FAQs
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
I had recently been ordained and I was hired by St. Leonard's House, a Halfway Home for ex-offenders in Chicago, as Chaplin to the Cook County Jail. I became friends with a Socialworker who visited the jail regularly and we decided to start a therapy group for interested inmates. We were supervised by a Psychologist, who let me know I had a lot to learn. That motivated me to start therapy myself, and to seek further training. I sought out several great therapists and trained with them for many years.
- What types of customers have you worked with?
I have literally worked with people from all walks of life. The Cook County Jail and the Chicago House of Correction where I worked as a chaplain was filled with impoverished people who had grown up in some of the worst neighborhoods in the city. I was one of the Founders of The Lincoln Park Therapy Collective. We led therapy groups in people's homes for almost 10 years in neighborhoods where people our age lived. This led to many of us doing group and individual therapy as we started private practices. It was a wonderful way to learn how to be of help to people who wanted to find love and inspiration in their lives.
- Describe a recent project you are fond of. How long did it take?
Over the course of my practice I have started several projects which I have detailed above. I have learned several different approaches to the healing arts. I learned to do hypnosis from people who were students of the great Milton H Erickson, probably the best hypnotherapist that has ever lived on the planet. I was initiated into the healing practice of Reiki, level two, by Gwendolyn Mitchell, in the Mikao Usui tradition. And I learned the Trauma Reduction Method EMDR, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing from the woman who discovred that technique.