Episode 25: Healthcare Specials - Celia, MA Health, Science and Society

For episode 26, 2020 graduate Celia tells us about uncertainty, the need for control and the joy of green spaces. 

Each episode is a snapshot, a moment, a sneak inside the minds of our graduates. Season one talks to our 2020 graduates about how things are going, or not going, for them.

Subscribe now and find out what everyone is up to and how they feel about this weird and unpredictable time.

All opinions expressed are those of the individual and do not necessarily reflect those of the University of Edinburgh. 

Multi Story Edinburgh has been created and produced by the Alumni Relations team at the University of Edinburgh. If you are interested in telling your story, please get in touch and let's talk.

Music: Since When by Mise Darling. 

Transcript

Sonia Mullineux (host)  0:07  
This is a snapshot, a moment, a sneak inside the minds of our graduates. This is season one class of 2020.

Celia  0:18  
So, my name is Celia Brand-Freeman. I did MA health science and society, which is very, it's very, very close, because a lot of it was optional. And it was basically a lot of different courses that gave you personal centred experiences on healthcare and social sciences. And then I took a lot of optional courses in psychology, and youth work and child psychology. So yeah, quite broad. There's nothing very specific about my degree. Um, I guess right now I'm, I am doing support work for people and adults with learning disabilities. And that focuses on for right now it's more housework and emotional support and, and social support, and doing anything that's admin within the house, trying to get them out. But obviously, depending on vulnerability is not always possible. And also, there's not many places to go. So yeah, finding good outdoor spaces is always crucial. 

Celia  1:17  
I'm sort of in between, because I'm trying to work with children. I'm trying to find another pathway into that. And yeah, it's a lot of job applications and uni applications, just to try and work out what what I am aiming to go towards. I'm not quite sure what what aspects of child support I want to do. I've got an interview actually on Tuesday for an early years practitioner. But yeah, I'm not quite sure where that will develop towards whether it's, yeah, well being practitioner or some kind of emotional and wellbeing support for young people would be interesting. 

Celia  1:55  
So I'm from France. And in France, the degrees are very, very field orientated. So either you're doing sciences, literature or economics? They're very specific courses. And you can't really can't get any global overview of different fields. And this Yeah, there are a few courses like this in the UK, but this course seemed the best in Edinburgh, and I also have quite a personal side to Edinburgh - my older brother also used to study here and still lives here, so. So yeah, I sort of felt a connection to the place as well. 

Celia  2:26  
Because I was also working in support work, it gave me an excuse to go out and I was going into people's homes and working with them. And then I was writing essays at home. It was there and it was present. And obviously I couldn't see anyone and couldn't go anywhere and couldn't do any social things couldn't celebrate. Yeah, so it was it was a bit anti-climactic, I think. But also throughout it, it didn't feel um.... it didn't feel too constraining for me. Yeah, I mean, overall, we were always doing hygiene and health management. That was always present it it kind of improved all our different abilities in that area. I think we're all pretty resilient in terms of new things that will come that we come to face and working with people who have had to go to hospital and things like that. Yeah, the sort of stress management and the resilience I think it's definitely Yeah, grim... it's been tough on us trying to because we're also dealing with our own stress issues. And for me personally, and feeling unmotivated and having to bring that out on someone else, when you can't even do it for yourself has been quite tough. 

Celia  3:33  
There's a lot of things I used to do like swimming, and I used to do a lot of music with different people, which hasn't really been possible. But I like singing a lot. Yeah, I can't actually write or do any music. So what I get I get people to send me music. And then I will write lyrics and melody for that. And I read a lot as well. My boyfriend has a flat with two of our friends and then my flat I had two flatmates. So we've had a bubble of six people for the last yeah, since September, which has been good. But it is basically just six of us. I think there are spaces within the city that I I feel like that is the only parts of it in moments and then I forget that you can go further away and I really liked Blackford Hill. I live I live five minutes from the Meadows so i that is usually my go to but yeah, Blackford Hill was always a good place and Arthurs Seat as well. I kind of Yeah, I feel I need that control. But that's the sort of, and that's sort of stressed me out a lot not being able to know what is going to happen within the next few months, let alone like the next week and I usually get a week's notice for my rota. So I try. I try and plan around that. In terms of a future I think, yeah, it's been a bit difficult but I'm also open to anything, which all sort of makes it difficult to work out what my pathway should be.

Celia  4:58  
I feel like um, because my qualification was so vague, I feel like I need something more practical either psychology or maybe mental health, or even something with childcare or child education. But I'm considering doing an SVQ, it would mean getting more experience as well as getting training, which I think would be a good way around that experience. I at least got my driving licence, which is kind of all I wanted out of last year, which is the goal that sort of which is good. I wasn't expecting to be in support work for this long. It's been really enlightening. But I think, yeah, I think I want to be able to help people in a more substantial way. And I think that finding that that pathway would be I thought I'd be a bit clearer on what that would be. The main role I'm considering is the wellbeing practitioner kind of route. And yeah, this other Early Years practitioner would be really interesting as well, that I'm getting an interview for so that would be for this year. So that would be an SVQ for the next 18 months. I'm trying to find something that will tie me to somewhere else so I can work out what I'm looking for or where to go. I mean, I will always come back to Edinburgh, I think, because my half brother is still here with my nephew. And I think it's really a big part of me. But yeah, I think it's important for me to develop my skills and my experience. And yeah, I don't think I need to be attached to a place to find that.

Sonia Mullineux (host)  6:23  
We also asked our graduates to share a place somewhere special, somewhere we can get together when all this has finished.

Celia  6:32  
I guess it's maybe also because I've been away from home for quite a while but I miss. We live. We live just behind lots of vineyards in the middle of Provence, south of France. So yeah, so I miss going going for walks with my dog and my family in the back behind our house, which is really nice. So that's a space that I really yeah, I miss right now. Yeah, so there's a couple different vineyards and the shrubbery of the forest behind my houses called garrigue, which is very low, dry shrubs filled with like thyme and different herbs in that way. So it's all very low, dry, stony clay rocky, when it rains it's very musky. But in the summer Yeah, you have lots of thyme, probably lavender as well. We have quite a big forest here in our back garden as well and I always used to play in that. And it's just.... being in greenery. I think green spaces are really important. And I think that really, yeah, opens your mind and just get that sort of breath, able to think.

Sonia Mullineux (host)  7:32  
Thank you for listening. Join us next time for another graduate and another story.

Kirsten Roche  7:44  
You're not on your own when it comes to planning for your future. Your University of Edinburgh community is here to support you. And this includes ongoing support for graduates from the Careers Service. Why not take a look at our website to find out more about how we can support you get the future you want. Go to ed.ac.uk/careers to get started.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai