“In 2019, due to an unfortunate living situation, I didn’t have a life; I was a hermit and recluse. I didn’t go out, I became depressed and started drinking, and, even my family didn’t want to see me. I met Shannon and she brought me hope.”

Stephen grew up in Bergen County with his Mom, Dad, and brother Paul. The family moved to Brick when he was 11, and Stephen successfully graduated from high school and joined the Navy. While serving on an aircraft carrier, he was seen by a psychiatrist and diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive and Bi-Polar disorders and had to leave the Navy.

After a time, he began receiving therapy and medication management at Preferred Behavioral Health Group (PBHG) and participated in the partial care programs. In 1999, he moved into a PBHG supervised apartment program, where he learned independent living skills including how to budget his money and pay bills. Within a year, he graduated from both the supervised apartment and the partial care program and moved into his own apartment. He continued to receive services through our outpatient program.

In 2018, he returned to partial care and joined the Intensive Case Management Services (ICMS) program in 2019. He was having trouble coping and managing his life; unhappy at his home and becoming increasingly more depressed. He met Shannon, his ICMS case manager, and she immediately began pulling together the resources he needed. “She helped me get a better apartment, try a few new jobs, get a handle on my money, secure additional SNAP food benefits, and helped me make calls to Medicaid, and is now working with me to get life insurance. She is fantastic and I don’t know what I’d do without her.”

ICMS supports adults in the community for a minimum of 12 months, providing outreach services and linkages to community and state and county resources. The case managers provide individualized services depending on the need. Due to the pandemic and the increased isolation Stephen faced when everything shut down, his time with ICMS has been extended, and he is so thrilled and relieved that he can continue to count on the support of Shannon and the ICMS program.

Now that life is opening back up a bit, Stephen has plans to go out with a friend from partial care and sees his family several times a month. He still gets lonely and looks forward to getting more active once the pandemic eases. For now, ICMS continues to support him, and that support will continue until it is no longer needed.

“I appreciate all the support from PBHG over the years, and now getting the extra support for the last few years during the pandemic from the ICMS program has helped me so much! Thank you, Shannon!”

For more information on the Integrated Case Management Services program, contact Anna Kline at akline@preferredbehavioral.org