This week, I had a conversation with a middle school student who was clearly in need of attention and affection. I brought her out of class and escorted her to the nurse's office, while also informing our school deputy.
I noticed that she had cuts on her right arm, and I immediately asked her if she wanted to harm herself or was considering suicide. She hesitated before saying no. Instead, she explained that she had tripped while walking her dog and injured her arm.
I pressed on, asking if her parents knew about her injuries. She quickly replied no, admitting that she wore a coat at home to hide the wounds. After about five minutes of questioning, she broke down and confessed that she had cut herself in search of love. She also mentioned that she didn't realize she would get in trouble for it and was unaware of how depressed she truly was. With tears in her eyes, she said, "I didn’t know what I didn’t know." She was Baker Acted to a mental health facility an hour later to receive care.
Reflecting on my own journey, I recalled when I first became a life coach. It was a steep learning curve, and I made plenty of mistakes—I could relate to her sentiment of not knowing what one doesn't know.
In any profession, there are always opportunities for growth through learning, dreaming, and achieving new goals. How about you? Are you learning something new in your life? I'd love to hear about it.😊