Joe

Monday, 17 August 2009 10:58

Joe has been entering our emergency shelter program at the Giltinan Center on and off for over fifteen years. Over the years he has had a variety of successes and setbacks that have allowed him to move out of the shelter; but have also caused him to move back into the shelter. Around ten years ago, Joe was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and he began to take medication. Unfortunately Joe did not like the side effects and quickly stopped taking this medication. For many years, Joe would travel between several cities, always finding work, working for a short period of time and losing the jobs based on symptoms related to his mental illness.
When Joe would return to the Giltinan Center, staff would try to encourage him to deal with his mental illness. Joe would always avoid this issue and state that he only needed to find a job. Joe is not atypical in that a lot of the men we see at the Giltinan Center need to work on more things than just employment; however, as men they feel being able to support themselves financially is the most important thing. Joe could always find work, keeping work long term always proved to be the issue.   

The last time Joe entered the Giltinan Center was several months ago. He came from Florida and stated he was home and wanted to stay home; he wanted to do whatever it would take to not feel like he had to run from city to city whenever he got, in his words, “too manic.” Joe worked with the case management staff at the Giltinan Center to set appointments with the community mental health provider; appointments he wanted to keep. Joe met with our staff nurse to discuss side effects he should expect and how to work with his doctor. to discuss any medication issues.

After several weeks, Joe said he began to slow down enough to see what everyone had been working with him on all these years. He applied for and received an apartment with Charleston housing. Last month, for the first time in over fifteen years, Joe moved into an apartment by himself that he could financially support long term. Joe continues to work with the Giltinan Center staff through the SHAPE program and occasionally volunteers time at RSLC. In a recent conversation with Joe, he stated he was finally happy and able to relax.