Verified by 
Twenty-five years ago, when I was in graduate school and the touchy-feely client-centered style of therapy was in vogue, people were fond of saying, "Acknowledging the problem is half the battle." Nonsense. If you have chosen to enter into a therapeutic relationship, then you have already acknowledged the problem, but you are still ill-equipped to fix it.
The therapeutic relationship is a means for garnering a new perspective. Once we have gathered this new perspective on the conditions, conflicts and conundrums that we face, we need to apply that perspective. A complaint that I often hear from patients is that they feel as if they're not making progress. Here's the thing -- therapy doesn't move you forward -- you move you forward. The sense that you are not moving forward is not a responsibility of the therapist to the client, but a responsibility of the client to themselves.
Therapy is not a solution; it is a means to an end. A therapist is not going to fix your life, or your marriage, or find you a new job, or even give you advice. A therapist is a neutral voice whose role is to create a fresh context within which to view your life, and be a guide through that new landscape. It is the responsibility of clients to act upon the newly gathered perspective that the therapeutic relationship provides.
Just as with therapy, medication is also not a solution. It is an intervention. Unless you suffer from a biologically definable mental illness that needs on-going redress through medication in order for you to maintain systemic stability, medication is simply a means by which to get your "stuff" out of the way so that you can make the changes necessary to shift your experience. Once you have shifted your experience, your feelings will also shift. Once your feelings have shifted, you'll be able to get rid of the medication. Regrettably, in this culture of victimhood, we are all to willing to abdicate responsibility for ourselves and look elsewhere for solutions that are often better addressed through introspection and self-sufficiency.
As we choose to take responsibility for ourselves by virtue of our actions, we undertake to reinvent or change our lives and experience. Should we fail in this, we will continue to be a slave to our neuroses.
Acknowledgement is a step. Recognizing the source and consequences of the actions around our patterns of behavior is also important. What is of greatest effect, however, is our willingness to act, which informs our willingness to change.
© 2008 Michael J. Formica, All Rights Reserved
