is working with mental health care fun?

Question

i think i want a job like that

Answer 1

It really depends upon your definition of fun. Of all the words I can think of to describe the jobs I've had in the mental health field, "fun" is not one of the ones on the top. There are some amusing moments. I won't lie and there are some times in which it can be fun. I worked in a community reintegration program and I worked with a schizophrenic client with mental retardation (high functioning) who had his licensed revoked. All he talked about was driving again. I couldn't let him drive anywhere, so we went to play on go-karts and he had a blast! So, yes, that was fun. But those moments are few and far between.
In most of my jobs, I go home feeling exhausted, but rewarded. There is a certain satisfaction when people thank you for your help or start to improve. But there are also times in which I went home in tears.
I am a little concerned about the above answerer. People with mental illness are no more likely to be violent than the general population. It is not inevitable that you will be assaulted (I actually was, but that was 1 person out of the 100s I've encountered).

Answer 2

YES I worked thirty years in the field of mental health and developmental disabilities. Know that you never get rich from this type of work but the rewards are immeasurable.

To see someone make progress is a reward. To hear thank you when a person comes back several years later just to tell you things are better is a reward.

You don't have to have a degree to work in the field, but you would be a technician the most of your life. I started out at that level and with my degree moved up until I was supervising treatment homes. The technicians are hard workers who are at the front line of the successes.

Answer 3

No, it is not fun. Unlike the Robin Williams's version that I'd love to have worked with..............the reality is that it is hard work. One must have the patience that never ends, be under stress at all times, with eyes in the back of your head. You must have a great sense of when a complaint is very important, and when it is just attention 'getting'. You must realize that being beaten up, at least once, is probably part of the job. You must love people who seem unlovable by most people. If you cannot do this, you should never consider the job.

Answer 4

Fun? I guess that depends on your idea of fun.

Fulfilling, challenging, interesting? Definitely.