On March 5th, 2018, I had the privilege of
attending a 12 step Al-Alon meeting at Woodland Presbyterian with two other
classmates. This meeting was specifically for individuals who have family
members that struggle with substance abuse and other psychological conditions.
The role of the leader was to keep the group flowing at an
optimal level while also providing wisdom in relation to the group session. I
found the group leader to be very approachable and kind. There were times when
she would open the floor for discussion for a certain topic, and then close the
topic at a specific point to make sure the group completed all objectives for
the day. The leader also made sure that any group member that didn’t get to
speak, had an opportunity at the end, if time permitted.
I found the group leader to be very relatable, this
correlated well with all of the group members. The leader was very open about
her own personal experiences, this gave confidence to other group members to
speak up. Participation was very high in this group session.
The environment was very welcoming. I could tell that all
group members were very comfortable. Some members had coffee and snacks. I
never once felt tension between any group members. I believe the group session
could have lasted for hours, if there had not been a time limit. All members
seemed to enjoy the environment.
I considered the group session to be very therapeutic, not
only for the members, but also for myself. Due to how authentic the group
leader was, it was easy for members to open up about what they have been going
through in relation to the different topics that were being discussed. Not only
were members being realistic about their struggles and fears, but other members
were also giving great advice on how to address these struggles and fears. I
would say that the age range was between 30-70 years old, with about 30 group
members. This created a wide range of experiences and, also much wisdom to go
along with it.
I would consider this to be a support group. One of
the major themes that I noticed from this group was sponsorship. A sponsor is a
person who you trust to mentor you through a situation that they have experienced,
they are also considered an accountability partner, just with a more mentor
role. I believe we can all use sponsors in our lives at one point or another.
From when I first walker into the session, it was very clear that the leader
and members were all there for each other, and were prepared to show support
for everyone in the room. There were a good number of slogans that were shared
during this session, but the one that stuck out the most to me was “Take what
you like, leave the rest.” Overall, I found the experience to be wonderful and
I look forward to participating in many more group sessions at Greenhouse
ministries.
Eric, thank you for a very thorough and rich Blog post. I am very grateful that you were able to see a therapeutic support group like the one you describe. This is very definitely an example of a situation where the group itself IS the intervention. You and your peers have had a wide variety of experiences at different meetings. It sounds like you attended one that had an excellent leader in place to facilitate the group- some of your peers did not see that same quality in the leaders they saw. This offers a lesson to keep in mind in future practice. The 12-step program is sure to be one of your "go-to" suggestions or referrals for future clients. If a client goes to a meeting and doesn't have a good experience it may be because he or she didn't gel with the leader (or the other members). Group characteristics such as the group being too large or too small can also make a difference, and so it is important that you, as an OT clinician can encourage the member to perhaps try another group.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this. Well done.