Interview with Merrie (2019)

How long have you been a therapist?

37 years.

How has your therapeutic approach changed over time?

My experience with clients/patients has enriched and expanded my understanding of the process of change and one’s willingness to engage in that process. As I have added new ways of working with people and techniques to my work, my overall philosophy is consistent with my original trainings.

Currently, how would you describe your therapeutic approach?

I experience people through the lens of attachment and family systems. I believe that most people have the ability to create change in their lives. My job is to help facilitate change with individuals on a conscious and unconscious level. Increasing inner resources as well as removing inner limitations and blocks is critical to our work together. I meet people where they are and with guidance my client/patient decides personal goals. I use psycho-education, cognitive therapy, attachment therapies, family systems, person centered, transpersonal, EMDR therapy, and hypnotherapies including Interactive Guided Imagery.

How do you conceptualize mental health and the treatment of mental health disorders?

Good mental health is the ability to be self-aware, open to experience, and fully present and engaged in one’s life. It is a process, a journey, a pathway to find the level of mental health that supports each person in what they want out of their life. It includes self-acceptance, self-compassion, and the ability to like oneself. Since it is a process there may be days wherein love and acceptance come easier than on other days. There may be days in which a person gets stuck in a negative place. The idea is to be able to understand oneself and continuously move forward, to be on the path of self-actualization (A. Maslow). Mental health disorders are the result of an interruption in the natural order of life primarily caused by traumatic events defined as more stress than a child can effectively cope and deal with at a given age and developmental stage. Treatment involves helping the individual realign with oneself, reconnect with one’s inner knowing of who they truly are the wholeness of oneself. When we live in families and communities that fail to support good mental health or completely ignore mental health issues, people naturally tend to adapt and normalize this experience (survival) and are at risk of carrying this belief system throughout their entire adult experience in relationships, parenting, and occupational choices.

Do you have a primary belief of what causes mental illness?

Attachment injury at a young age. The lack of a witness, usually an adult, who can see the child authentically and respond in a connected loving and accepting manner. The research on ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) coupled with Resiliency Factors (or lack of resiliency) clearly point to levels of stress in childhood highly correlated to difficulty in adult life/functioning including anxiety, depression, chronic illnesses, and social, occupational and relational impairment.