by Nancy Day
My birth family was loving and secure and always there for me. I was bored. I longed for adventure, and a trip to Disneyland.
Married at age 20, my in-law family was lively and fun, especially on Sundays, when two dozen or more got together at the kitchen table (kids first, adults next) or gathered in the city park, for a day of togetherness. My marriage to my first husband was not a good fit for either of us. We divorced. I headed to the city of Saint Louis, where I joined a religious organization.
As a member of the organization, which was like a big family, I lived a communal life of sharing living space, meals, and a goal to save the world. I traveled, with all expenses paid, to places like Los Angeles, California, and Kokomo, Indiana, for church business and training in the technology of trauma resolution and improving the human condition. I finally made it to Disneyland! It was fun.
After 11 years, I moved back to the midwest with my second husband, who was just what I had been looking for in a life partner. His family was small and we all got along well. We took care of his mother in her senior years until her death at age 92.
After completing my stint with religious organization, I joined another “family” of like-minded individuals who also had the goal of helping individuals release themselves of mental baggage and, in doing so, make the world a better place in which to live. This was the Applied Metapsychology family. During my time within this group, I trained various populations of people in the techniques and the unique session protocol of Applied Metapsychology, thus enabling them to help others in their family and community release repressed memories and mental pain.
One population I worked with were First Nation aboriginal people in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada. I flew to Canada and I was often housed with the native families while I presented the training, in the form of intense four-day workshops in trauma resolution and releasing individuals from overwhelming life situations. This seemed to be the culmination of all I had hoped to achieve in the way of finding work that was meaningful and fulfilling. I was empowering the native people to unburden themselves and their families. It was very satisfying work. I was happy.
The First Nation Trauma: Briefly, during the late 19th and early 20th century, residential schools in Canada, and also in the United States, took children away from their families and immersed them in the culture of the white man, through appearance changes with haircuts, forbidding them to speak their native language, and traditional names were replaced by new names, to both “civilize” and “Christianize” them. The experience of the schools was usually harsh, especially for the younger children who were separated from their families. Investigations of the later twentieth century have revealed many documented cases of sexual, manual, physical, and mental abuse of these children. I provided help to individuals on reservations and I trained them to help each other.
In June of 2012, my professional life took a right-angle turn again as I parted ways with Applied Metapsychology International. I was off to find a new meaningful career.
In August of 2012, I became a member of a family of individuals in rehabilitation. Ability KC, founded in 1947, is a non-profit organization providing services to individuals who have experienced trauma from such things as car accidents, muggings, stroke, physical and mental abuse, and a variety of other incidents that caused damage to the body and the brain. Cognitive therapy is also provided for individuals who request it. My role is in the employment services department. My job is to help individuals return to work and to assist them find a job/career that is a good fit for their skills and ability. Having earned the trust of my new employer, I am also provided the freedom to use my Applied Metapsychology skills with this population of clients. My case load includes individuals with Autism, Schizophrenia, and other mental disorders, which respond well to the application of the basic elements of Applied Metapsychology.
“Family,” for me, is all the people I’ve lived with, worked with, cried with, and supported throughout my life, beginning with my biological family and up to the present. In a way, we are all alone, as no one is exactly the same as we are. At the same time, we are family.
About the Author
Nancy Day is a Certified Trauma Treatment Specialist with the Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists (ATSS) and a Certified Brain Injury Specialist with the Academy of Certified Brain Injury Specialists (ACBIS). She has worked in the field of mental health for over 25 years as a psychotherapist, specializing in non-traditional methods and, most recently, as a Job Retention Specialist for individuals with brain injuries and related barriers to employment. Nancy trains individuals in the techniques and unique session protocol of Applied Metapsychology and she sponsors individuals for certification with ATSS as a Trauma Treatment Specialist, a Trauma Responder, and a Trauma Services Specialist. Nancy is open to receiving all inquiries.
