Martha Ruske, MFT
Recovery Life Coaching
Why coaching?
As a licensed psychotherapist I was used to having people come to me in pain. I took a long-term approach to helping them: working with family issues, working through resistances, and looking at the relationship my client and I were forming together. It was thrilling to me when people were able to transform their lives.
I still think therapy is a wonderful help to people, and is certainly called for when dealing with depression, anxiety, or other disorders, or when healing past family issues or abuse. There are many therapeutic styles to choose from, but generally psychotherapy treats addiction as a disease needing treatment. It tends to look at the past, at the emotional and behavioral problems, at trying to repair the damage that has been done. This focus on “what is wrong” can keep people in a continual state of “fixing” themselves.
I was intrigued when I learned about coaching as another way to get support. Coaching works with people who have already had some success in their life, and helps them get from where they are now to where they would like to be. You already know what it’s like to make major changes, to make shifts in what you believe and how you see the world. Recovery life coaching, then, helps you build on the strength of your recovery. Recovery is not the sole focus; rather, it is living a full life within the context of recovery.
Coaching has benefits beyond its philosophy and approach. It fits easily into many peoples’ current lifestyles because it uses the telephone and e-mail. Imagine sitting out in your garden, or in an armchair in your living room, while talking on the phone to your coach. You don’t have to drive across town; you just need a quiet space where you won’t get interrupted. You might be surprised at how effective it can be, and how connected and supported you feel.
Want to talk about it? Tell me what concerns you have, what you’re hoping for in your life, and what is holding you back. Together we can explore the best possibilities for help. You can contact me by e-mail – I check it daily. I also welcome phone calls at 415 256-1755. If you get my voice mail, I’ll return your call within one business day.
“It has been said that if you don’t have discipline, it is like trying to walk without legs. You cannot obtain liberation without discipline.”
Chögyam Trungpa