Jayson Blair

When I was looking toward this week, I didn't expect that I would be visiting a museum dedicated to national security and cryptology that I had written about more than ten years ago, attending a funeral for one of my favorite uncles or returning to New York to see a group of people that I had not seen since a wedding 16 years ago in Virginia or sitting at the beside of one of them in a Christian Science nursing home, where the only medicine on the menu is a healthy dose of prayer. I was actually looking forward to a relaxing week of bunkering down with my clients to help them work on their lives, but several unexpected twists and turns transformed the week into an exploration of my own life and history. I find that sometimes, when I take in too much darkness, its good to turn to the light. I often find it in the brilliance of the most intelligent and creative people around us. So, after my uncle's funeral in suburban Maryland on Thursday, when my girlfriend asked what I wante...

A client I had been seeing for almost three years has had some success abstaining from alcohol and drugs, and bringing a great amount of order to her life. She now wants to be a counselor working. She, like all of us "non-civilians," struggle with stabilizing our, leaning to cope and socialize without mind-and-mood altering substances and healthier ways to calm ou r minds. This client has had willpower and that has been a strong feature of her recovery. The traditional approach to recovery holds that will power alone will not be enough, because all it takes is one slip in your will power to one slip toward that first drink or drug, and it never stops there. People start back just where they felt off -- any new tolerance tends to be temporary, and the costs are substantial. The client and I work on strategies for life, while she works with her psychiatrist, family members and others to bring order in other areas. I've advocated for the client to add Alcoholics Anyomous. or...