Glass Half Full Program.
Facilitation and support for young men and teenage boys
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A strengths-based approach has a simple premise – identify what has, and what is going well, do more of it, and build on it. Strengths are positive factors, both in the individual and in the environment, which support healthy development. (Barwick, 2004).
Male-focused approaches respond to the fact boys are different from girls and some of the challenges they face in growing up are different and need different responses. A strengths-based male-focused approach will pay particular attention to the unique strengths boys and young men have, and develop them further(Barwick, 2004).
PROGRAM:
Caveman Syndrome:
The guts of the ‘Glass Half Full’ program is a strengths based positive overview of a young person’s life. The program looks at many of the issues surrounding young people as arising from an absence or limitations of positive thinking and acting’ along with a crucial time of brain / hormonal development. This stage of development often leaves young men with what we call the ‘Caveman Syndrome’. One syllable grunting, untidy unresponsive human beings who spend most of their time in their cave (bedroom).
Aggressive tendencies often thrown the way of the ones young people love most are incredibly difficult periods for families to cope with. The light at the end of the tunnel seems a long way off and many breaking points and family feuds take place in these few years whilst the adult brain and adult physical specimen form.
Being a caveman is ok. The way Glass Half Full deals with this period is to allow for these behaviors to play out..whilst being often reminded that even though such behaviour is understood and tolerated to certain degrees, the individual is on notice and overt acts of aggression, meanness, rudeness, or non compliance will need to be personally accounted for and acted upon.
We work through this period with love patience and a firm handle on unacceptable social and private behaviour. We continue to work with the young person’s qualities, attributes and strengths whilst accepting that there may also be a period of time where parents and facilitators alike can only ‘keep the space open’. By this we mean accepting that for an unknown period of time things amongst families may not be the same as accustomed to.
This could mean a letting go of the issues and problems currently existing and simply allowing for the individual to play out this difficult time in their lives whilst maybe taking a backseat and simply being an ‘observant’ who is there to create a safe passage and offer the most basics of support whilst this period unfolds.
Dietary needs, cleanliness, health concerns, education responsibilities and a set of minimal family / social expectations would be offered without either making a big deal of it, or expecting anything back in return apart from previous agreements made in regards to behaviour on what is and what isn’t acceptable.
We will also be using various established strengths based asset tools including maps, resources, charts, affirmations, timelines, agreements, humour, stories, music and magic amongst others to create better outcomes.
Most young people get through this stage and turn into loving respectful young adults and take their rightful place back into the family fold. However if the young person refuses to carry out the bear minimal of requirements to fulfill their part of the programme and life’s risk factors’ begin to outweigh life’s protective factors’ then case management or outreach support may be necessary.
Feeling good’ can be an incredibly difficult place to find and even more difficult place to hold onto. The things we enjoy, embrace, dream about, wish for, and can obtain are some of the tools which Glass Half Full attempts to utilise and embellish to produce better outcomes.
A process of upbeat communication, open ended conversations, non intimidatory environments and safe spaces allows for negative traits and aggressive behaviour to be temporarily neutralised and viewed as an external concern. Eg the person is not the problem’ the problem is the problem.)
This process allows for safe autonomous zones to exist and positivity to breed. Feeling good allows for a more empathic and conscious human being to develop and mature. Ongoing monitoring throughout and the possible inclusion of outreach services and other supportive organisations may speed up this process of development over a longer period of time if necessary.
The Glass Half Full approach to mental health is a realistic one. Whilst we understand that certain individuals simply cannot gain full functional lives without some type of diagnosis and medication, we prefer initially to treat each individual as a fully capable resilient functioning human being, who, with the correct care, focus, commitment patience and love can remain in the community they are part of, living a full active lifestyle free from the strains and shackles of institutionalised care and incarceration.
Through this programme young persons can expect to receive:
*a more positive view of the world
* the tools to support and initiate better outcomes
* greater understanding of the risk / protective factors which may include:
– personal factors
– home factors
– community factors
– school factors
* personal measures to diffuse anger and aggressive behaviour
* a bigger picture of those affected by their own behaviour
* better resilience and coping mechanisms
* relationship improvements
Program Process:
- EXPLORATION / explore the issues / relationships / contexts
- GOAL SETTING / TIMELINES / what would all parties like to achieve and by when
- DESIGN / strategies / maps / assets / resources / requirements
- REVIEW / referrals / outreach / KPI’s / progress reports / closure
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KOL DIMOND:
Being a father of three my adult life since my early twenties has had children in it. In recent years i have completed a Cert. 3 Cert 4. and a Diploma in Community Services, along with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Social Science majoring in Governance and Policy.
My employment history in this field has been regular volunteering with various youth clubs and local centres along with four years of working with the Tweed Family Centre as a Youth Facilitator on their RealSkills year 8 and year 10 High Schools program. I worked on these programs at various High Schools including Byron High, Mullumbimby High, Kingscliff, Tweed, Murwillumbah, Wollumbin and Richmond between 2009 and 2014.
I followed these programs up by facilitating a much smaller group of teenage boys in each of these schools over an eight week period. The groups combined potential leaders along with others who we believed could benefit from some close male group bonding. We hung out, played games, discussed relevant personal issues, ate lunch and had a heap of fun in a safe and positive environment.
PEACE AND OUT.
kol dimond 