Recently, I’ve been contemplating my thirty-nine years as a therapist, pondering the true impact of my work. Reflecting on the past, I recall numerous clients who considered suicide, whom I’ve supported through their darkest times. Did my intervention truly matter?
One particular memory resurfaces, convincing me of the life-saving difference I made for a man in crisis and he was unaware he was in a crisis. Perhaps, this profound experience fuels my ongoing dedication to this vocation:
In the late 1980s, a woman called to inquire about my ability to perform a non-content therapy session. In other words, not talk therapy – she just wanted to change her emotional response to a particular person. She stated that the emotion was overwhelming and driving behaviors that she couldn’t control.
I assured her of my capabilities and asked her if she were able to change this emotion, would it make her and the other person’s life better? She stated yes. I asked her if there were any negative consequences for herself or others if she changed this emotion ? She responded decisively with a “No”!
I asked her name and she said, “Mary Doe”. I asked who recommended me to her. She stated that I didn’t need to know, she would pay in cash, and that she would double my standard rate if she could see me the following day. We made an appointment for the following day and I told her to leave her pager in her car (before cellphones).
The following day I saw Ms Doe for a one hour session. My memory is that we did a procedure called the “Compulsion Blowout” on her overwhelming emotional state. She seemed please with the results, paid me in my usual rate in cash, and left.
Two days later, she phoned me. She wanted me to know that as soon as she entered her car after our session, she felt a positive change. Her ex-husband had paged her. She stated that anytime that she saw him or even thought of him, that overwhelming feeling of rage would overwhelm her. She said that that feeling of rage was no longer there.
She said that I had saved her $250. She told me that she had paid $250 down to have her ex murdered over that weekend and an additional $250 after his death. She canceled the contract with her hitman and lost her down payment.
I never saw this woman again. I was shocked at the time that it was so inexpensive to end a life in Houston, Texas.
In my practice I usually use the “ compulsion blowout procedure” on certain food obsessions- such as chocolate candy and other tasty foods.😀