Could I Be Loved Linda Odom

By Linda Odom, PhD

Could I be loved? Could I be LOVE? Could I breathe it in Until it fills me completely? Could I breathe it out For you to breathe in? Could the little green light in my heart expand

Until I am surrounded by a bright green radiant cloud, That looks so delicate and fragile, As though a gentle breeze could blow it away, But that actually expands further and further

Like a fire that we feed with our breath?

Can the fire in my heart keep you warm? Could it ignite the fire in yours? Could we become a chain reaction

Spreading the sweet flames of LOVE? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if LOVE were contagious And nothing, no nothing could stop it?

(Irvin Yalom, Continued from page 6)

Several other group experiences with member of the Nashville Psychotherapy Institute have also been vital in my own personal and professional growth. Dr. David McMillan and I developed a peer therapy group of 14 members based on the theories of the renowned group therapist Yvonne Agazarian. I was a member of a weekly peer consultation group for 7 years. And for the past 9 years, I have been a member of an intensive modern analytic group therapy training group, organized by Dr. Zach Bryant and led by renowned group therapist Jeff Hudson from Austin, Texas. I often say to patients that one of the goals of psychotherapy is to enable one “to live unselfconsciously in the world.” My group experiences have played an enormous role in helping me personally to do this.

In closing this article, I return to the above quoted interview with Irvin Yalom. He says, “Every therapist should have a therapy group for themselves to prevent burnout and for their continued professional and personal growth…If I can influence the field, therapists should be seeing peers and talking about their issues, their patients. I am an experienced therapist, but I am always learning from others in groups.” (p. 8)