Happy Holidays: A Reflection on a Year of Helping

Happy Holidays!

You all, most of you know that I sort of stumbled into Virginia Family Therapy because I wanted to help families through the pandemic. Children and parents were devastated and looking for support while, at the same time, my clinician friends were looking for more flexible, collaborative ways to help. What originally brought VFT together was the value of helping others, even though we were all struggling in our own ways.

This year, I have been more intentional about building a practice, and life, that honors the value of helping many people in many ways. And, for me, I’m not talking about helping others through dropping off lunch at someone’s house (because we all know something like that would be really hard for me!). I’m talking about genuinely changing people’s lives– helping them in their most tender moments, through grief, trauma, divorce, pressure, the pandemic. And I am only able to do this because we are doing this work together.

We sometimes forget the meaning behind our “jobs” because it comes so naturally and we usually enjoy it, even when it is hard. I’m here to remind you that, when we all take a step back and look at all the lives we have changed, our work is sacred.

This year we have held 15,000 sessions and helped 1500 families. A text I received last week read, “It is hard to express what a difference you all have made in our lives.” And that was only after three sessions. Each of you is touching about twenty people in our community, and their families, each week. At the same time, you are bringing joy, support, and learning to me, each other, our whole team.

So, for this holiday season, I hope you are able to reflect on the help you have offered and the lives you have changed. I know individual clients tell you “thank you” all of the time. I want you to think about the sum of all of those “thank you’s” and the impact you have had on our world.

And here’s my personal thank you– Thank you all so much for doing this with me. Happy happy happy holidays!!!

Love,

Amanda