Annie in wonderland

Real Advice from Experienced Support Workers The following advice comes directly from experienced support workers. These are real insights, shared to help new workers navigate the challenges of the job. Support work is incredibly rewarding, but it also comes with its own unique pressures. Learning from those who have been in the field can make all the difference. Document everything —it protects you. Don’t assume a client knows how to do something—always check and support them as needed. If you go off script (e.g., making decisions that aren’t yours to make), the responsibility falls on you, not management. Label everything if you want it to come home. Avoid wearing your best clothes to work—they will get stained. There will be a lot of paperwork, so staying organized is key. Keeping on top of everything is challenging, but it’s an important part of the role. Listen to experienced staff , but don’t be afraid to bring fresh ideas to the table. You don’t “own” shifts or cli...

Hidden Disabilities Sunflower - Wikipedia BBC - The Social - Sunflower lanyards - what are they for? HDS - Global                                           Hidden Disabilities Sunflower - Wikipedia  So often in my "out and about" content on YouTube, you’ll see me wearing a lanyard that looks like this. People often ask what it's for, and the answer is that it signals I have hidden disabilities. It's been a game-changer for me. Even in Aldi, the cashier slows down, even though I'm with a support worker. While it took me a while to feel comfortable wearing it, the people in my personal life have been supportive—especially when others notice it and help by letting me go to the front of the queue. I'm rarely unsupervised, but the lanyard helps if I get lost, overwhelmed, or need assistance from a stranger. From my understanding, it started in the UK at Gatwick Airport after a passen...

The photos below are what you're going to need for a small group to make bookmarks, this is an activity that myself and my housemates do and then family members laminate them, and cut them up so for some people even peeling a sticker off a sheet is an achievement. So you're going to need a coloured stiff paper or cardboard and to cut to size, I am not sure of the size but you could have a discussion around the size needed in the small group and talk about measurements, then a support worker could laminate them and if the clients are safe with scissors they could be cut up, they could take them home as gifts or what we do is that we hand them around the primary schools for book week and this year my aim is to go for a drive to the small one-teacher schools for book week and hand them out.  I haven't included the laminating sheets or the laminator as I am assuming well-equipped day services will have a laminator in the office, for doing basic communication boards and toilet e...

Life Update: Managing Health, Learning, and Self-Advocacy This year, I’m focusing on getting my health back on track, working closely with my care teams to improve my daily routines, sleep, and overall well-being. Managing chronic conditions is complex, and while I’ve been lucky to have people in my personal life who support me—getting me to appointments, cooking meals, and helping me navigate everything—it’s still a long road. One of my biggest struggles is sleep . Chronic pain, neuropathy , and Sjögren’s syndrome make it difficult, and while I can distract myself during the day with content creation, crafting, and study, nighttime is another story. The best way I’ve found to describe neuropathy is: Imagine you’ve sat on an ant nest. They’re crawling all over you, and you’re desperately trying to brush them off. But because neuropathy is a nerve problem, you can’t brush them off. Then, your hands start burning and going numb. Since I have new readers, here’s a quick rundown of my ...

  Dr. Jordan Peterson’s rule, “Tell the truth—or at least don’t lie,” has profound implications in the world of disability. But first, let’s acknowledge that truth is complex. There’s your side, their side, and the objective truth. To navigate this, we need a moral framework—whether it’s Christianity, Judaism, Islam, The Way (as referenced in The Mandalorian ), or another guiding principle. The real question is: How do we determine what is true? Knowing Your Disability: Diagnosis, Masking, and Accountability In the disability space, truth begins with knowing and acknowledging your diagnoses. This means investing time and money into obtaining official diagnoses, understanding their impact, and distinguishing between a medical condition and a disability. Sometimes they overlap, but they can also be entirely separate. One of the greatest challenges in disability is masking . Many people with ADHD or autism learn to “mask” their symptoms, appearing neurotypical while silently exhaustin...

  Over the weekend, a friend of mine posted a rant online, and with their consent, I’m sharing my thoughts about it here. They talked about a friend who had “gone dark” to test if people would notice their absence. If no one reached out, the friend would "dump" those who hadn’t checked in. This behaviour raises many questions about friendship. Yes, sometimes it’s frustrating to feel like you’re the one always initiating contact, but life gets busy. My friend, for example, juggles work, raises children, runs a household with pets, and volunteers in the community. It’s not always easy for people to make time, even if they care deeply. A simple phone call or message—like saying, “Hey, we haven’t seen each other in ages!”—can go a long way. Starting a group chat is another great way to stay connected. However, for people with disabilities, especially those with ASD, ADHD, or depression, initiating contact can be incredibly hard. That’s where compassion comes in. This friend of mi...

   Hey all, this is going to be a controversial post, and it ties into the overview of the podcast this year. There are some dangerous lines that you shouldn’t utter in front of management. In support and care work, I’ve learned from talking with support workers that there is never truly “nothing to do.” So here are some suggestions for support workers in in-home care or SIL homes. I want to address something I’ve heard people say: “I’m not a cleaner,” or “I can’t do that because of an injury.” If that’s the case, it’s worth asking: is it safe for you to continue as a support worker, or should you focus on roles like community access? There are no ifs, buts, or maybes around this—personal care and cleaning are a significant part of the job, even in community access. Many people see support work glorified on social media and only realise later that it involves much more effort, cleaning, and planning than they anticipated. When it feels like there’s “nothing to do,” that’s o...

I Am a Disabled Content Creator: Podcast Insights on Ethics in Support Work As a disabled content creator, I often draw inspiration for my podcast from personal experiences. Today, I want to explore the ethics of support work—a topic deeply tied to the realities of my life. Some of my housing team, who are pushed forward by our provider despite lacking the necessary training, struggle to de-escalate difficult behaviours. Despite a doctor’s note and my advocacy efforts, progress has been slow due to red tape and regulations surrounding harmful practices. These situations often leave low-support-needs clients like myself bearing the brunt of the fallout. Before you wonder why I’m discussing this online, it’s worth considering that many people haven’t spoken with those directly impacted by poorly trained support workers. Often, the issue isn’t what they do—it’s what they don’t do. This lack of action underpins the need to thoroughly examine ethics in support work. By unpacking what ethic...

 This is my current deep dive, and I look forward to finding an answer. A young person in my life asked an innocent question, and it sent me on a profound path, resharpening my research skills. The question was: if a community nurse comes into a Supported Independent Living (SIL) home and trains the staff to perform a medical task, say injections or simple wound care, and the client is harmed by a support worker carrying out that task, who is to blame? This seemingly simple question raises a host of ethical and practical issues: Was the training adequate? Were the staff paying attention during training? Was the nurse qualified to train others, or were they a registered nurse rather than a nurse educator? Were there enough resources, like time and hygiene, to safely perform the task? What role do the overall cleanliness of the house and the behaviour of other residents play in this? But then the bigger questions arise: Where does one go to report harm? Whose code of ethics applies? ...

  Any Support Workers Reading List This started out as a bit of a joke, but as I started talking about it, I realised it’s surely needed for people new to support work who need resources to develop their skills. The most important document to read is the person’s case notes and plan. People often say not to share your plan; I get the reasoning behind not sharing fiscal details, but how can support workers be effective if they don’t know your goals? How can they truly support someone? It’s also crucial to read the instructions for any assistive technology the person uses. Don’t just assume you know how to use it. This equipment can be expensive, and you may be responsible for the replacement cost if you break it. Other essential resources to review include: The NDIS Code of Ethics The NDIS Onboarding Modules The person’s medication routine Any positive behaviour support plan's  Any meal time management needs If a client has a social media presence ( like I do  please read ...