Over the last two weeks, I have had a mind expanding time of it! First, off to New York, followed by London, and then on to Zurich. It’s a small world we live in.
Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived
In New York, I visited the sites, collaborated with colleagues, and even managed to catch the musical, SIX. I’m certainly glad I was not one of Henry the VIII’s six wives!Â
What Was Lost Is Found
The goodness of people in this world never ceases to amaze me. In NYC, I clapped so loud with joy that the stone (Larimar) fell out of my ring. I thought it was gone forever. But believe it or not, the crew at the Lena Horne theater found it! I am so grateful.
Across the Pond
Next up: London. Maks Ezrin and I introduced Riding a Bicycle Backwards from Youth Prevention Mentors and the exciting, innovative strategy of Treatment Without Walls at Dr. Lee FitzGerald’s 2022 London Workshop: UK Mental Health and Addictions Workshop.Â
We were honored by the warm welcome we received and are energized and excited to help young adults and their families who are struggling worldwide through our efforts at YPM. You can read more about it here.
Lee FitzGerald’s 12th Annual London Workshop
The workshop was fantastic. We were blessed to hear so many great speakers! We heard of Dr. James Flowers and Robin Mooney, Dr. Harris Stratyner and Dr. Alex Stratyner, Dr. Robin Lefever, and Dr. Mel Pohl.
It is always such a pleasure to see old friends again. It was so nice to meet up with Sean Duga, Tom Parker, Laura Smith, Shayne Anderson, Dominik Kaiser, Amanda Marino, Tom Rodman, Georgia Rodman, Fiona Yasmin, Kristen Agar, Merideth Montenez, and Jose Luis.
Just when you think it couldn’t be better, you realize how wonderful it was to meet so many new, wonderful folks from all over the world: Viola Edwards, Sophie Estee Glickman, Aaron Levine, Darrell Pacini, and so many more.Â
We met so many new friends we can collaborate with across the globe. Sophie will be generously helping Maks and me connect with folks worldwide.
 Along the way, I was able to meet up with Dr. James Flowers, Robin Mooney, the founder and co-founder of JFlowers Health Institute. We were fortunate to be able to take a sneak peek at their new London assessment office, which is to be headed by Farideh Banafshei, an advanced-stage trainee Counseling Psychologist working towards her Health and Care Professions Council doctorate in Counseling Psychology. How fortunate the global community will have a London office to screen their bespoke comprehensive assessments.
For those of you who may be soccer fans, (or football if you’re in Switzerland, Austria, or Germany…pretty much most of the world… Soccer to us Americans!) I want to share that I was lucky enough to sit next to some of the top Arsenal players while the indomitable Mr. Wadas went to visit Chelsea stadium!
Common Ties
Visiting New York and London, going to Chelsea Stadium and the JFlowers’ London space, plus our time in Zurich was all really amazing.Â
But what strikes me most after my trip is that whether someone practices in Israel, Kuala Lumpur, Switzerland, Spain, Paris, London, Canada, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, Malibu, Israel, Seattle, Boca Raton, Arkansas, or Pennsylvania, or anywhere else in they world, one thing remains constant.
The toil on those we serve, the people who experience substance use, mental health issues, chronic pain, and process disorders, is mighty.Â
In every corner of the world, these maladies rip people and families apart. Fortunately, there are heroic persons and programs worldwide working together to address these issues.Â
Moreover, the conference reminded all of us present that as professionals in this taxing, yet rewarding field, lies the importance of practicing compassion toward each other, taking the time to rest and refresh, and creating programs that are open, authentic and transparent.
My friends the Arsenal Fans would haves died to have been in your shoes. Much love