Treatment – Basic Steps Mental Health

An AI Intervention

Scott Alpert — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 04:50:21 +0000

Okay, so I am addicted. Do I have to claim that I am powerless and that a power greater than myself is going to restore me to sanity? Yeah, no. I’m not into that kind of language. However, for the past 10 days, I have been addicted to AI and just can’t stop. I have […]

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The American Dream (Nightmare)

Scott Alpert — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 15:00:52 +0000

Why do people seek therapy? For many, they suffer from depression, anxiety, or debilitating mood swings. People mostly seek treatment for substance use issues. As of late, it is something more disturbing. The majority of people showing up for treatment as of recent times are there to deal with the issues they face in this […]

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How Did This Happen?

Scott Alpert — Tue, 13 Jan 2026 16:30:09 +0000

You’ve heard the statement, “What’s the worst thing that can happen?” Instead, why not focus on the best thing that can happen? You see, when we focus on the worst things, we create the worst things. The flip side can bring to you your dreams — and it sure did for me. At Basic Steps […]

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The Number One Healing Tool

Scott Alpert — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 17:02:11 +0000

As an advocate of Spiritual Psychology, sometimes I feel like a lone wolf in the wilderness. In a world where CBT and DBT get much of the attention, I’ve seen each approach not get the results that are desired, giving psychotherapy a bad rap. If you are in acute distress, behaving a certain way, thinking […]

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12 Steps vs Spiritual Psychology

Scott Alpert — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 13:23:55 +0000

When somebody remarked in group that our program is not the 12 Steps, a fire was ignited. And no, it is not. When I was admitted into graduate school, I had been working at a 12-Step facility for years and quickly learned that this was the real thing. This is not to say that the […]

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Assessments for the Courts – My Battle

Scott Alpert — Tue, 26 Aug 2025 15:00:08 +0000

It was inevitable that I’d write about the legal system. Doing Mental Health and Substance Use Evaluations for court proceedings pits one genre against another. The courts try to decide what is right or wrong, but according to Spiritual Psychology, there is no right or wrong—only learning. How do I survive my interactions with the […]

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Trauma Treatment

Scott Alpert — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 15:00:11 +0000

Trauma treatment needs to be handled carefully, or a person can be re-traumatized again and again. This has been happening to a person I am treating in family therapy, by their personal counselor. The old models of healing trauma can cause more trauma because, in an approach named Gestalt therapy, a patient is asked to […]

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Try These Psychological Tools

Scott Alpert — Wed, 07 May 2025 15:00:14 +0000

Do you know how to calm yourself naturally? We live in a fast-paced society and want quick results but the quick fix may not be that beneficial for you. I knew I was doing damage to myself when using substances, but somehow I forced myself to make a stand and fundamentally heal. To be honest, […]

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Year End Summary

Scott Alpert — Tue, 31 Dec 2024 16:00:08 +0000

I got pretty emotional today while I watched a duo exercise in our Intensive Outpatient Program. A duo is basically two participants pairing up and one acts like the counselor and the other acts like the client. After the exercise is over they switch roles. This is how we practiced in graduate school, this is […]

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Healing Ourselves at the Root

Scott Alpert — Wed, 20 Nov 2024 16:00:14 +0000

Every psychological approach has its own theory of healing and it is important to ask a perspective counselor on theirs. As for me, I am old school, and like the face-to-face sessions, avoid talking about the weather and politics and try to get people to open up a dialogue regarding the difficulties, traumas, and frustrations […]

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