Greetings!
Welcome to CAP Press the periodic newsletter for the Colorado Association of Psychotherapists. Please take a few minutes to browse through to keep up to date with our activities and objectives.
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President's Message
Moving Forward in 2010
Dear Members and Colleagues,
Happy New Year everyone! I hope you enjoyed a wonderful and safe holiday season. The CAP Board's most significant goal this year is to increase our membership so we can be a more-effective voice for you in the Legislature. This year, we are looking into a variety of ways in which to increase the value of your membership and attract new members. Our web site is attractive and functional but it can be better. We're looking at redesigning it so that it has a greater presence in web searches. What if more people found your profile? That could draw in more prospective clients. What if we provided information resources for you? Just a couple of ideas we are thinking about. Other ideas being discussed include associate memberships to companies and individuals who wish to be sponsors. With their sponsorship we might provide space on the CAP web site. An advisory board is a very attractive idea. What if we organized an advisory board composed of experts in various fields, fields that have relevance to you, and they were available to answer your questions? Examples might be web design, marketing and law, to name three. Another idea we'd like to see become reality is to have more members meetings with speakers. The Board can generate ideas on how to make CAP better but your input is the most important source of information for us. CAP is for you, after all. In a few weeks we will be sending out an email survey soliciting your ideas. I get a lot of email, much of which is never opened, and I'm sure you do to. I'd like to ask that you keep an eye out for the CAP survey and please respond to it. It will only take 5 minutes or so but that five minutes will provide us with information from you, our members, so that we can direct our efforts and energies evermore toward those that best benefit you. I wish you a prosperous year, full of joy, happiness, and of course, all the clients you desire. Take care. Ed You are always welcome at the CAP Board meetings. If you are interested in joining us, please let me know by emailing me.Take care,  Ed Robb President of the Colorado Association of Psychotherapists |
Legislative Update
With CAP Vice President, Suzy Walz, RN, BSN, CCHt. Happy New Year to everyone and CAP is off to a roaring start! The Mental Health Coalition is busy drafting changes that we would like to see made to the Colorado Mental Health Practice Act. The Unlicensed Psychotherapists, as we are referred to, are suggesting language to clarify the dual relationship clause [Section 12-43-222 (1) (g) and (i)]. We suggest it reads in effect that:- A person has violated this statute if they have acted not in accord with the generally accepted standards of practice in their professional discipline. These standards would include the codes of ethics of generally recognized state and national professional associations in their field of practice.
- A person has violated the statute if they have treated a client while their judgment was impaired or if they have exploited their client.
The above two changes would clarify the issue of dual relationships that have sometimes been murky where some boards have felt the current language could be construed as allowing for a categorical prohibition against ANY dual relationship in spite of the fact that national codes of ethics of all practioner groups clearly state that not all dual relationships may be harmful and that some may be beneficial to the client. CAP is also working with the Mental Health Coalition and DoRA to find the proper title for our diverse group of psychotherapists. We feel that being referred to as UNLICENSED psychotherapists is a negative term and represents what we are NOT rather than what we ARE. It also becomes confusing to the public and creates unnecessary language in the current Practice Act. This is a challenging task as each of us practice in our individual fields and have a variety of different educational backgrounds. The Coalition does not want us to mislead the public into thinking we are licensed or "recommended by the state". Therefore we are reviewing the other terms listed in the Mental Health Practice Act and deciding which term most accurately reflects the job that we do. Terms such as registered and listed are currently under consideration. Once the individual stakeholders, (CAP, Social Workers, Psychologists, Marriage and Family Therapists, Professional Counselors and the Addiction Counselors) decide upon the changes they would like to see, the Coalition will come together and decide upon which changes we support as a group. This process should be finished by the end of February or beginning of March. If not everyone agrees on changes one particular group would like, that group is able to represent themselves individually when discussing the changes with DoRA. Beginning in March, each group will have a chance to meet with DoRA and discuss the changes and reasons why we would like to see those changes in the Mental Health Practice Act. DoRA may even contact you as a provider and wish to interview you during their process. That is why it is important that each member of CAP is clear on what we would like to see different in the Practice Act and why these changes are important to us as providers and how these changes benefit the public. The legislative session begins this week and our lobbyists are busy monitoring all the bills that are being presented that may affect CAP members. CAP had an opportunity to meet with Senator Morgan Carroll and discuss the issue of transparency in the mental health field. It looks as if she will be introducing a bill that would allow for the public to be able to access a database, through DoRA, that gives information about each practioner. Information such as education, experience, malpractice complaints, grievances as well as areas of specialty, certifications, etc. would be created. This database already exists for the medical profession. We appreciate our lobbyist's efforts to have the chance to meet face to face with the senator drafting this legislation so that we might voice our concerns and give feedback. The name of the bill is called the Michael Skolnik Medical Transparency Act 2010. Of course we will pass on more information once it is made available to us.As always, feel free to contact me with any questions or feedback about the legislative process. By phoneat 720-308-5440 or email Suzy@WholeHealthHypnotherapy.com |
Contributed Article
What is Homeopathy?
Carolyn Hess, M.A., C.Hom.
Certified Homeopath
303-748-8595
Homeopathy is a very misunderstood healing modality and is often confused with alternative health in general or with herbal medicine and home remedies. All of these are incorrect.
Homeopathy is a 200 year old system of alternative healing created by the German physician and chemist, Samuel Hahnemann. Homeopathy is one of the few systems of alternative medicine that was developed within a western context. Homeopathy is based on the concept that "Like cures Like" also called the Law of Similars. The Law of Similars states that a substance/remedy that can cause a particular pattern of symptoms in a healthy person will cure that same pattern of symptoms in a sick individual. For example, peeled onions cause the eyes to tear. When onions are prepared homeopathically they can alleviate tearing and watery eyes. The second basic principle of homeopathy is the concept of the minimum dose, the creation and potenization of ultra dilute remedies.
Homeopathy is an energetic healing modality. Homeopathic remedies energetically stimulate the body/mind to heal itself. It is crucial that individuals who are new to homeopathy understand the underlying paradigms in this system of healing and how they differ from allopathic (western) medicine. Without this understanding, much of what constitutes homeopathic treatment may seem mysterious and confusing. To really understand homeopathy one must first explore profound shifts in healing paradigms.
Preparation of homeopathic remedies
Before entering into the exploration of this healing paradigm, it is important to know how homeopathic remedies are made.
Homeopathic remedies are prepared by the simple process of serial dilution and succession (vigorous pounding or shaking) of the source material in water or water and alcohol. Potenization of the remedy creates a dynamic force which leaves a residual energetic signature/essence of the source substance on the water.
In contrast with herbal supplements, homeopathic pharmacies prepare remedies in accord with specific published standards (the FDA regulated Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States). The prepared solution is then stored in tiny sugar cubes which can be as small as a poppy seed. These are then bottled for sale by the pharmacy. This is the form that you will find them in at your natural health food store. Remedies are non-toxic, tasteless (any taste is from the medium they are stored in), odorless and taken orally in water or in a water alcohol mixture. Some homeopaths do administer dry doses but this method has much more limited applications.
To understand the nature of water as a powerful medium, I would recommend Masaru Emoto's 3 books on "Messages from Water". This book has nothing specifically to do with homeopathy but it is powerful and graphically demonstrates the interaction between the physical and non-physical realms.
Western Medicine
Western medicine as we currently know it is the only medical system in history that has virtually ignored energetics. In every culture and in every medical tradition before ours, healing was accomplished by moving energy. Because of the way in which homeopathic remedies are made, mainstream western scientists and physicians see homeopathy as little more than a joke or a placebo. It is a flat world paradigm.
The primary paradigm underlying western/allopathic medicine is that the body is an elaborate bio-chemical machine. The body is generally treated as being separate from the mind and the spirit. Symptoms are isolated from the whole rather than being a part of a complete body/mind system. Symptoms are generally dealt with by suppressing them with drugs or by mechanically removing them with surgery. There is a "one size fits all" approach to treatment which does not take into account individual differences in etiology or a consideration of the nature of the system as an integrated whole. Disease is typically seen as some sort of invading force from the outside, and a "war" is waged against this invading microbe.
Homeopathy, Transforming States of Consciousness
Homeopathic philosophy is both global and individual. In the homeopathic universe dis-ease and healing are seen as manifestations of consciousness. The condition of the body is a result or an effect of this state of consciousness. To the extent that this state of consciousness is unbalanced or maladaptive to the whole organism there will be symptoms which manifest. These symptoms are seen by the homeopath as the intelligent response of the organism to maintain balance or homeostasis. From the perspective of the homeopath isolating the symptoms of the physical body makes no sense at all. Therefore, classical homeopathic treatment, while not ignoring physical symptoms, places very little emphasis on them. Homeopathic healing is a process of self reorganization at a deep level.
Process of Treatment
Overall response to a homeopathic remedy tends to be global in character rather than specific. With continued treatment over time, one will see an improved sense of well being. This might look like an improved mood or the ability to be more proactive in self care. Sleep with generally be improved. There is clearly an overall subtle shift in energy. Resolving long standing energy patterns in consciousness takes time. This is a highly individualized process and will vary considerably from one person to another. Homeopathic treatment can be demanding of both the practitioner and the client.
A classical homeopath does an intake interview lasting on average about 1 ½ - 2 hours. During this interview the goal of the homeopath is to gather information which will elicit a "picture" of that individual as a total being on all levels. It is very important that the client be as open as possible. This will be very valuable in assisting the homeopath to create an accurate picture. The homeopath then researches the information and looks for a remedy that mirrors the person's "state" as accurately as possible. The remedy must have affinity for the client picture (like cures like). An example is the resonance of tuning forks in the same key note. A middle C tuning fork will cause another middle C tuning fork to vibrate, but not an E note.
Individuals who choose to undertake classical homeopathic treatment must be a full partner in their care. Clients must be patient, accurate observers of their own responses to the remedy and keep good records on a daily basis, especially at the beginning of treatment. The client and the homeopath will stay in frequent contact during this early follow up period. Because treatment is so individual and because remedies are energetic - each person's response can be very different. It is the client's job to give feedback accurately. The homeopath can then provide education and information to guide the healing process so that it can be successful. Clients who want a quick fix or a magic pill are not good prospects for homeopathic treatment.
True classical homeopathy uses only one single remedy which is individualized for each person as a whole being at all levels, spiritual, mental, emotional and physical. Administering more than a single remedy at a time obscures the treatment picture and is never done in classical homeopathy.
Homeopathic healing tends to follow Herings Law of Cure. An individual heals from the inside out (from the most important to the least important), from the top down and in reverse order (in time of appearance of symptom). Treatment to effect a deep change takes months or years, but this being said, there may be immediate benefits in well being and in symptoms. Because homeopathy is energetic, one might compare it to tuning a guitar. Just the right amount tightens the strings but over time the strings loosen again and another dose of the remedy is required. Over a period of time the client becomes very familiar with their energy and knows when they need another dose. As this process evolves the homeopath is needed less frequently until only periodic follow ups are necessary.
More information
If you would like more information about homeopathy or homeopathic treatment you may call me at 303-748-8595. I would also recommend reading the wonderful book by Amy Lansky called "Impossible Cure" available at any bookseller or on Amy's website, ImpossibleCure.com. |
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Board of Directors
President
Edward Robb, CCHt.
(303)733-9962
Email
Vice-President
Suzy Walz, RN, BSN, CCHt.
(303) 674-1191
Email
Treasurer
Steven Blakely
303-913-8370
Email
Secretary
Jennifer Welch
(303) 393-1062
Email
Member at Large
Nancy Harris
(303) 692-9092
Email
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Board Meetings
Held Monthly
Next meeting:
February 16, 2010
6:15 pm
Location at private residence near University and Hampden. Email CAP President if you would like to attend.
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Become a Member
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If not join us to help safeguard your right to practice.
For more information go here. |
Member Announcements
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Contribute
Submit an article to publish in the newsletter and gain recognition from your peers. Share insights from your experiences as a way to get publicity.
Draft a well written article of approximately 500 words of a topic of your expertise and it will be included in the newsletter with your phone number, email and website addresses.
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