Approach 1 - Self-Help Books
Approach 2 - Spiritual Counseling
Approach 3 - Mental Health Professional
Approach 4 - The Self Help Community
Approach 5 - Life Skills U - Discovery Recovery

Up until now there were only four basic approaches to developing the life skills necessary for establishing good mental and emotional health.

Approach 1 - Self-Help Books provide ideas (pieces of information about life), and encourage you to figure out how such ideas and concepts fit into your own life.   Often times people can go only so far with the Self Help book approach and quit too soon, which leaves them without total resolution to their issues.  Such books and writings offer lots of ideas and concepts, however:

• They all offer different twists to the same theme, yet they are not connected and each one claims unique individuality.
• They all seem to need a foundation so that the student can both un-learn the current learned behaviors and un-learn the patterns behind the behavior so to be able to truly implement the desired new thinking and behaviors from these other programs.
• Study groups and book clubs form to read and understand the material in hopes of better retaining the material.  However, because of event learning and not process learning, most of the ideas fade over time and people will return to their old ways
• Motivational words and inspiring exercises within the Self Help approach provide a short-term incentive and a series of simple steps that seem easy to do (read the book, do the exercises).  The problem is that these simple steps are not part of a process that considers all the other aspects of life, nor do they resolve the issues that are causing the lack of motivation and inspiration in one's life.   The information (although helpful and enlightening in many ways) only "fixes the symptom" ... and not the cause of the problem.
   

Approach 2 - Spiritual Counseling (be it from a religious mentor, church, or other) provides God (in whichever respected form) as the solution to life's issues and problems, which requires having complete faith in God in order for change to occur and work.   Although without question,  this an absolute solution, but most people have challenges making it a practical solution into every day life events.  Many people experience Spiritual Counseling and total faith in God as a source of wishful and magical thinking.  In other words, prayer and meditation can direct us, ease our minds, make us feel connected to a higher power, offer us clarity and courage.  However, this does not resolve the root issues that are causing the life problems/issues we experience.

Approach 3 - Professional Help is based on the understanding and application of proven and accepted principles of psychology.  However, psychologists (those who practice the science of psychology) often take the position that they know the answer as to what is right for an individual, and that with their training they will get you (most times using some form of manipulation) to use their ideal model of what they call "healthy thinking."  This assumes that they (as psychologists) are healthy, and truly understand all aspects of the individual that they are promising to help.   Experience has taught many of us that psychologists often times jump to conclusions without gathering all the critical elements of an individual's situation (immediate labeling and "diagnosis").

In addition, the psychological model is commonly based on building an individual's perception for "I" (it's ALL about ME!), and not "We" (interdependency and teamwork with others).   As a result of this fact, many people experience the old saying, "The operation was a success but the patient died."  Did you know that within a married couple, if only one spouse goes to counseling and the other does not, 85% of the total number of couples will end up in a divorce?!   Often times, professional help results in the destruction of "we" relationships.  

To learn more,
Click to see how counseling really works
and what the profession thinks about itself.

Approach 4  The Self Help Community offers freedom of thought and a set of sound principles to follow, but no real structure for the implementation of principles into real life.   Thus, the primary addiction is addressed (alcoholism, drugs, sex, food, shoplifting, gambling, etc.), but the thought process to the nature of addictive thinking and addictive behaviors is addressed only on a surface level.  As a result, the root cause of addiction or the root of the problem is not addressed. The only issue that is addressed is the reason you joined with the community.

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The Traditional Recovery Model

Uses the 12-step program to "turn your will and your life over to the care of God" to remove one's addictions.  This model "tells us to listen to others tell us how THEY will teach you to recover, based on their individual interpretations of value." It focuses on the perception and thinking of "I can't" but "WE can."  The 12 Step Program has provided the most effective process of recovery from alcoholism that is available today.  However, even though this is considered the best of the recovery programs and the oldest (formed in 1935), the real facts are found in the following statistics...

• 45% of the people who attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings never return after their first meeting.
• 95% of the people who attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings never return after the first year.
• Based on AAWS' (Alcoholics Anonymous World Services) Alcoholics Anonymous has only a 5% retention rate.
  
• 93-97% of people who leave AA look elsewhere for help, such as conventional alcohol rehab and drug treatment centers for solutions.  However, most of the conventional, drug rehabilitation and alcohol treatment centers are 12-step or AA based, thus individuals essentially rejoin AA.

The Medical Model

Utilizes a process of the use of chemicals to alter how an individual feels and thinks.   This model is oriented towards helping an individual "feel" better.  However, there is no guidance in the process of "how to think" in terms of issue/problem resolution.  Click to read how no structure (self-control) works.  The Medical model says an individual can control the chemical imbalance with the use of more chemicals.  However, did you know that addiction to prescription drugs is one of today's most serious problems?!  

The Psychiatric Model

Uses techniques of convincing the individual to eliminate what makes them "feel bad" by accepting the values of what is considered healthy for everyone, as defined by the Psychiatric Association.   In other words it teaches "what to think" based on the values of the therapist. Click  to read how counseling and therapy really work.  Some results of the use of the psychiatric model:

• "In one 14-year period, more Americans died in psychiatric hospitals than were killed in World Wars I, World War II, the Korean war, the Vietnam war and the Persian Gulf war combined..."  - resource: Citizen's Commission on Human Rights International
• It is the position of most of the psychiatric community that since most "people can't change", the solution is to change the individual's outside world by blaming others and replacing the people in their lives. ("we" relationships get turned to "I" relationships)
• 85% of all individuals who seek counseling / therapy without their spouse end up in divorce." resource: Gina Robertson PhD.

In her book "Manufacturing Victims," Dr. Tana Dineen exposes her own psychological profession as an industry of manipulators, and clearly discloses the harm that the psychological industry has and is doing to people. 
Sadly enough even with these awakening results, ultimately both the Medical model and the Psychiatric model send the patient to the 12-step community for long-term recovery.

• The self-help model has been the most effective in overcoming addiction to alcohol and drugs with about a 6% success rate based on the total population trying the self-help approach
• Various adaptations of the 12-Step model have produced lower success rates than that found in AA itself.
• Addiction (the inability to control a substance or behavior) is rooted in a "chemical imbalance" condition in the body.  All excessive, compulsive and addictive behaviors are rooted in a clear scientific genetic foundation
• Click To See The Scientific Proof Behind The Genetic-Chemical Cause of Excessive, Compulsive, Addictive Thinking and Behaviors

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The Pocket Wisdom Model

Based upon the principle that “any problem well defined is already half solved," the Pocket Wisdom Series is a unique form of recovery, in that it follows a model promoting of discovery.  The Pocket Wisdom series courseware assists an individual in defining the problem using simple, clear and down to earth elements, and then presenting the complement of the problem which is a practical real life solution.  Through the use of this model of Discovery, the cause and effect of life issues and problems become clear.  The result is the individual not only sees the cause and effect of their (and others) perceptions, attitudes, thinking and behavior but also learn how they "connect the dots" of cause and effect to other aspects of life.  Individuals uncover, discover....then recover.

Are you interested in making real and lasting change in your life,
but not sure where or how to start?
Click to sign up for a FREE online class
with the founder of Life Skills U & the author of The Pocket Wisdom Series,
Richard Jorgensen, PhD (hc), BA