I finally got in to see a counselor. (I think I’m going with ‘counselor’ for the time being. It doesn’t sound as bad as ‘therapist’.)
Even though I’m just there for the ADHD drugs, I am going to trust the process and see where it leads. After the first appointment, an intake session, it’s far too early to form an opinion. I was open and honest about what was going on and what I want – to be able to focus on a task without flaking out for minutes at a time.

I think movies and television have done a disservice to the mental health profession. I wonder how many people go into their therapy session waiting for an a-ha moment, either a blinding realization about themselves that puts everything in focus and allows them to fix everything, or being sucked into a black and white drawing that involves a car race, a large pipe wrench and a squinty Norwegian singer with cheekbones for days.
From my very limited experience with therapy, that would be like going to a gym, being shown the exercise equipment and expecting to walk out shredded.
Therapy is great for talking things out and yes, once in a while it can lead to a revelation that puts things in a different light, but often it’s about wrestling with things you already know about yourself. It’s about wanting to, and developing strategies for, change. It’s about setting goals and changing behavior and it is usually a lot of hard work.

So I’ve started the process. I’m not expecting to find out anything about myself I don’t already know, but if this is the hoop I have to jump through to get my sweet, sweet drugs, then I’ll be a good poodle and jump through their hoops.
***
On a different front, I have a job interview. Actually, two job interviews.
One job I want very badly. It has the potential to be a career capstone kind of job.
Unfortunately, I also have a second interview exactly two days earlier. This job is not the career capstone kind of job. It’s the kind of job you apply for when your unemployment benefits are about to run out.
It’s the kind of job that makes you work harder to find a different job.
It’s also the kind of job that has crazy turnover, so it’s more likely the kind of job that has less stringent hiring practices.
Bottom line: If I am blessed enough to be offered both jobs, the offer from the job I don’t want will probably come first.
The less-than-desireable job also isn’t making it easier to sustain my interest. The job doesn’t pay well and they made it very clear the job is NOT remote nor hybrid. When not on the road with my clients, I’m expected to be in the office.
While it’s hard to take, I understand. If you’re the type of job that doesn’t pay well and has a lot of turnover, you’re not going to attract the most trustworthy employees and if you do, they won’t be around very long. So you end up with the type of person who would abuse a lack of supervision, exactly the wrong type of person you want working remotely.
That’s the labor pool I’m in right now. The high risk pool. The people down to their last chance pool. The people who are in no position to turn their nose up at any job kind of pool. The kind of pool that would hang a sign saying ‘I don’t swim in your toilet. Please don’t pee in our pool.’
See, I don’t need therapy. I know exactly who and where I am.
***
I’ve also come to the conclusion I don’t like Drake. More on that later.

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