Desperately Seeking Consultation

My very first twelve-step meeting was a combination of relief and terror. I knew I needed help, but my inner voice was telling me that I could do it on my own, just like I had always done. Instead, I listened intently as I sat in the well-worn chairs of this dusty Pasadena church, and soon I understood that I could learn to ask for help. In other words, it was time for me to seek consultation from my fellows in program and eventually a power greater than myself, whatever that would turn out to be.

As a seasoned private practitioner, newer therapists often ask me the keys to building a practice, and I share three basic ingredients:

1. Find the best therapist you can afford.
2. Join a consultation group with like-minded clinicians.
3. Immerse yourself in advanced trainings that will be fun and meaningful.

In summary, therapy is often about consulting with a person you respect. Consultation groups help you stay on your growing edge as you ask for perspectives from those you learn to trust. Advanced trainings are a way to keep the beginner’s mind sharp, and each of these are forms of seeking consultation.

Let’s turn the wheels of time back to 1993. I had just celebrated my 29th birthday and it was two years after completing my MSW at UCLA—in other words, I was wet behind the ears. In 1992 I was invited into the world of private practice as an associate at a dynamic group practice called West Coast Counseling Center. On some level, I knew that I was a bit over my head but with tight supervision and two talented therapists who believed in me, I managed to stay afloat and eventually thrive.

In 1988 I moved to Los Angeles with the intention of being closer to my West Coast family including my Aunt Ruth, a private practice psychologist in Encino. For years she had been attending a monthly consultation group with her mentor Burt, and she suggested I talk to him about joining their group. Because Ruth has always been an extraordinary role model of mine, I felt honored and a bit intimidated to be offered a space in Burt’s group, but he believed in me in a way that I didn’t believe in myself at the time—one of the hallmarks of a quality consultant. I stayed in the group for eight formative years absorbing as much as possible from a psychoanalytically-informed therapist who also incorporated decades of multi-layered experience.

Fast forward to my Somatic Experiencing (SE) training from 2007 to 2010, and during that time I participated in several consultation groups. The SE training can be esoteric at times, but I was determined to understand how to apply it to my clinical work. The first group was experiential where we practiced SE on one another, and it was led by a seasoned practitioner who I knew prior to my training so I had a pre-existing trust and admiration for the creativity of his work. The second one was a peer consultation group which was also valuable in a different way as we examined our cases through the lens of SE. Both groups turned out to be vulnerable, intimate and inspiring.

More recently, I have been a devoted member of a Group Therapy Book Club for the past ten years. Although it has morphed into a support group since the pandemic, there has always been a valuable element of consultation. My love and gratitude for this remarkable group is enormous and has been a touchstone both personally and professionally.

Several years ago it became evident to me that it was time to give back what I had been given so I started a consultation group with my associates and past associates. The experience was clinically-stimulating and memorable, and I felt so grateful to be witness to the emotional risks and deep introspection that took shape there.

So why am I sharing this now? After more than thirty years of clinical work, I believe that quality consultation is part of my professional mandate. It keeps me on my growing edge. It reminds me what I do and do not know. It allows me to integrate other clinical perspectives, and it creates a sense of camaraderie and community. In addition to my so-called book club, I currently meet with my private consultant almost every week which keeps me open-hearted and respectful of the complexity of our work.

At a time when so many of us may feel like the lone ranger alone in our offices, I look forward to virtually opening my clinical space for more collaboration, community and consultation. My door is always open if you have any questions or comments.

Reprint December, 2022, Westside Post.

Andrew Susskind is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Brainspotting and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, Certified Group Psychotherapist, Consultant and Author based on the Westside of Los Angeles since 1992 specializing in trauma and addictions.