Ever since the start of Freshman year, I have wanted to major in psychology. I’ve always wanted to be a therapist, but I always thought that the psychology route would be the best way to go.

However, now, after interviewing several different mental health professionals, and doing an AP Psychology project on a career in social work, I know that it’s the absolute best option for me in order to do exactly what I strive to do. There are unlimited job opportunities for people with social work degrees- Masters especially. My preference specifically is to work with children and adolescents. I will not look for jobs CPS or social services based, but counseling based. As of right now, assuming that I have the same mind set in four years or so, I am going to be specializing in trauma therapy. With that as a specialty, I hope to get a job in an adolescent behavioral center or work with victims of severe trauma like human trafficking and rape. With that being said, I am beyond excited to graduate college and dedicate my life to this.

However, people are always asking me, “WHY?” Of all careers to choose from, why would I pick a career in social work? I can barely manage my own problems, how am I supposed to deal with others, right? There’s also the argument that there’s a low salary too, and not nearly enough money is paid for the amount of rigorous work involved in the job. Oh yeah, and it’s emotionally draining! It involves a lot of strength, and you deal with “psycho” people all of the time. “They’re going to suck you into their own problems,” is one thing that I get a lot. Well, all of that may be true, but I’m okay with that. Here’s why:

For one, I’m not worried about the salary. I’d much rather do something I love doing every day and not get paid as much, than dread going to my job and making tons of money. I know of way too many people who choose careers like nursing, engineering, or teaching who only went into them for the money involved, when they have no interest in what they do for a living. What is the point of that? Why waste all of that money towards college, and waste your time studying something you don’t even like? That is one thing I truly will never understand. Any career involving the humanities or human services is listed as one of the lowest paying salaries ever. Okay so if I major in social work, what am I supposed to do about all of the student loans? Am I going to be in debt? I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t a concern for me, but I also will do everything in my power to avoid that situation. I will apply for scholarships to avoid taking loans. I won’t squander my money on stupid things. Also, luckily, there are programs that pay a certain percentage of student loans for anyone enlisting in a certain career path. Having a career in mental health, being such a respected field, is one of the jobs organizations do help pay for. All in all, in regards to the money situation, I do believe God will provide financially. Careers are all about passion. I am so excited to wake up every morning and absolutely love going to work. Because I am involved based on the passion and not the money, it gives me an advantage; I’ll be much better at doing what I do.

As far as dealing with my own anxiety and my own problems, NOTHING makes me feel better more than when I make others feel better. I love helping people. I love making kids smile and laugh. For four years, I led a summer camp at my church with five others. We ran a camp to entertain over 120 kids! We did skits, sing, danced, played games with them, and talked to them about different things. It is so humbling being around all of the kids all day, because they’re amazing! There are so many different stories that I heard about the kids throughout the week and they broke my heart, but it is incredibly encouraging to see how resilient they are- knowing that their father or mother just passed away and yet they still have a smile on their face! They allow themselves to have fun. We as counselors are supposed to teach the kids something, but in reality, I think I learn more about life from them than they learn from us. Actually, one of the biggest things that confirmed my career choice happened at the camp a few summers ago. One day, I went out to the kickball field to join in playing their game. I noticed a camper with her head in her knees sitting alone under a tree. She looked extremely upset, and when I went over to check on her, she immediately started to cry. I, of course, spoke to her and gave her a shoulder to cry on. After a few minutes of talking, she calmed down, gave me a hug and said to me “Hanna, I wish you were my social worker.” To this day, I will never forget those words. It was a confirmation that I was going into the right career path. It was a blessing.

That same year, I spoke about bullying. It was a major accomplishment, and a huge step to talk about an issue like that, being I have my own background with bullying, and still recovering to this day. However, that experience humbled me. It changed me. Never in a million years did I expect kids to be so open about their stories, but they were. I will never forget the line up of kids that had wanted to speak with me after my devotion was over. Talking to them, helping them, helped me deal with my own issues. That’s exactly what I know will happen when I have a career in counseling.

I have had experience working with elementary and middle school aged kids, but I also have a passion for high schoolers as well. I want them to know that they’re loved and adored. I want to work with depressed and anxious kids, kids who have nightmares every night and they want to know what they symbolize. They’re dying on the inside and for their entire life they’ve been stuffing their feelings and finally, FINALLY they’d release them, and they’ll feel better. That feeling I’d get of accomplishing something; making a kid talk for the first time in months after watching their mother die, or being abused almost to death; having kids cry in my arms because they have been holding in so much for so long…. And they love that I care about them so much. I want to be the kind of therapist that kids look forward to seeing. I want them to walk in my office with a smile and no fear! I want to create an environment in which they’ll be honest, and they’ll play games with me, draw with me, and have fun with me! They’ll think of me as their friend, or the mom that they never had. My childhood was extremely difficult, and I experienced several issues myself. I want to help kids so they don’t feel the same way that I did. I want to write a book specifically for teens giving them advice on how to deal with certain things, and give cognitive exercises, because they’ve been extremely useful in my life. Not only do I want to meet with clients one on one, but I hope to speak at schools, conferences and churches about critical issues, running seminars while answering questions about things they’re struggling with.

Yes, the whole process may be emotionally draining. I may come home in tears because I’m so saddened by how my clients are feeling. But it’s also rewarding. Think about it- knowing you’ve helped someone so much, and they can finally be who they want to be. Whether 4 years old or 18 years old, I want to make a difference in a child’s life. I want to use my experiences and difficulties to help others. I know that I have been brought through certain hardships for that reason exactly. I’m holding onto that hope…. that the experiences I’m going through now may save someone else’s life one day.

And that’s why I want to be a social worker.