Patient letter energizes Nashville treatment team

09/13/17 01:56:pm

Ashley Smith and Ryan Mueller

The mother of a patient last year wrote the team to say her daughter is doing well, has a job she enjoys and will be starting college in the fall. Her words of gratitude remind the care team of the impact they have on patients. Here’s an excerpt:

Thank you again for all you did for my girl! I speak highly of Rogers a lot! I make reference to you all and to your methods any day she is struggling with something! God answered our personal prayers by having you placed in Nashville!

Take courage if today or this week is not a good one at the center with all you have to deal with! What you do matters!! What each of you do helps restore and change lives! We thank God for you! Bless you all!

Those who work with patients truly appreciate it when families reach out to share their story with us. Ashley Smith, family therapist, calls it an honor and incredibly life giving. She shares, “We are left in suspense when our kids leave the program and we often find ourselves reminiscing together, imagining what the next chapter looks like and crossing our fingers that all is going well. It is so neat when we receive these beautifully detailed narratives and photo updates from parents because we get the opportunity to celebrate again and again! It’s like breathing in sunshine!”

Ryan Mueller, behavioral specialist, also finds the positive updates to be uplifting. “When you spend so much time hearing, ‘I am never going to get better’ or ‘this is never going to work’ from treatment resistant adolescents, it’s especially rewarding. It always serves as a good reminder to remain positive and optimistic that CBT therapy really can change lives, and I am so proud to be a part of that,” Ryan says.