My Fondest Counseling Memory

28 years as a counselor has had its ups and downs. There were scary times at the Mental Health Urgent Care when people who were psychotic got unruly. How can you convince somebody who feels you are in on the government plot against them that you are there to help? Somehow, I managed to do so. Though, I wondered this morning what was my fondest memory.

I’ve had a lot of incredible memories. In a group, a person with multiple personalities wanted to work on their ailment and the others wanted to witness how this was done. Actually, with dissociative disorders, there can be five to 18 personalities. I was trained to use empty chairs to represent each personality. This session was remarkable and they reported being stable for the first time since childhood in the end.

There was something in my career that was far and above this and it happened when I opened a residential treatment facility. We were located on an island and at the time the communications network was cut and we had no internet or phones. For three weeks we managed to keep the facility running, and it felt like we were camping each day.

What I loved about this time was that it was my first experience up here in the northwest. I marveled at the wild animals that appeared on the lawn, and then it started to snow. You have to understand that I had been working for other people my whole career and now I was working for me. The atmosphere was amazing, the group was top-notched and what stands out was watching everybody in the room doing Gestalt empty chair work. For example, imagine talking to mom, or the empty chair mom, then switching chairs and having mom talk back to you. Yes, it probably sounds weird, but emotional tools are not logical and tend to go from the gut.

 

 

Yes, this was the time I remember the most because I proved to myself that I could actually run my own show. Many of the placements I had worked at were unsure of my training because it was different, but when it helped people work through stubborn issues, the people who put me down were now on my side.

Yes, it was a magical time when I opened the facility. Enya was playing in the background and the snow falling outside, I felt such peace.

Recently I did an assessment to help get somebody into a 7-month inpatient program. I had to jump through hoops to do so. When they contacted me and asked if I was going to supervise the person’s treatment I was shocked. This seven-month program did not include counseling. No empty chair work? No groups? I was shocked. Some of my best sessions were using that approach for one reason; you can talk about it, or even read about it. You need to get down into the trenches and work with the feelings.  

Of course, I made every business mistake you could, but then again we learn through trial and error. I’m a firm believer that if you are not making mistakes you aren’t learning, though this doesn’t mean that I push. I have no agenda except to teach people the skills I learned in school and in my career and pass them along.

Bottom line, if you are going to go through individual therapy or a program, discover what tools the therapist uses or if you get therapy at all. You can bandage up the thorn in your hand and risk continuing pain when it hits against something or simply pull it out.

Compassionate Care is Always Available

There are many more tools and strategies you can use in your pursuit of happiness. Here is where we come in. Contact us at Basic Steps Mental Health and let us support and educate you on this journey back to your loving heart center. Imagine living a heart-centered life, regardless of what is happening externally. We’d love to be of help.

For 25 years, Dr. Scott Alpert, the clinical director of Basic Steps Mental Health, has treated over 7,000 people with mental health and addiction problems, using a Psychological approach that mixes and matches ten of the top approaches used in the industry. We are here virtually and in-person to help you get through this COVID-19 pandemic and many other difficulties you may be experiencing.

May you have good mental health.