Judgemental? Moi?

Categories: uncategorized

Date: 05 March 2008 15:39:31

Yesterday I had to drive all the way up to HMP Norwich to go and do an assessment on a guy who I thought was complete and utter scumbag. Basically this individual has threatened to kill me in the past and he also nicked, and trashed, my bosses car after stealing his car keys out of his coat pocket.

So, I spent two and a half hours in the car driving there and the same back and by the time I got home I was so stiff and my back hurts loads that getting out of the car was a nightmare. Anyway, the main thing I want to say is that despite being a cynical, hard-hearted social worker and drug worker I am still constantly surprised by my clients. The last time I saw this client he was extremely threatening and he scared me quite a lot (one of only two clients who have ever done this to me). This time however I saw a very different version of this person. For a start he is drug and alcohol free and he talked a lot about his horrendous childhood which was basically characterised by abuse, taken into care (with more abuse whilst he was there) and then he first went to prison at the age of 16. He was so honest about the things that had happened to him and how he felt that I was very taken with the sheer amount of issues he had to work through. I was quite humbled by him and it was a stark reminder of how I need to be non-judgemental of my clients, even when they have been complete and utter pains in the backside in the past.