How it feels to have PDA

Good evening everyone!  

It's now been a fair few months since I was last on here, and for a good reason too... I have had the pleasure of working at Aurora Poppyfield School from the end of January to keep me busy, which I can say is very similar to Grafham Grange. Only with a fewer behavioural challenges. Unfortunately, my time there has now come to an end after Easter break due to permanent staff being hired in each class.

During my time at Poppyfield, I got to expand my knowledge of SEMH and how it differently affects different pupils in each class. Much like in every previous SEMH school settings I have worked in after Grafham. Also during my time working at Poppyfield, I got to gain more skills in working with students who happen to have something called Pathological Demand Avoidance, or PDA for short.

There was this one boy in year 7, who I was working closely with a majority of my time at the school, who had a complex level of needs. All of which include, ASD, ADHD, SEMH, Trauma, SPD, and of course... PDA. Obviously, I will not be naming this person for identification protection reasons, but I can share with you what I have learned about PDA just from spending time with this pupil, and turning it into another insightful post.

So, many of you reading this now will no doubt be thinking: "What on earth is PDA all about? I've never heard of it before." I'd say, try working with a pupil with PDA, then you'll find out for yourself.

To answer that question, PDA is where a person will avoid doing tasks and/or following instructions given by another person. Particularly from teachers. Although, it is important to keep in mind that people with PDA are not trying to be difficult in any way at all when it comes to not doing what they are told to do. This is because many kids living with PDA, are often overpowered anxiety, and in order to for them to feel safe & secure, they need to be in control of everything they are doing. 

To phrase the above explanation shorter, kids with PDA are constantly living in "survival mode".

As a good example, I'll use the pupil at Poppyfield I was working a lot with. He would almost NEVER go into the classroom to do any work, as his mind is constantly in survival mode whilst at school. And given the amount of needs this pupil has to cope with all at once, the very small demand of doing a simple worksheet will plunge him into overwhelm overdrive.

As a result, this pupil will do things to his own agenda just to feel secure, and in control to help him survive the school day without feeling threatened by anything that triggers his PDA. Even if this includes playing games with him all day. With that said, it's vitally important to be able to build trust with PDA pupils before you can even think about getting them to do what YOU want them to do.

God forbid, I know I have certainly struggled with this, and will probably still do to this day if I get to work with any PDA pupils again in the nearby future.

I hope everyone has found this little piece of PDA expertise helpful. Bye for now!

*I began this post on the 13/4, but didn't finish it until the 14/4*

The pros & cons of being an agency LSA

Hello everyone! Hope you're all doing well. Since I've been an agency LSA for a year now, I thought about doing a post based on everything I have learned about being an agency LSA, as well as talk about the pros & cons of the job.

To be more precise, I first began applying for agency LSA roles on the 3rd of November of last year, and got officially employed into my 1st one on the 8th of November (5 days later). For most part, I'd happily say that I'm enjoying it, as the role itself is genially rewarding by helping young people thrive in education. However, the job itself can be extremely demanding due to the lack of expectations that some school staff won't tell you about before you go into the school('s) to do your job. 

Without further ado, here are the pros & cons of being an agency LSA...

  Pros:

• Meeting new people everyday - One of the things I really love about my job as an agency LSA, is that I get to meet different pupils, and learn many things about them. I never know, I may even learn something from one of them or more!...

• Getting to know how each school's curriculum works - I enjoy absorbing the knowledge of how each I school I've been into is ran, as this will be useful for me to pass onto anyone who wants to know if those school settings should be recommended to their children or children they know. Moreover, different schools have different vibes!

• Seeing familiar faces - Some of the schools I have worked in, I have seen some young people that I know of from Challengers (my Saturday & holiday job). Again, I enjoy absorbing the knowledge of that some young people from most of the Challengers schemes I have worked at attend these school settings. 

Cons:

• Not getting enough time to know the pupils well - Most of the schools I have worked in (with the exception of Grafham Grange) have only been for 1 day here, a few days there & another few days somewhere else. On an honest level, I really love getting to know the pupils I work with well, as this helps me to build a good, positive & trusting relationship with them by understanding how their mind works. Especially when they eventually gain enough trust in me to be their listening ear if they need/want to offload their thoughts.

• Low expectations from teachers - The one thing that really frustrates me the most about being an agency LSA, is that the teachers in the classes I get put into do not explain to me how best to be proactive in the class or how best to engage with each pupil. All this does is not only set me up to fail if I'm doing one or more days of trail shifts, but feel like I'm only present in the class as a "spare part".

• Little - no support from agencies - Another thing that really frustrates me about this line of work, is that some agencies (and I've registered onto about 10 different ones during October) will be very dismissive of your needs/requests. In the case of some agencies I'm with, I say to them that I specifically do not want to be placed into a school where I have to work with screaming non-verbal children, as I do not have much experience of working with them, but they'll still do it anyway when they call me up asking if I am available to work on the day they call me, all simply because for the purpose of the school giving THEM wages when these agencies fill school classes up with agency LSA's to fill in the holes, as well as keep the schools running as normal.

That pretty much wraps up this post. Hope you all find these pros & cons useful just in case you work in this industry to, or even thinking about it. 

I shall be back soon with another post!

*I began this post on the 18/11, but didn't finish it until the 19/11*

The lighter side of SEMH

Hello everyone! Hope your week is getting off to a great start, as well as the first 6 days of October.

From the 1st - 3rd of October, I had the privilege to work 3 days at an independent SEMH school in Dorking. Although I didn't get offered a contract to work at the school, I enjoyed spending time with the pupils, as well as get to learn about how their SEMH needs impact their learning. 

This was where I got to see a more lighter side of SEMH, compared to the other SEMH school I worked at for 6 months.

My main inspiration for doing this post, was how blown away I was by seeing a completely different side of SEMH, as appose to the stereotypical disruptive behaviour, swearing & frequent deregulations.

The different side of SEMH included loads of politeness, wanting to engage in lessons & thriving on consistent routine.

Yes, I have seen very few deregulations whilst I was working there, but those deregulations will always be a part of SEMH kids, as this is their natural response to them being or finding something that is overwhelming them, and need to let out some energy to regulate themselves again. For example, taking a movement break.

I know I have mentioned this in a few previous SEMH posts whilst I was working at Grafham Grange, as I am continually putting this message out there for everyone reading to acknowledge (I suppose you can call me an SEMH activist at this stage).

As this is also an 'independent' school setting, the staff highly or fully expect all of their students to follow the structure & routine without needing any assistance. That being said, a majority of the pupils are capable of doing work on their own.

So, the morale of this post, is to understand that no SEMH person presents with the same behaviour. Especially in different school settings.

An insight to SEMH: A new journey

Hello everyone! Well, what can I say, it's obviously been a long time since I was last active on here. And there are 2 reasons why...

I suppose the 1st one being I couldn't be bothered.

The 2nd one, however, is because I now have a weekday job in a SEMH school. To be more precist, I began this new job on the 25th of November of last year.

Since I have a day of nothing today, (which rarely happens anymore these days!😂) I thought I'd make use of it by utilizing the time to make this post. 

As the above title states, I will be talking about the 'ins & outs' of SEMH. I will also be sharing how much I have learned about SEMH.

You're probably asking: "What does SEMH stand for?"

SEMH stands for Social, Emotional & Mental Health.

Now you're asking: "What is Social, Emotional & Mental Health?"

Social, Emotional & Mental Health is a complex mental health condition, where people experience significant struggles with managing their behaviour & emotions. Alongside this, they may show inappropriate behaviour & language when it comes to reacting to a demand that they do not want to do. An example of this could be being told to undertake 3 pages of Maths work.

A person with SEMH will often feel anxious & insecure most of the time, as they feel like they are no good at anything due to all of the trauma, humiliation & shame that they have experienced whilst growing up. Moreover, they will most likely feel intimidated by other people who seem "normal" to them. Or even try to compare themselves to any "normal" person.

In no way at all are people with SEMH bad with an unruly attitude, they are simply scared by all of the trauma & abuse that they have been through in their early stages of life. Even I can say for myself that I've seen/heard people with SEMH do incredible things! For example, they can obtain phenomenal knowledge about an industry that they are interested in. Especially the practical industries.

It is essentially mindful to know when you encounter a person with SEMH being dysregulated, they are NOT doing it with the intention of choosing to cause disruption. They are in that emotional state, because they have no other coping mechanisms. This is what is known as a "fight or flight" response.

All in all, people living with SEMH want to be like other people, as well as to be able to do things that other people do. In my opinion there isn't nearly enough SEMH awareness out there, so this is half the reason why I have made this post.

For those of you who have found this topic/post interesting, thank you for reading through, and I do plan on making more posts associated with SEMH in the future. 

Just bare in mind that I am only 3 months into this journey, so I wouldn't say I obtain a professional knowledge. I am still in the process of learning something new about SEMH everyday whilst at work. As for somebody who has been into psychology for 6 years now, I am very much looking forward to be riding on this journey...

Conversations In The Community Review + Key Takeaways (A MIND accredited online course)

Hello all! As the above title states, I will be distributing what I have learned, as well as include some key takeaways/points from an online course that I have managed to complete recently.

A little backstory for you here, I was working at my MIND store one day back in July, and I happen to glace up at a poster which was advertising an online course associated with MIND. Me, being the curious-minded person I am, only decided to scan the QR code on the poster to see what the said course (in the above title) was all about. Then me, also being the scatter-brained (sometimes) person that I am, only managed to get through 1/5 modules the next day, before ending up not getting around to doing it again until a week ago.  

*This was the only convenient picture I could find on the internet*

What was the online course about? Conversations In The Community is purely about educating people about the best ways of beginning, flowing & ending conversations with other people. And this can be having a conversation with anybody at all, regardless if they are struggling with their mental health or not. Moreover, this course goes into fish tank depth about the pros & cons of forming a conversation with somebody in the community. (I'll bullet point them later in this post)

How did the online course provide me with useful information? The online course provided me with a lot of tips of how to make a good & effective conversation. The information had also stated that it is important to bare in mind no conversation ever HAS to be perfect, as there isn't such thing as a 'perfect conversation'. The useful tips had included respecting the person's or your own boundaries, never ask leading questions, always remind the person that your there for them & try to show interest.

Would I feel more confident about starting my own conversations In the community? In a word, definitely! To further extend my reasoning, I will now remind myself to always begin a conversation to anyone by using open questions, like: "Hiya, how has your day been today?" or "Hey, how has life been for you lately?"

What are the pros & cons of forming conversations?

Pros:

• Finding a suitable environment
• Allowing the person to take their time
• Asking open questions
• Reminding the person you'll be always be there for them
• Respecting your person's privacy 
• Giving yourself an appropriate time

Cons:

• Being insulting
• Comparing your person's struggles to everyone else's
• Asking leading questions that will make your person feel uncomfortable 
• Not showing interest
• Violating your person's privacy
• Not going through the flowing & ending process in the conversation

What have I learned? As I have mentioned earlier, I have learned that any form of conversation doesn't NEED to be perfect, as long as I make the effort to actually make any form of conversation at all. And as long as the person I am having a conversation with is satisfied with everything, then I will be more than happy.

I have also learned that conversations are more effective when you allow your person to have their preferences. This is to provide them with empowerment that will make them feel comfortable & secure prior to a conversation. An example of this could be allowing your person to convey the conversation in a wide open green space, where they feel more comfortable by knowing that nobody else is going to invade the private conversation.

Finally, I have learned that you are entitled to setting your own boundaries when it comes to finding the most convenient time to form a conversation with somebody. This is important because you must consider you self-care before thinking about beginning a conversation with somebody. Especially when you know in advance that you are going to be having an emotionally draining conversation with somebody who is fighting depression.

Conclusion: Even though I was inattentive towards the online course when I have first started it back in July, I have found it really interesting & enjoyable throughout when I had eventually got my inattentive self round to getting through the rest of it, and managed to complete it on Wednesday. (The day before my birthday!) After doing the course, I feel more confident about forming conversations with people whenever I go out & about into the community. Although I know in the back of my mind that is easier said than done, as I still consider myself to be a shy person when having a random conversation with anyone out in the community. That being said, I can easily just shrug it off, and just focus on making conversation.

If anybody would like to develop better conversation forming skills when out & about in the community, I definitely recommend doing this course! Direct access link: https://www.conversationsinthecommunity.org.uk/

The psychology behind sign communication

Evening everyone! I hope you're all enjoying your week so far, whatever you're getting up to. As for me, I have the fun demand of attending 4 training courses this week. I have attended 2/4 so far, which were fire marshal training & introduction to sign language. The remaining 2 I have to attend are moving people training & crisis drills training.

The purpose behind these training sessions is to make me feel more responsible while working at my job. To be more precise here, I actually have 3 jobs at the moment, and 1 of them consists of being a play worker at a disability play scheme. (Hence these said training courses) 

But looking at the introduction to sign language training course in particular, I have learned today (when I had attended the training course) that there is a ton of psychology involved with understanding sign communication. When I was reflecting on my training later I had finished, I thought I could disclose what I had learned in my introduction to singing training course onto here, so you guys (who are interested) could learn a few things about signing for yourself!

Why people communicate with their hands:

At around some point in life, you are guaranteed to come across somebody who is non-verbal, and therefore, can only communicate using their hands. Word of advice here for everyone: "Just because they cannot verbally talk, doesn't mean they cannot understand our verbal communication." If nobody was to ever understand hand communication in this world, then try putting yourselves into the non-verbal hand communicator's shoes and see how frustrating the outcome will be for them, as they will end up feeling isolated & alone due to them not feeling a part of anything. This is where the importance of needing to understand hand communication comes into play. By doing so to another non-verbal hand communicator, you'll be making them feel more welcome by taking away their burden of not feeling like they can confidently communicate.

Why people communicate with picture symbols:

Now lets discuss picture symbols. Again, these are commonly used by non-verbal communicators, because they provide visual context of what that person wants/needs. For example, if they are using picture symbols to ask someone what toy they would like to play with. Another way of a non-verbal communicator using picture symbols, is to visually grasp what is happening throughout each day. Or a day schedule, if you like. Where I work at a disability play scheme on a Saturday, I have seen a few people who use picture symbols to communicate with people. (Myself included) In my view, I think that picture symbols are a useful form of communication, as not everyone can understand verbal communication all of the time, right? And pictured symbols helps you to, well, put pictures inside your head. For example, a picture of somebody eating. This helps us to understand that the non-verbal communicator wants something to eat.  

I think I've covered everything for this post, so I'll conclude it here.

I hope all of you have found this post beneficial to you to use in the future when it comes to communicating with non-verbal people. In my case, I am still in the learning process of signing, as there is literally a LOT to cover. This was especially during my introduction to signing training.

*I began this post on Tuesday, (25/7/23) but I finished it on the 28/7/23*

Turns out that learning about psychology is just a hobby...

Good TGIF everyone! I know it's been 3 weeks since I had last made a post on here, let alone being active on here at all. To put simply, my worklife basically took over me. This meant I barely had enough time to be blogging on my site. Plus, I was away for 10 days just to kick back & relax from my busy life, which was indeed much needed! That aside, I've been feeling pretty good about myself lately.

As of now, I currently have enough down time to be active on here, as well as being able to make a post. And this post (as the above title states) shall be dedicated to something that I have learned recently in terms of the very topic of psychology. 

As it turns out, learning psychology is just a hobby...

What makes learning about psychology a hobby? 

Overall, I would say that learning in general can be classified as a hobby. This is because you can learn about something by reading, researching or just doing something practical to learn about something you want to do.

Going back on topic here, in terms of psychology being a hobby, there is a huge amount of creativity that plays a part in psychology. Being creative in something can also be classified as a hobby, as it shows you enjoy creating with things.  

*This post actually began on the 21/7/23, but got published on the following day (22/7/23)*