letting ya know a lil "personal" stuff about me...

[Drew]

i know there are some pretty warm and decent human beings on here and also perhaps say 90% that are all about bravado( maybe too high a percentage but im just guessing)..

anyway what im saying is perhaps this isnt the place to share stuff that is important to us outside of football but i would like to become friends with as many folks as possible and at this point i would like to share something....

as some may know ive had mental health issues well aslong as i can remember(pre-teens) my mother was in a mental health hospital in L.A. when i was born...and i have bi-polar effective disorder as well as other mental health issues, anyway....for the last 5 years ive been written off in the employment stakes because of it(and maybe to a degree my brawls with cancer),its been eating me up that i havent been able to do the things i love like my Teaching...i have tried to put my self in the ground on way too many occassions because have felt that if i cant help people then,my life is meaningless....


anyway....on monday i started back as a teacher (the other areas authority wrote me off...i moved but wherever i went it was like oooooh...and altho they couldn`t visually discriminate against me,they found a way!)

to be a teacher again means the world to me and have been moved to tears in private,thinking about how ive been written off at nearly every place ive been and sometimes by myself,yet someone took a chance on me and all feedback from them so far is that they are more than pleased that they did!



sorry if this is not something youve wanted to read but i just wanted to share!

[laram0]

Many Congrats on your new teachers position.

[Drew]

thanks LA.Ram,

is not a regular teaching gig...i teach kids with mental health etc.. issues, skills like...farming,cooking,gardening etc....

have been teaching kids how to milk cows and drive tractors so far this week(the ones old enough to drive anyway..)

horse riding lessons is on the agenda for the rest of the week...have been in this field since i left the army at 23(yes being mental is a good thing in the army! ),i love it and it feels good to be back doing it!

[Jonze]

great turn of events for you man! congratulations! Rock!

[Drew]

cheers dude

[badmoforamfan]

I love to meet people with passion. Sounds like you've got quite the passion for teaching. I like that. Good luck.

[RamFan_Til_I_Die]

Wow drew, that's some heavy stuff....sounds like you've had more than your share of battles....glad to see you've came out on top and continued to fight...don't ever give up and don't ever think that your life is meaningless...it only seems like that when times are at their darkest...you have people that love you, and losing you would shatter their lives

I think it's great you found somewhere you can be a mentor and teacher, I'm sure you'll do a great job...keep up the good work!

[ramsplaya16]

DUDE! can i be in your class? we dont have farming in s. Fla. but you never know but in all seriousness im very happy for you that you got the job. congrats

[UtterBlitz]

Hey Drew....the path is not always an easy one and some people are tested more than others. I am sure you have a lot to share with these kids and I am glad that you have the opportunity to teach again. I would enjoy working outdoors and with horses and animals.

Hope it goes well for you.
Renee

[Drew]

I love to meet people with passion. Sounds like you've got quite the passion for teaching. I like that. Good luck.

when you get the reward of seeing what it means to someone that they have learnt a new skill,then the passion comes easy...

i guess the fact that im "one of them" that made it somehow,isnt lost on them ya know...

[Drew]

Wow drew, that's some heavy stuff....sounds like you've had more than your share of battles....glad to see you've came out on top and continued to fight...don't ever give up and don't ever think that your life is meaningless...it only seems like that when times are at their darkest...you have people that love you, and losing you would shatter their lives

I think it's great you found somewhere you can be a mentor and teacher, I'm sure you'll do a great job...keep up the good work!

when i done it in the past i got promoted a lot and ended up basically just in an office,the pay was a lil bit better,but i prefer to have less pay and be more hands on,interacting....

dont worry bout me talking about "my life being meaningless" etc....its just that ive learnt what helps me more than anything and thats helping kids and young adults, i dont have any family apart from 2 nieces and a sister(i see my nieces because they play their mother up if they cant come to visit me y) but my sister dont want to bother with me....stigma i guess ....

i do fight like jackie youngblood to stay well on a daily basis,is a complex thing,bi-polar ya know...

you guys think 3-13 was bad on you,combine that with being a manic depressive! lol

[Drew]

Hey Drew....the path is not always an easy one and some people are tested more than others. I am sure you have a lot to share with these kids and I am glad that you have the opportunity to teach again. I would enjoy working outdoors and with horses and animals.

Hope it goes well for you.
Renee

hiya renee,

thank you
x

(had to sneak a lil kiss in,wouldnt go down so well if i tried it out on the boys! tho maybe bigred would like it....)

theres a bond with the youngsters...they can tell im "one of them" methinks...
rightly or wrongly i figure regular people can get by without me,i feel needed with them and thats a special feeling!

i have been off meds since november i know its not curable but deemed to be atleast containable to a degree by meds and i should be on the big combo of Lithium,mood stabilisers etc....but just had enough of taking pills after all these years ya know....needed to just be the "naked" me, warts and all so to speak ,am not better as in im fine now,but i never fail people when they need me...(well maybe i did my wife...) so i tend to only come "un-glued" at home...which is fine because waylon my ragdoll cat(have to have a part of cali with me!) likes to lick my tears!


maybe someday i`ll find another woman to hold me and stuff ya know but at this point im better off with just me and waylon....he doesnt shout when i screw things up!


drew
x

[Drew]

DUDE! can i be in your class? we dont have farming in s. Fla. but you never know but in all seriousness im very happy for you that you got the job. congrats

cheers dude!

im hoping in the future to get a tennessee walker on the farm...dont know how well that will go done with the financial people but well they are the best horses in the world IMHO..

there are a few nice horses in the stables there,but well not a T.W!

[UtterBlitz]

Hey Drew I understand your desire to off meds and you may be able to control your situation, but do remember your actions and attitudes towards meds will be seen by the kids. You want to give them the best chance at dealing with their own situations and meds have a role in stablizing mental issues, as you already know.

I am glad that you have waylon there with you to keep you company.

I am hoping that you don't get BRM started in this thread. He loves attention including those scary belly dancing outfits.

[Keenum]

Pretty nice story man.
I do a bit of private tutoring (but it's all academics), including a kid with A.D.D., so I know it can be interesting at times helping out!