As We Wrap Things Up At This Office… Several of you, either in e-mails or calls, have expressed concern over the follow-up sessions and what happens when we close up shop at the end of October. Basically, nothing. We will continue to provide the 12 weeks of follow-up for as long as that takes and former clients will also have access to me in the coming years.
Okay, I Hear You! Having read the “oh, no’s” many of you expressed, I will not suspend the Newsletters while I am reorganizing the practice in November and December. So relax, your Sunday morning “fix” will not be withdrawn. With closing the office, and with Mary Ellen’s partial shift to other interests as well as my own reassessment of what to do now, we am open to suggestions as to ways we can continue to help that differ, at least in delivery, from the model we developed and implemented 15 years ago.
Responses to our closing the office at the end of October continue to come in. Many of these emails are from former clients and can be summarized by the following example: “Wow! Was I lucky or what? Thank you so much. I’m very happy you both have good things to look forward to. May you always be blessed." - K. S. Others have expressed concern as to whether or not the Newsletters will continue as they appreciate the truly anonymous support.
We greatly appreciate the emails we received following last week’s announcement that we will be closing up shop at the end of the year with the last client’s scheduled for the week of October 22nd – 26th. We are grateful for the ongoing support from our colleagues of these many years: Gabrielle Glaser, author of Her Best-Kept Secret, Why Women Drink – and How They Can Regain Control; And Dr. Tom Horvath, Founder of Smart Recovery.
The Time Has Come.... When Mary Ellen and I opened this practice nearly 15 years ago we decided we'd try to serve our clients for 15 years until I was past 70 and then decide whether or not it was time to retire. For the usual reasons, we have decided that 2018 will be our last year as we each pursue other interests and opportunities. So, if you have been waiting to come and work with us until.... Or just waiting because.... We will be accepting new clients through October. After that we will be conducting follow-up through the holidays and into January as necessary but we will be closing the doors.
Feeling Helpless and Hopeless? Our over use of alcohol tends to find us in a state where everything is in a confused swirl and we can’t begin to figure out where to even start to fix anything. Our family, and spousal relationships, friendships, professional, legal, financial, and medical states may all be in turmoil. On top of this, we are consuming varying amounts of a depressant and wondering why we feel lousy.
CBT for Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse. Not a Magic Bullet, But…… Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – CBT – is another component in helping people to overcome their misuse of alcohol but, like every other coping skill, it is not a “fix” in and of itself. Nonetheless, it does go a long ways towards teaching people to manage emotions rather than medicate them. Lest you have the impression that CBT is something new, let me assure you it isn’t. Some 2000 years ago Epictetus noted that “What upsets people is not things themselves but their judgements about things.” Considerably more recently Dr. Albert Ellis, President of the Albert Ellis Institute for Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, laid the ground work for using it as the basis for brief therapy.
Long ago I wrote an article titled: "How Can You Possibly Cure My Years of Alcohol Abuse in Just 5 Days?" Periodically it occurs to me that it’s a question worth revisiting since most of you have probably subscribed since that article appeared and it is a concern many potential clients and their friends and family share. After all, “everyone knows” that you have to go off to rehab for 30 or 60 or 90 days. That’s what works.
Where Do You Come From? And Why Here About this time of year we usually take a look at where our clients come from along with other demographics. We also have a pretty good idea about why you chose to work with us. First, where do you come from? As far as political differences across the U.S., you predominantly come from the so-called “Blue” states. No particular mystery there given that the people we work with are generally well educated, intelligent, successful, socially conscious, not easily duped, averse to cults, and appropriately mature emotionally and psychologically. In short, you aren’t ignorant, bigoted, racist, sexist, zealots or driven by greed.
We Can’t Do It For You, Or To You, But We Will Do It With You If you listen to rehab hype, you’ll soon get the idea that fixing your misuse of alcohol is something they will do for you or to you. AA says it’ll save you if you just attend meeting and “work the Steps” for the rest of your life. Other places promise magic: the magic of the palms in Malibu, the vortex in Sedona, the Cirque in Utah, the Beach in Newport, up to including the wolf-dog fix in L.A. (of course) and so on and on and on.