Finding Freedom
July 2011
Banner photo: Finding Freedom [© Dariush M./Shutterstock]
Counselors: A Source of Hope
Tetsuko Mochizuki, from Tokyo, Japan, has been a nurse for over 30 years. After gaining experience working with elderly patients with various types of illnesses, she became involved with alcohol dependency rehabilitation.
Anna Ricci, born and raised in Italy, first earned her medical degree in 1988 before returning to graduate school to gain a license to become a psychiatrist. After working as a family doctor and gaining experience in an emergency ward, she was put in charge of the drug dependency rehabilitation team.
How did you become involved in dependency rehabilitation?
Tetsuko: I was raised in an environment where my father was hearing-impaired and my mother struggled with bipolar disorder. I couldn't afford to attend high school, so I decided to study assistant nursing at a school where I could work and study at the same time. After graduating from high school evening classes, I went on to attend a formal nursing school where I got my nursing license. I worked in the general ward while supporting my mother. The experience of caring for my mother made me realize that properly caring for patients involves caring about the patient's family members, too. After 20 years in the general ward, I began working at a psychiatric hospital, and have been working there for the past 14 years.
Anna: My decision to become a doctor and then a specialist in psychiatry was formed when I was young, when I knew various people who were experiencing psychiatric problems or using drugs. As I began to practice Buddhism, I naturally began to become more focused on this career path, and to feel a sense of mission about it.
What aspect of your work do you find most rewarding?
Anna: Even after many years of professional involvement in the clinical psychiatric and psychotherapeutic world, I still find deep satisfaction in developing a therapeutic relationship with every patient, based on empathy. I also work on pathological addiction. I enjoy the leadership role that comes with carrying out successful interventions, as well as developing good communication among the team and managing the tensions that can arise and channeling them toward better cooperation.
Tetsuko: It makes it worthwhile when I see my patients back in society working healthily and happily. I also find it rewarding when patients smile and say, "I'm glad I talked to you. I feel much more relieved now," and I know that they are feeling more hopeful.
How serious a problem is addiction in your society, and how significant are the efforts of professionals who are tackling this problem?
Tetsuko: Social impairment due to alcohol consumption is becoming an increasingly serious problem in Japan. Alcohol consumption is often linked to a variety of social problems at home and in the workplace, such as domestic violence and crime, and is also seen to be the primary cause of accidents and solitary death. According to recent studies, about 23 percent of people who commit suicide in Japan suffer from problems related to alcohol, such as alcohol dependency.
Keeping in mind that alcohol dependency is a type of drug dependency, we can treat it as a psychological disorder. I feel it is necessary to offer support so that the patient is able to gain accurate information about their problem and realize the need for treatment so that he or she is able to reflect on his or her life and start anew. At the same time, I believe my mission is also to support the patient's family members and offer a source of hope and courage for that person to continue living.
Anna: The problem of pathological addiction is a complex and multifaceted one that affects various age groups, including youths in their very early teens. It develops through the indiscriminate consumption of many different kinds of new synthetic drugs in clubs and raves, alongside an increase in the use of cocaine and cannabis derivatives. Because addiction is a multifaceted problem, it is important for the drug dependency workers to work in a multidisciplinary way, dealing with the medical, psychological, psychiatric and social aspects of the problem. It is important to note that all treatments, including those involving pharmacological medicine, have their foundation in the therapeutic relationship. This unquantifiable aspect of the treatment is also less immediately visible, but it is decisive for the success of the treatment. In other words, relationships can cure!
What elements of Buddhist philosophy are most useful to your day-to-day work?
Tetsuko: In Buddhism, we believe that each person possesses the Buddha nature. I sincerely pray for and encourage my patients with the belief that each of them possesses that power within themselves to transform themselves for the better. SGI President Daisaku Ikeda once said, "Life is not a conglomeration of mechanical parts. People are not things . . . That makes the role of care even more critical--care in the form of kind and supportive words, in the form of a friendly, smiling face, in the form of a good and patient listener. It is important to help patients find courage, joy and a will to live." Every day, I take these words to heart as I work with my patients. I try to put myself in the patient's family's shoes and always keep in mind the Buddhist concept of compassion--removing suffering and giving joy.
Anna: Buddhist philosophy has taught me to respect every individual and to believe in their potential, regardless of their circumstances and appearances, which are often, in these kinds of contexts, truly onerous and in which it is difficult to imagine a favorable outcome. However, I persevere with conviction in the possibility of change. It is often I who am amazed at the results!
What do you feel is the potential role of family members and close friends of people who suffer from addiction?
Anna: Young people affected by addiction are "sick" as regards their relationships to themselves and others; they are devoid of true bonds because, unfortunately, during adolescence, these young people create ties with substances that affect the development of relationships which will in time replace parental ones. Often if there is a dysfunctional or disintegrated family, it will manifest a certain "evaporation" of parental functions--parents more worried about being loved by their children than about their children's upbringing. For this reason, our way of working is to bring together the family in order to help reconstruct its roles, functions and tasks and emancipate the family system from relationships that "do harm." This allows the individuals involved to develop themselves and integrate themselves back into society.
Tetsuko: Just listening to what the patient has to say and trying to understand their suffering, helps relieve their anxiety. Thinking together of ways in which the patient can live without drinking is also very helpful. I believe the kind of encouragement that assures the patient that he or she is not alone in the world is what brings out the courage and hope to live.
What kind of advice can you give to youth who are struggling to overcome addiction?
Anna: Whether explicitly or not, my intention and that of my team toward all users is to help them become free from fear--the fear, for instance, of not knowing how to live without having at the center of one's life a mind-altering substance. Living this way may be difficult for them, but the alternative is ultimately even more complicated and intolerable. We try to help people overcome the fear associated with addiction and trust the person who is trying to support them until, even if with some trepidation, often gritting their teeth and sometimes at the risk of relapsing, they challenge themselves to take the first step toward the joy of self-worth.
Tetsuko: People possess infinite potential. I'd like to say to them: You will definitely overcome your addiction, so there is no need to feel rushed. Everything in life has meaning. Please appreciate the fact that you were able to endure such a valuable struggle, and consider it your chance to change for the better, reflecting upon yourself. You possess the power to heal yourself. Remember that you are never alone and that there are many people out there who are willing to offer a helping hand.
