My true self and ambitious dream

 Helping others  through social work is one of my main goals and passions in life because I have always wanted to advocate for people. Living with cerebral palsy has made me realize the importance of conveying your own ideas and messages i in a positive manner to the world. I discovered I wanted to be a social worker when I was fifteen. I used my voice to advocate resolving a family fight between my aunt and uncle that had lasted two hours.  Although I could not physically intervene and resolve the issue, I acted as a moderator and was able to convince them to listen to and see each other’s perspectives.  I realized that I was never going to stand idly by and do nothing when people are in trouble.  This experience taught me that I have the power to advocate for myself and others. This was a realization for me because when I learned to advocate for myself, I was able to communicate my needs without worrying about whether others would advocate for me and understand what I truly needed. I want to be able to teach my clients, and those I come across as a social worker about this very important skill that has changed my life.

 My physical disability gives me a unique sense of empathy for those who are disabled as well as any individual seeking to discover the power of their own voice. I want to help each of my clients use their voice as a tool to enable them to communicate their messages and experiences peacefully so that they make people aware of their problems. People must never be afraid to stand up for what they believe in and ensure that their powerful voices are heard.   Even if people have no other resources available to them, each person has a voice. It is your most valuable resource because no one can ever take it away from you. As a social worker, I will encourage my clients to utilize their voices by helping them use their passions to create different outlets that help them become comfortable sharing their unique experiences with other people.

 My passion for writing also contributes to my interest in social work. I enjoy writing because it helps me express myself and alleviate my frustrations. Writing has had a huge influence on my life. It taught me valuable skills, including patience, authenticity, dedication, and confidence. It strengthens my ability to advocate for people and share my experiences knowledge and feelings with people. This began when I created a beautiful heartfelt blog called the Shining Star where I write posts on many different topics. Writing makes me happy and a better person and advocate. My blog allows me to use my voice to advocate, inform, and educate my readers to help influence them to make a positive change. My voice is reaching a big audience people from all over the world—from the United States all way to Poland, India, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, France,  Kuwait, and the Philippines. I use my blog to advocate for people by educating and informing my audience on many different topics that are important issues to me such as educational inequality, gender roles, media, representation, Syrian refugees, and Egypt. Writing has enabled me to observe the world and its tendencies. Through writing, I can advocate for myself and others.  As a social worker, I will work with my clients to help them find their voices and different outlets to express themselves while I teach them how to advocate independently so they become as comfortable sharing their unique experiences with other people as I am with writing.

                Sometimes not being able to help people physically can be very challenging; however, I am very good at being empathetic and offering emotional support. When my father was diagnosed with cancer, I could not do anything for him physically, but I sat home with him every day keeping him company; we watched basketball together, I talked to him, helped him with phone calls, and listened to him tell me stories. I encouraged him with positive words such as be strong and “I love you”. This experience made me realize that I want my future career to involve this individual care for people. As a counselor, I want to make people comfortable in their own skin, allowing them to use their voice to convey their messages and experiences. As a counselor, I will provide my patients with emotional support by listening to their stories and having them take initiative to develop self-advocacy by leading discussions. The most important types of emotional support are patience and a positive attitude. I will be there for my clients and provide them with hope and confidence in their stories, talents, and abilities, allowing them to develop self-advocacy skills and become productive members of society. My father taught me how powerful emotional support truly is, and I believe providing emotional support to my patients will be more important than physical support.

As a counselor, I can create an environment where people are not afraid to talk about religion or social problems. I plan to have open discussions with my clients, by asking open-ended questions such as “Why do you think you are here today?” and “What makes you unique?”. These conversations can help me break the ice and build a strong rapport with clients. A therapist’s work cannot begin until a comfortable relationship with a client is established; a strong connection with clients is the foundation for therapy. I want to give individuals the opportunity to express what is going on without subjecting them to double-blinded questions, in which however they answer, they are somehow wrong. Rather than put a negative connotation to their answer, I want to hear them out and allow them to express themselves more freely. As a therapist, I will teach my patients how to take advantage of their own abilities. As a result, my clients will learn to accept their differences and embrace their unique identities and talents, because no one should ever be ashamed of who they are. No matter what life throws at you, people can always achieve their dreams and goals. In order to progress as a society, we must cast away this false idea of what “normal” is.

My internship at Abilities allowed me to focus on this issue and make a difference. During this time, I worked in business communications and helped students with their resumes and cover letters. I was able to advocate for the students and highlight the qualities that made them stand out as individuals. This internship helped me realize that I want to become a therapist to help people with their problems, along with becoming an activist who speaks up for people who feel like they do not have a voice. I am aware that attending therapy is stigmatized, so I want to create an environment where people feel safe and comfortable to fully express themselves. I hope to make people comfortable talking about a variety of topics so we can alleviate their frustrations together. Even if people do not want to talk about their problems, I will listen to their frustrations as a friend if they just need someone to talk to.

My last semester at Hofstra, I had to write a research project for the semester in my sociology class. I wrote about Islamophobia and Syrian refugees. I became engrossed in the research. It touched my heart to the point where my research was not just for school anymore.  This research really opened my eyes to the struggles of Syrian refugees.  During this semester, I discovered my passion for Syrian refugees. I become so attached and concerned about the wellbeing of Syrian refugees that I knew I must advocate for them and end this serious humanitarian crisis. This is especially true when I found that President Trump does not have any policies on Syria or the refugee crisis. I have continued to research the refugee crisis and how Islamophobia is a strong barrier for innocent refugees. There is absolutely no reason for Americans to be afraid of Muslims who practice peacefully.   My research has inspired me to advocate for Syrian refugees as well as any group of people who cannot fight for themselves, and help individuals discover their inner power and amplify their voices so that they can communicate their experiences to the world. One of my major goals is to provide Syrian refugees with a platform to speak out about their personal experiences. I realize that I cannot stop all conflict, but at least as a counselor, I can use my voice to help people gain their voices and provide them the skills to advocate for themselves.  My research on Syria refugees makes me want to advocate for them and become an ambassador for the United Nations idealistically. I want to help people and my extensive research on Syrian refugees makes me realize that I want to act. Not only do I want to become a therapist to help people with their problems, but I also want to become an activist to advocate for people who feel like they are powerless. This advocating is not limited to people with disabilities, but all people who need a voice because society has muffled their sound with unfounded discrimination. 

I am eager to join the Yeshiva School of Social Work for several reasons. I believe the social work program can teach me the skills necessary to become a therapist who allows people to understand themselves so that they can reach their full potential and influence others to do the same. I love writing so I also look forward to my research papers and my field placement. Hunter’s School of Social Work offers students the option to choose a specialization in a field of practice (FOP). My concentration will be Global Social Work and Practice with Immigrants and Refugees Reform and Youth Services.  I want to work in a diverse community that cares about Syrian refugees and is very passionate about helping people. At Yeshiva School of Social Work, I would like to become a counselor and make a difference in the world. I believe I can enable my future clients to be confident in their own respective identities, by using my own situation of having cerebral palsy as an example of how, regardless of your situation, it is possible to find your voice.  By becoming a counselor, I can make a difference in the world; by turning my individual problem into solutions that can create a path of advocacy for people who do not have a voice in society. I plan to create an environment that does not instill fear or any negative emotions in my clients because I want to allow people to have a space to talk freely without any judgment. As a therapist, I will teach my patients how to take advantage of their own abilities.  As a result, my clients will learn to accept their own differences and embrace their unique identities and talents and embrace themselves.