Have you ever had a client who drove you so crazy that you briefly considered trying to kill yourself with the tip of your note-taking pen just to put an end to the agony?

That was basically my experience last Saturday. I see clients at lovely chiropractic office in Studio City, called Institute of Health and Sports Chiropractic. (Incidentally, they happen to have four of the best-looking chiropractors you’ve ever seen. If you’re into men and you live in LA, this is the place to get adjusted!) So I’m sitting with this new client, and never have I observed someone so adept at mentally screwing themselves. Any potential solution to the client’s problems was immediately dismissed as impractical, impossible or just unexciting. The client truly insisted on shooting herself in the foot at every turn, and wasn’t interested in really making forward progress with her health. She just wanted to sit in my office and kid herself about the new life she could have…. And she could have it! If she wasn’t standing so squarely in her own way.

Now, I’m rarely irritated or upset by people, especially clients, whom I shower with love and affection. But this woman nearly drove me to drink. At 1 o’clock in the afternoon!

If you’re a graduate of the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, you’ve heard something about “the Magic of Mirroring”. And what is the “Magic of Mirroring”? It’s neat little phrase to describe why every client who comes to you has nearly the same issues you do. What you put out into the world, you get in return, after all. Right?

NO!!

I remembered the “Magic of Mirroring” right after my nightmare session. Oh my god!! Was it possible that this woman and I were actually - gasp - ALIKE?!?!? If I was on the verge of killing myself during the session, now I really wanted to throw myself into oncoming traffic!

What is a counselor to do when she comes blunt up against her own issues? When we’re blocked by our own emotional baggage and can’t love our clients as we should - even the ones who might deserve a bop in the head - we simply can’t help our clients move forward. Enter Re-Evaluation Counseling - counseling for counselors - to the rescue!

Re-Evaluation Counseling, also known as RC, helps you address your own steamer trunk of baggage and counsel your clients better than you ever thought you could. I am eternally grateful to Vinca von Muhlenberg, founder of Vinca Health, for insisting I try it.

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