resident harms themselves. they have to resist the urge to use self destructive behaviour and instead learn to cope emotionally.

no more storming out the house or running away.

when every coping mechanism you've relied on for years to be safe is no longer available that is when you start to learn healthy coping strategies and begin to mature emotionally OR you quit.

i have recovered from BPD following outpatient therapy. i went to look at a therapeutic community 10 years ago after my psychiatrist recommended it and i was accepted straight away without the usual 2 week stay to see if you fit in. the place i looked at was like a big family home with stacks of DVDs on the sitting room floor, a well stocked kitchen, single bedrooms and a dog and a cat. hobbies and voluntary work were encouraged.

i lost out because social services let me down at the last moment by refusing funding. i was packed and waiting to go! like i said though, i have recovered as an outpatient although i still have some issues i need to work on and i want to have more therapy. i wish i'd had the chance to go to the therapeutic community because i think my social problems would have been dealt with. when staff see you every day they are able to see which specific issues need addressing.

i recommend therapeutic communities to everyone with BPD or other qualifying conditions. BPD in particular needs residential treatment and although you may occasionally get a bed in an acute psych ward it is not a place where you will receive counselling or therapy. a lot of NHS money is wasted giving BPD patients bed and board on an acute ward. money would be saved and patient care improved if referral to a therapeutic community becomes the norm following a BPD diagnosis.

best wishes, A x

high school student in toronto looking to complete 40 hours community service?

high school student in toronto looking to complete 40 hours community service?

Hey ! I live in Toronto tooo! You could try the Toronto public library , your local one . They offer Youth Advisory Program (YGA), and most people just do it for the summer. Just go to the public library and ask if you can apply . they will make you fill out a form . and then you are in !

You can try your local community centre! I volunteered in my local community for 1 year ( I earned 30 hours) ! You just need to go up to community centre and ask what programs there are for volunteering. they have sooo many! also looks good you are helping your local neighbourhood.

And any political party in your local community . I live in the Scarbs area , so I help out Dan Harris (member of parliament represents scarb south west). It looks really good on the resume ! If you live in scarbs and want to volunteer here is the link: (you need nothing, just email them; they are looking for newly volunteering people to give them experience and a chance . :)

Or you can try a health care centre! I am applying to Providence Health Care Centre. And they offer a summer program 4 times a week! with 4 to 3 hours a day ! link: they will tell you all you need on their website. they need to you to fill up their form and have to references to call.

You can try the Art Gallery of Ontario. They are closed to volunteer this summer , but you can do that next summer ! It looks really great on your resume, and its hard to get in , so the trick is to apply early and have good references letters from your favourite teachers ! :)

You can also try other galleries or museums to volunteer in ! Such as ROM (royal Ontario museum) or the science centre ! both look excellent on the resume. just search them up and their website will pop up. they are kinda far depending on where you live (they are in the downtown area) , so if your mom is willing to drive you that is great! or taking the train is very easy ! get your mom to teach you the TTC system this summer because you are going to high school next year ! You should know for trips and such , they most of the time do not provide transportation depending on the board.

Just keep your eyes open for any oppurtunties. Like when you go outside and see buildings that are for social help and not for gain (like shops and stores obviously), and go in ask ," do you accept volunteers?" or "I would like to volunteer here , are there any programs for Youth? ".

I'll keep on thinking about opportunities and when I they come and I will edit and post them :)

btw ask your friends where they are volunteering ! that helps ! or if they have any ideas. Btw you are smart, finish your hours in grade 9 or 10 , because in grade 11 and 12 you don't have time seriously ! also try to get as many hours as possible and different opportunities , the more you volunteer the better it looks on the resume!

Most of the websites I provided, will tell you what you need on their website. Most of them require reference letters. So call up your teachers or someone close(adult) to write you a letter on why they recommend you for this offer.

ANNND I have another one :D my friend work here . You can try the Toronto long term health care and services!! Really looks good on your resume , its basically helping out the old are retired. Most even have a Youth program ! My friend does it at bendale acres. links :

Link for locations and application:

There are always volunteering opportunities :D You just need to be committed . For volunteering at a camp, there is no course you need to take for all that I know. But some camps do ask for interviews and reference letters. So just be prepared and do and bring everything they ask for and you shall be in :). I have a friend who volunteers in a camp this summer. They had her have a interviews and she had to give two reference letters.

Is 8 months too long for a Phlebotomy course?

Is 8 months too long for a Phlebotomy course?

Hmmmm.....8 months is a very long time! How many credit hours are they offering for it?

Are the other "colleges" those expensive, for-profit ones that charge an arm and a leg? If so, it's still more feasible to go through the community college, especially taking into consideration what the job market and salary for phlebotomists are. Especially since community college credits transfer to state universities and "credits" from places like Kaplan don't.

Holidays also on this date Wednesday, May 1, 2024...