Matthew is a teenager who was receiving treatment through Children’s Bureau’s mental health program. The program aims to help young adults and children manage their mental health needs and persevere through the extremely emotional time of childhood and adolescence. While Matthew was successful in completing his treatment goals, he struggled with completing schoolwork and did not feel confident he would graduate in the Spring due to having, as he said, “too many classes to make up!”
When he achieved his treatment goals, Matthew “graduated” from the treatment program and his therapist discontinued contact with him. However, she wondered about Matthew’s continuing story, and whether we was able to complete enough credits to graduate high school.
One day, she received a text from an unidentified phone number. Much to her surprise, it was from Matthew. His message brought her to tears due to his success and accomplishment.
“Hello, it’s me Matthew, I know it’s been a while since we chatted but I hope you’re doing well in these harsh times. I just wanted to thank you for everything you’ve done back during our sessions and for believing in me especially. It took me sometime but in the end I made it, I was able to make up years’ worth of work in the past 1 – 2 months to graduate finally. Thank you once again!”
With the help of Children’s Bureau’s mental health and counseling services, Matthew was able to make strides in his emotional health and ultimately his well-being and future success. Children’s Bureau works to support all children and young adults like Matthew with services such as therapeutic behavioral health services, medication management and case management assistance. Matthew’s story serves as a reminder of the impact that Children’s Bureau’s work has on young lives.
Stock image used and names changed for confidentiality.