Connection in California

I received the following email on Friday afternoon. What a wonderful way to end a long and successful week!
Pat,

I wrote to you in May of 2009 and shared that I am a therapist in a Level 12 co-ed group home in San Luis Obispo California. We had recently changed our residential treatment program from a CBT based program to a Relationship Based model and we were having some growing pains. Since then we have made some tremendous growth, yet there are just a few things that keep us coming back to the table. Each time it does my thought is "what would Pat do," and more often than not due to the AMAZING blog you share we are able to work through the issue. ...

I have to say that is was an article that you wrote that finally helped change our program. For years I worked as line staff and was pleading to make some changes and then I found Pat and your blog. Thank you doesn't even express how much I appreciate, respect and admire you..you have started a movement toward healing these children. "Change your thoughts, you change your world." ...

And I want to leave you with this quick story...we have a young man who has been in our program almost two years. When he would get upset at times his coping skill would often be breaking the T.V. or other items the other kids enjoyed using. His response when given feedback by the kids or staff was to defend himself and say "I don't care." Within 3 months of us changing our program he sat in a group meeting with the other kids and said, "I know I broke the T.V. and I am working to fix it," he also had the other kids jump in to help him in that process. It was AMAZING!!!

Anna K. Yeackle, LMFT
Program Therapist
Transitions Mental Health Association
The Youth Treatment Program

Thank you Anna... people like you are the reason we continue our efforts to change the world.