In April 2025 I had the privilege to speak at the AEDP conference “In it Together!

If you missed the talk, or want to see my slides and notes (notes are on each slide) just click here! I would be happy to talk more about the use of AEDP in community mental health settings.

Here is a follow up to the presentation at the AEDP conference - my experience of Transformance in action at the mental health center where I work!

After I spoke at the "In it Together" AEDP conference in April 2025, some of the questions I received afterwards involved a focus on the things that therapists CAN'T do in the community mental health setting due to regulation or time constraints.  Some of these things were frustrations about people's struggles keeping appointments when they have a  serious mental illness, or who only show up one time.   My response - it doesn't matter.  Healing happens in a moment. The mental health care system in the US is so broken, but that just means that there are more areas for the little flower of transformance to poke through the cracks!

Side note: Another separate but equally important barrier is belief in the system that you shouldn't hug clients or tell them that you love them.This is likely a discussion for another day as it is really important and can affect your licensure if there are complaints lodged.  I'd love to have a conversation about how AEDP therapists navigate this system constraint!

Not one of these concerns listed above affects the ability of a therapist to promote healing, as Diana has said, "right from the get-go."  I have found that the most important moment I will ever have with any client or group happens in the first meeting or first interaction.  As a provider in a community mental health setting, I know I am going to meet the clients who are the most downtrodden, hopeless and struggling.  None of this says anything about the potential for transformance that exists within THEM and within MYSELF.   Even if I don't say it aloud, I am holding the hope for them, I will have been changed by virtue of the interactions I have with each and every client.  Clients can feel that authentic connection.  Yes I have paperwork, short session times, insurance forms and consents for treatment that need to be signed AND I prioritize my focus  in each interaction to look for any glimmer, name it, and then, if I am patient, watch the spark of hope catch and take off.

I have seen the culmination of my efforts in the last 8 years to create a community mental health program rooted in AEDP principles and practices come to fruition with the first ever PROS Art Show at Tompkins County Mental Health.  Participants with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) and substance use barriers; dreamed, planned and executed a beautiful art show - both visibly impressive - and with heartfelt descriptions of each author's art, written by the author.  The theme was "Journeys," but the descriptions all talked about hope and transformance.  This was a powerful way for client populations who are often stigmatized and feared, to shine the light of their transformance to the whole community - right through the cracks in the system saying - "transformance is possible!  Look at us!"  

This piece "Don't Jump" by AJ's description had a tear-evoking message that felt like it was written just for me- here's an excerpt " I made this instead of giving up. It reminds me - and maybe YOU - that love exists and that tomorrow is worth waiting for."​

This mural depicts monarch butterflies in motion, capturing a quiet but powerful symbol of transformation, resilience, and healing. The monarch’s extraordinary migration—spanning thousands of miles and generations—mirrors the courage it takes to face mental health challenges and heal from inherited trauma.

Created for the Tompkins County Mental Health lobby, this work offers a moment of calm and reflection. Like the butterflies, each of us moves forward in our own time, carrying strength, history, and the possibility of renewal. - Created and described by ML

Even in writing this today, I am brimming with joy, delight and so much pride for the clients, the staff, the program and the community who afforded us the opportunity to take over the walls of our mental health building!  

I would love to continue the conversation surrounding  the use of AEDP in community mental health settings, government institutions and non-profits by sharing barriers and successes in living out the principles and practices of AEDP in this vital and difficult work!

I have added the full script of my talk from the "In it Together" Conference to my website if you would like to read it!  I am always happy to talk more off line and would love to create a group that meets regularly to share the triumphs and sorrows working Community Mental Health!