When Self-Management Stops Working, and What to Do Next
Self-management works well for many people, much of the time. It doesn't always, and circumstances change through no one's fault.
It's worth saying plainly: plenty of people stick with it longer than they'd like, because changing feels like failure. It isn't. It's just a change of arrangement.
Signs it may not be working
- The admin isn't hard, but it's stopped happening.
- You're putting it off and it's costing you.
- Most of it is done by an exhausted family member.
- Your health or situation has changed, and your load hasn't.
- You've stopped using supports because arranging them is harder than going without.
That last one is the big one. Unused funding is usually a problem with the arrangement, not a change in need.
What the options actually are
Plan management. Someone else does the invoicing and claiming, and you still choose your own support workers. For most people who are struggling, this is the answer, because it removes the paperwork, not the choice.
Partial self-management. You self-manage some categories and let someone else handle the rest. It's allowed, and common.
Agency management. A registered provider manages it for you. Fewer choices of worker, and it runs at agency rates.
Self-management with extra help. Sometimes the fix is a support coordinator, or a family member taking one defined role rather than all of it.
How to change
You can raise it at a plan review, or contact the NDIA about an existing plan. Your support coordinator can help, and if you're moving to plan management, your plan manager can too.
Nothing about your workers has to change
This is the part people miss. Moving to plan management doesn't cost you the team you've chosen. The workers stay, the invoices just go somewhere else.
Next steps
If this has been true for a while, say it out loud to someone this month. It's a much smaller change than it feels.
Find Your Support Team. Whichever way your plan is managed, you can keep choosing your own workers through Support Network.
