Phone and messages
They call you. You cannot call them. Ever, for any reason. Start there and the rest of the system makes a kind of sense.
Calls
They call you. You cannot call them. Ever, for any reason, including emergencies — there is a separate process for those, covered in when something goes wrong.
Their monthly
When the call connects, an automated system requires you to press a key to accept. Some virtual phone services do not pass that keypress through correctly, and Google Voice is the common failure. If their calls to you keep dropping at the start, that is why. Test any number before relying on it.
All calls are recorded and monitored.
Electronic messages
The system —
Messages are delayed in both directions while they are reviewed — typically a couple of hours, sometimes longer. They are charged by the minute for the time they spend reading and writing, which is why their replies may be shorter than you would like. That is not indifference. It is a meter running.
There are no attachments and no photos through this system.
Write knowing it is read
Everything is monitored, stored, and available to be quoted later. Do not discuss their case, anyone else's case, money arrangements, or anything you would not want read aloud.
This constrains the conversation in ways that are genuinely painful over time. It is still the rule.
The messaging rules, annotated: Program Statement 5265.13.
The release date
You are the one who can look things up. They cannot. That makes this your job, not theirs.
These pages cover the general rules. Your situation has details they don't. Email me a question. Answers are free, and "you don't need to pay anyone for this" is my most common answer.
I answer in the order received, usually within a couple of days. I have a day job. If your situation genuinely needs more than an email, I take a limited number of consults, so say so and we'll work it out.
Someone else is sitting exactly where you are. Pass it on.