In fact, therapists who take away family have little to offer as a substitute. Therapists will not be there for clients when they cannot come up with rent or car payment, or when they are sick of need someplace to go for Thanksgiving dinner. They create strife in families and leave clients feeling weak and alone. They hopelessly confuse people about accountability and about proper behavior. They can lead to cutoffs and broken hearts.
Happiness ultimately comes from a sense that one is contributing to the well-being of the community.
Pipher shares these strategizes for protecting families. To protect time, limit the activities of family members, have one day of the week family day when no one schedules anything or having a regular mealtime when family members don't answer the phone. Families need celebrations that signify rites of passage. Without these celebrations, time runs together and the significance of events is not noted. In the spring, she sent all her women friends who had known the daughter quilt pieces and asked them to stitch or draw a picture on the piece.