I received my doctorate in Counseling Psychology, have been licensed in New Mexico since 1991, with almost all of my practice in Clinical Psych. I worked inpatient in State Hospitals, in outpatient programs for the severely disabled mentally ill and at what was commonly known as the Albuquerque Jail, formally the Bernalillo County Detention Center, where I supervised counselors. I provided assessments for the State in criminal forensic cases, performed mental health Disability assessment interviews and wrote formal clinical reports, and later reviewed others' reports for Social Security assessing for accuracy and proper determination. Altogether, this amounted to thousands of cases.

My most important preparation for what became my unexpected career came from growing up in a dysfunctional family, where I decided at 17 years old that my best alternative was homelessness. That experience brought me into daily contact with drug addicts, alcoholics, the mentally impaired, criminals, and others who, like me, couldn't see how they could make it in life. Many of these people were my friends. I still think about them, often fondly. Those relationships proved to be important in my training and subsequent practice.

I accept people for who they are. I do not presume them to be either good or bad; I take them as they present themselves. I NEVER assume that I know them better than they know themselves. In that regard, I have never changed. I have been known to say, "I don't like people." The typical response is, "So, why did you become a psychologist?" And I reply, "I think their problems are interesting." If my work opens the possibility of improving a person's functioning and adaptability I am all in-no matter the severity of the case-as long as they want to do the work of therapy.

Recognizing flaws and biases in people does not dehumanize them for me; it ennobles them. It reflects an understanding of what they have been through and what they may have endured, to reach the point where they commit themselves to enlarging their world. As a Psychsurvivalist, I expect people to be people, no more and no less. I hope that the people I have worked with put what they learned to good use. Any success is theirs not mine. I always appreciate and recognize their effort. I am just trying to help them along the way.