Are you Left outside?

Kuusamo / Picture by Katja Mattila

Have you ever felt like an outsider? Like you don’t belong into the society? Like there’s no place for you and you don’t know what you should do with your life. Maybe you could try to move somewhere else to get a job or a place to study in. Maybe it doesn’t work out no matter how hard you try and you get depressed and stop trying after a while. What happens then?

The reasons for why someone is excluded from the society are a bit different for everyone. There can be similarities of course but the story behind it is always unique. I just wanted to share my story because I believe in honesty and openness. Without the help I got during my life I wouldn’t probably be where I am now. A happy place, in a school that I love surrounded by intelligent and warm people and getting all the help I need. It wasn’t an easy process but I just want to say that it is possible and there are working services out there.

Back in 2009 when I still lived in Kuusamo I had an experience where I felt I was in danger of becoming excluded from society. That didn’t luckily happen because I got the help that I needed before I fell in too deep. I was taken care of and listened to by very talented people that helped me to find my way again. The service I got which was called rehabilitative work is a service that got me back on track again. I looked up what services there are now and I found this social rehabilitation service in Kuusamo.

“Social rehabilitation is one of the services of the Social Welfare Act that entered into force in 2015. By law, social rehabilitation is defined as enhanced support through social work and social guidance to strengthen social capacity, combat exclusion and promote inclusion.”

“Social rehabilitation services according to the Social Welfare Act, social rehabilitation includes:

  1. To find out the level of customers social capacity and need for rehabilitation
  2. Rehabilitation counseling and If needed coordination of rehabilitation services
  3. Coaching to cope with everyday activities and managing life
  4. Group activities and support for social interaction
  5. Other necessary measures to promote social rehabilitation

Social rehabilitation of young people supports the placement of young people in work, work trial, study, workshop or rehabilitation and prevents them from dropping out.” (http://www.kuusamo.fi/sosiaalinen-kuntoutus)

That is basically, in short, the services that I got. I had a place I got to go every morning to. I got work experiment from jobs I was interested in, got new friends who were in the same situation and felt connected to the society again. The funny thing is I didn’t actually see how good I got it until now later when thinking about this part of my life after a long time.

It is easy to complain about things and only to see the bad things around us. I am on the same page as Anne that there is room for improvement but I just wanted to tell you that there is also hope. There are lots of people who have received help and are getting it right now. And people who get help most likely want to help others too! Which is exactly what happened to me. And there are lots of good services in a place as small as Kuusamo too.

References:

http://www.kuusamo.fi/sosiaalinen-kuntoutus

Kuusamo / Picture by Katja Mattila

Suurin osa Showcasen blogeista on toteutettu osana Laurean opintojaksoja. Koko koulutustarjontaamme voi tutustua nettisivuillamme. Tarjoamme kymmenien tutkintoon johtavien koulutuksien lisäksi myös paljon täydennys- ja erikoistumiskoulutuksia sekä yksittäisiä opintojaksoja avoimen AMK:n kautta!

4 ajatusta aiheesta “Are you Left outside?”

  1. Riitta Järnström

    Thank you Katja, I really liked your text. It is a good combination of own experience and referencing. I am happy to know that there are services available also in smaller municipalities.
    I think many of us can relate to the feeling of being an outsider. It is good that we can utilize our experiences in our future work:)

    1. Thank you for your comment Riitta. I really wanted to point out that there are also good things out there and these services can really make a difference in peoples lives. Our experiences are a really important thing to utilize in our future jobs as professionals.

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