Giving therapy a try
 

I am going to give therapy a try, in conjunction with meetings.
Any time I was in counseling in the past it was not by choice and , I lied about stuff.

This is now something I really want to do! I am tired of lying.
I have an appointment on Thursday morning.
Wow. :o

Wishing you the very best of luck. That is a courageous move. Being open and honest is the only way to go x

Wonderful!

I think it's likely to be a valuable step for you to take.

I saw a counselor too, none of this is easy, little of it is pleasant.. but it sure can be helpful. :) Let us know how it goes!! I was terrified walking in the door, and telling him why I was there. When he didn't freak out and run from the room and just made it a safe place for me to work on myself, I was relieved and felt like I could actually do this.

Great move stairs! Sooner or later the truth comes out. I drank to avoid dealing with the root cause of my unhappiness. When I quit, there it was staring me in the face. I'm glad you're taking control and dealing with the issues at hand . :)

:You_Rock_

Best Wishes To You!

Therapy really helped me understand why I am the way I am, and what was the true catalyst to my addiction... Absolutely priceless.

Good move, and good luck !

Count me in on starting therapy too after a melt down and alcohol driven mania again last week. For now I have a job still and will work with my employers and my own counselling. This is not the first time but the cat's out fully to my boss and there is no way I will get anywhere without complete honesty as fully emphasized in the BB. I think deception to others and to myself has been a large part of my issues with alcohol and in life.

Thanks everyone!!!

I'm kind of excited, a little scared, breathe breathe. :)

Good luck with your appointment, and congrats on making the decision. I went into therapy to better understand my addictive behavior, just couldn't hide the truth from myself any longer. Total honesty, painful as it may be, is necessary. I wish you well, big hug and let us know how it turns out.

Good decision - I finished 3 months of thepary last week.

It was very useful to open up to someone who could help me with my paranoia and depression.

I am now leading an active social life and have tools to deal with my drug induced paranoia.

I was also introduced to medidation which I am slowly warming to as it helps me to relax.

Therapy helped me stairs - hope it helps you too - good luck!

D

It would disingenuous of me to say that therapy has been THE difference, but it has made A difference. Much like anything, you will get out as much as you put in. Don't be afraid, it is a safe environment.

And "Hi" from one south central PA resident to another!

Thanks for the great replies!! Tomorrow morning , it's showtime. Well hopefully not "showtime" lol. That's what I'm trying to get away from. :)

I think it will be good for you...I'll bet you feel great when you get out of there...Let us know how it goes.

IMO being tired of lying is a big step forward, good luck, and hope it goes well on thursday.

I've been seeing a counselor for four years and not just for my addiction, but for all aspects of my life. She's been a lifesaver and a real treasure. I hope she never leaves her job.:)

Good for you stairs.

....and even for the AA crowd, "go to any lengths" right? That sounds like a good "length" to go to for you Stairs.

I did outpatient for 3 yrs (+ or -). 2yrs were court-ordered, the last one was because I liked it. Still like it.....just couldn't afford it - for now.

One word of advice I'd offer: Don't EXPECT it to feel good.

Therapists have a tough job....if they tell you what you need to hear, you may not like hearing it. If you don't like it, you may go somewhere else to hear what you want to hear. If they just tell you what you want to hear......are they really helping you?

My experience in therapy was similar to doing 4th step inventory and 5th step sharing - it set me free in a lot of areas.........but it kicked my butt along the way. If it was a pleasant meeting.....or a pat-me-on-the-head session.....I'd get bothered and call the therapist out. Hell, I was there to get some work done.... I have all the delusional drinking buddies in the world to tell me what a great guy I am.

I had a lifetime of professional body-burying. My psyche was full of rotting corpses only I didn't know where they were. Sure could sense them though, ya know? A good therapist will have some ideas on where to look.....and some tools on how to help you dig that stuff up. As for dealing with what I discovered.....I can't say enough about AA and the steps. That's where I learned to live life WITH all that crap.......to do it sober.....and to do it with a smile at the end of the day.

:) Thanks guys.

"Rotting corpses"!?!?! Nice, DT. Thanks for the advice. LOLOL.

:rotfxko

Have a good session today, stairs! I have one myself!

Thanks WTH, you too. :)

Then later I've got an NA meeting, looking forward to that also. Last one my friends dropped me off and made me find a ride home. LOL.

They want me to get out of my comfort zone and ask for help. It worked out fine. I had a ride home within 2 minutes of arriving.

Hope you had a great session! Hope you're in with someone you really like. :-) Therapy works wonders- it truly does.

I just called Tuesday and got an appt for today. The office mgr said please show up early so we can do the paperwork.
It took less time to get there than I thought it would, so I was a half hour early, and no one was there.

I thought, "great, I knew it was too good to be true", LOL. Meaning, usually you don't get an appt that quickly.

I called their emergency number and here, the office mgr had had a heart attack of sorts the day before and that is why noone was there to open. It is a small private practice.

So they did show up then a few minutes before ten.

So far so good. My therapist is 70 and looks like she's in her fifties. I go back Tuesday. :)

The office mgr as it turned out did not have an actual heart attack, her heart is fine, it was more like a massive anxiety attack I guess.

I caught myself lying to her. I said, "no wait, I'm lying, why am I lying", and corrected my response to her. LOL.

hello friend, Wishing you the very best of luck

Best wishes on this stairs. I find therapy to be very helpful. We don't focus so much in the the drinking directly, but dig deep in the drivers. Includes really being honest with myself abut all of the stresses that trigger my drinks binges. Focus on then identifying why I don't manage these well and what I can do going forward to keep them from bottling up, building up on me, then exploding into a drinking binge. Been an amazing and eye opening experience once I committed and opened up to it, need to be honest with it for it to really work.

Thanks.

Had my 2nd appt and we finished up the questions.

Now my therapist will come up with a treatment plan to discuss next time.
I'm going twice a week.

It was great being truthful instead of lying because "it's none of their dam business", or "they don't need to know that".

I saw my daughter Sunday and she was floored when I said I was going to therapy, said she had prayed for that and was amazed considering my attitude toward it in the past.

:dance6:

Well done! Twice a week is an intensive schedule, though I've gone that route from time to time myself. The good news is you should start feeling better that much quicker!

Right there with you and stairs & Yuvguy! Going after work today to get admitted into Intensive Out Patient rehab. Nervous and scared but ready to do it. Knowing others r going too will be a great support! Thanks!

So, my treatment plan consists of keeping an NA meeting log where I list 3 things about each meeting whether good bad or indifferent, and continuing to support my daughter in her recovery, and doing the walks and yoga I am starting anyway. And to have a temp sponsor by October 1.

My therapist said, "I won't ask you to get anything signed". I said, "I wouldn't do it anyway, this is not court ordered."

I've been through that and unless a judge says so?!?!, Forget It.

This is what I did when I went to counseling for my DUI. Not what I am looking for. I should have done more research.

For one thing keeping a meeting log to talk about with someone outside the rooms is lame, even if it is confidential. I don't like the idea.

Though I can see how it may be useful, to look for patterns in my perception.

For another, telling me to do something I am already doing because I want to do it is not my idea of helping me. As in, going to family day every Sunday to see my daughter.

It's not a 12 step therapist I want. It's a behavioral therapist. So, now I am seeking one. :)

Tomorrow I'll keep my appt, and explain this to my therapist. Who is a lovely lady btw and we are almost neighbors, she lives on the other side of the park right by my house.

But having never done this before I did not realize it is basically just the exact same OP thing I did in 2009. When I called the insurance co. number on my card and mentioned alcoholism that's what they gave me, addiction counselors. Funny how that works.

DUH, stairs!!!

:rotfxko

You go to NA stairs?....I thought it was AA. ...Sorry you're not thrilled with it. Find what you like.

You'll get it squared away stairs...I've been very fortunate in terms of working with my therapists. Luck of the draw that I've clicked with all of them right from the start. But sometimes a little shopping around is in order. Trust your instincts and do what's best for yourself and your recovery.