Paul has a giant hole where his heart used to be. He’d always imagined happily growing old with his wife. But then came that devastating diagnosis. Now, she’s gone, and it feels like his life is over. How is he supposed to go on?

His family keeps insisting he’ll feel better soon, but that just makes him feel worse. No one knows how to talk to him now, and it’s so isolating. Nothing seems important anymore. He’s stopped exercising and has been missing deadlines at work. His mind is in a constant fog, and he wonders if he’ll feel this way forever.

Bill has started drinking too much. He’s been a paramedic for five years and loves his job. But the hours are grueling, and lately, he’s been having trouble falling asleep after his shifts, so he’s started having a few beers before bed to calm him down.

The job is getting harder. More shooting deaths, new drug overdoses, and increasing suicide rates are all taking a toll on him. He’s not the same guy he was in the past. Romantic relationships are struggling, and he doesn’t know what to do. He wants to speak to someone but is embarrassed to talk about these feelings with his buddies or his partner.

Paul was tentative about reaching out at first, but he eventually called, and we set up our first session. He was scared that I would talk to him like his family and friends had been and was shocked and energized to find that wasn’t the case. Instead of telling him how he should feel or trying to fix him, I simply listened to him, and before Paul knew it, he started feeling better.

Bill hoped that his problems would go away on their own, and eventually, he’d just feel better. But that wasn’t happening. He reached out to me, and together, we taught him tools for coping with his issues in a healthier way. As he began to feel more in control over his own life, he started feeling better about himself and is now able to connect with loved ones and relax without drinking.