THE FINAL COUNTDOWN

It's almost here.  Final preparations are being made. They have painted my room at the house. The put a new floor in. My doctor has to visit me. for the last time. Four weeks from this Sunday is July first. I am counting down. Months have turned into weeks. The weeks will turn into days. The days will turn into hours., The hours will turn into minutes. Then I will be free. I have prayed to be free since October 15, 2014. The day I was admitted. I can't wait. At the same time,, the reality is hitting me.  I am scared. 

I  will be completely on my own.  I will have to learn to manage my life. I will probably be on food stamps. I am not proud of having to rely on the government, for assistance.

I hope community-based Medicaid will allow me to earn my own money. If I earn too much I risk losing my housing. I worry about a lot of things. I guess that's the way life is for an adult. I have to believe that I will make it. If I have a positive attitude everything will be fine.

My needs after I transition are simple.

There will be good communication between my aides and me. 

My aides treat me with respect and dignity

My aides won't condescendingly talk to me.

My aides won't talk on their cell phones while they are assisting me. They won't make me feel that a phone conversation is more important than I am.

My aides won't make me feel degraded by not coming at night when I need them.

My aides will always remember that I a person, not just a body.

I will treat those who care for me with dignity and respect.  Providing care is a difficult job. I will appreciate the care they give me. I will never take them for granted.

I hope my aides will be in a good mood. I recognize that everyone bad days. I know that I do.  However, it gets old really quickly when I hear my aides talk about how much they do not want to be here. I listen to them and feel that I am somehow to blame for their unhappiness.

I will treat my housemates with dignity and respect.  I look forward to getting to know them.

I will miss my friends at NHC. I want to thank the staff who listened to me, who always made time for and never made feel that my concerns were not important.

Three and a half years have come down to four weeks. My story is proof that if you work hard enough dreams really do become a reality.