David’s Story

DavidIn many ways, David has an ordinary life. He enjoys music, attending high school sporting events, and bowling. He likes his work and getting a paycheck. He has neighbors. He rides the bus. He participates in community events.

Little would anyone know the fight he has put up against mental illness.

David’s life once was very unstable. He was in and out of trouble with the law and needed a structured living environment. He had trouble holding down jobs due to a variety of issues. He had trouble with substance abuse.

Because he needed structure, David became involved with LifeWorks in December 2003 when he moved into Aspen Estate, a licensed Residential Care Facility. When his mental illness made his life spin out of his control, he needed assistance to get it back on track. Aspen Estate gave him help with medication management, health care, money management, accessing community resources, and activities of daily living. These supports started to help David. Over time, he started to achieve some stability. Stability he desperately needed to get back on track. David says that living at Aspen Estate has helped him stay out of trouble.

David starting getting vocational help in January 2004 when he began working in the workshop. The workshop offered him support, training and work opportunities. His production was slow at first. Over time, as he began to experience improvements to his mental health, he started doing better. His paychecks started getting bigger. He improved. David says he enjoys working at LifeWorks and likes getting a paycheck.

Some of David’s goals are to manage his medications on his own and manage his spending money. David would also like to have a job in the community again.

As you can see, David has done very well to stabilize his life. He continues to develop skills that will help him attain his goals, and to fight against mental illness.

Date written: October 15, 2009

Skip to content