Happy December, happy holidays and happy end of the year. This is it, we are almost ready to close the 2016 chapter of our lives; only a couple more weeks. I hope 2016 was a prosperous and healthy year for you all. In my practice, we added staff and saw more clients this year than ever before. The need for services in our community seems to be never ending, and the slow December to catch up and get stuff done seems to be a thing of the past. Just last week marked the first anniversary of the San Bernardino shootings. We have received a few calls from people in the area or those that had witnessed the shooting that are still having a hard time. I understand from the Press Enterprise and personal accounts that some companies including the State of California are informing people that they no longer can receive services, medication, or take time off when life gets hard. That they “should be over it as it’s been a year.” Or “you should not be affected any longer because you didn’t work for the county.” Or “It was the County that was the target.” Obviously, these people do not understand trauma very well. I teach some of the new social workers for San Bernardino and they are frightened about the anniversary and effects it has on the people of this community. A client asked one of my clinicians if her unsettled feelings were normal! I was astonished. In my book, there is nothing normal about a shooting here or anywhere. Our feelings are what tell us we are in danger, that something is wrong, that our environment is unsafe. My office and home are about 10 miles away from this incident; it affected me. I can’t imagine going to work at the site every day and not having some feelings about it. I would encourage you all to reach out to your clients and to our community to help those people that are not getting the support they need. If any of you need additional support, call me and let’s talk. Sometimes what we do is hard. We can share a coffee and some time. Call me.
On a lighter note, IE-CAMFT chapter members please come to the Holiday Party that is coming up on December 10, 2016. It really is a fun event and a great way to enhance friendships. It very easy to do, just register on the IE CAMFT website like you do for the monthly seminar. Then pull out that old holiday hat and bring your $15.00 gift for the exchange and you’re ready to go. We will have great food, music, and fun, all at no charge.
Lastly, I wanted to thank the IE-CAMFT Board for all that you do to make this organization work so smoothly. I cherish each and every one of you for your unique contributions. If you are not on the board I would encourage you to come to one of our board meetings and see the inner workings. I would also encourage you to volunteer a little time. We can always use a few extra hands.
Again, happy holidays to you and yours…looking forward to a healthy, prosperous and joyous 2017.
