Riding in Cars with Shrinks

Remember a few weeks ago when I uttered these fateful words: “I just want to get in my car and GO somewhere. I don’t care where. I just want to GO.”

Remember that?

God was listening. And laughing. And scheming.

The result? On Monday, I spent seven hours in a car with a shrink – not even MY shrink – so that I could attend a meeting in Bedford, Texas. It wasn't quite what I had in mind when I said I wanted to go somewhere. Really, I was thinking somewhere tropical. Somewhere with water. Somewhere... that wasn't a meeting room in a hospital cafeteria. That'll teach me to be vague.

I facilitate the local OCD support group here in Austin, and a few weeks ago, one of the psychologists at Austin's OCD clinic stopped by our meeting to tell us that some people in Dallas were interested in starting a Texas wide group that would be affiliated with the International OCD Foundation. Of course, I was thrilled about that. I'd talked to our group about a possible IOCDF affiliate several months ago, but the consensus was that we just didn't have enough people here to pull of something so complicated. IOCDF requires board members, bylaws, and 5013c status. So hearing that Dallas was interested excited me. Furthermore, we'd have the clinic on board.

The psychologist mentioned that there might be a meeting in September up near Dallas.

Two weeks later, I got an e-mail saying that the meeting would be on the 23rd, in Bedford, and by the way, was I interested in carpooling?

It was an interesting journey. It rained a bit. We talked a LOT about psychology. Seriously, I have never psychoanalyzed quite so much during one day. Or been psychoanalyzed. We joked about it, but really, I feel sure that Dr. Tobis has me all figured out.

The meeting itself was unproductive. The man who called it more or less said, "well, I don't think that you should do much of anything. And whatever you do, you ought to do very slowly." It felt a bit like we had been called together to be told not to bother.

Made me a little angry, really. He could have told us not to bother over the internet. Didn't need to see us in person to do that.

Still, the facilitators of the meeting were lovely, as were the people involved, most of whom said they would be interested in coming to Austin in November for the next quarterly meeting.

On the way back, we psychoanalyzed them all.

Just kidding. 

Psychoanalyzing is Freud's bag, and you all know that I'm a Rogerian.

There is a lot of work to be done, but I do feel that we made some progress and got to meet some great people. And all jokes aside, I didn't mind the seven hour car trip at all.

Just next time, I'll be a bit more specific when I say that ANYWHERE would be acceptable. Perhaps "anywhere with a resort, pool, spa, and masseuse at my beck and call" would be more apt?

School starts tomorrow. Will fill you in on all the exciting details of Russian and Research Methods.

I know you just can't wait.

*Bobs