Posted by Solstice on October 2, 2011, at 10:45:08
In reply to Solstice, posted by rjlockhart04-08 on October 1, 2011, at 23:08:33
> I am calling them on monday and I googled alot of things that are goverment support programs.
>
> Thank you!!I looked it up after I saw this post, and yeah, I think DARS will be just what you need. They work with everything - including mental illness, learning disabilities, and addiction. They have a whole program for achieving independent living - and it looks like there are three DARS-funded independent living facilities hear you - in Fort Worth, Dallas and Plano. Maybe they actually have living arrangements - like setting you up with roommates, along with help managing money, etc. They will have testing done on you first, which they need to do in order to have a good idea of where your trouble spots are, and to know what kinds of vocations you are most likely to be successful in. DARS will pay for vocational training too. And they encourage you to make independent decisions about everything.. along with their guidance and support. I think that through DARS, you can also get access to medical treatment. Since they have a very specific goal of helping people with disabilities become independent and self-supporting, perhaps the addiction treatment facilities/doctors they work with are more aggressive about offering treatment that will enable you to function optimally - but will also no doubt monitor your addiction issues. One thing I do know about DARS, though - is that you don't want to mess them over. They have a lot of people wanting/needing their services, and they only want to help people who are serious about doing the work - and will not jack it up by, for example, backsliding into substance abuse. A friend of mine's adult daughter is served by DARS, and I remember her telling me that the DARS counselor told her daughter that she had to stay in close contact with her counselor, at least through email. The counselor was not going to chase her down - she had to contact the counselor - I think at least every three months - for updates, and if he didn't hear from her, then they would take her off their books. I guess that's how they ensure they aren't wasting tax-payer resources on people who aren't really serious about getting their lives on track.
Best of luck - and I want to hear a report posted on what you find out after you contact DARS next week. If you really want to be independent - this really may be your ticket to reach that goal - but it's not going to just drop in your lap.. so get going!
Solstice
poster:Solstice
thread:997889
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20110925/msgs/998555.html