Wellness Announcement!
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Invitation to Change (ITC) Support Group now in Arlington!

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What is ITC?
A community that welcomes the family and friends of those struggling with substance use issues.
  • Learn how to encourage change for you and your loved one, in a place of openness and support.
  • ​The Invitation to Change Approach(ITC) is grounded in compassion, connection and the belief that you can do something
  • to help your loved one.
  • Here, connect with a supportive community and engage with tools and techniques to use in your daily life.
Topics from the ITC approach include:
  • How to understand your loved one’s behaviors.
  • What makes someone decide to change?
  • What if they don’t want to change?
  • Figuring out what will work for your loved one.
  • How do I talk to them about abuse substance use?
  • Practical tools for encouraging change.
  • Taking care of yourself on this journey.
  • How to stay connected when things are hard.
*The ITC was developed by Jeffrey Foote, PhD, Kenneth Carpenter, PhD and Carrie Wilkens, Phd who also partnered on their
pioneering book Beyond Addiction. Their website is www.cmcffc.org. The ITC models brings together a number of evidence-
based ideas and approaches with the goal of creating a model of “science and kindness”. With it’s “One size does not fit all”
approach – it allows for diversity and inclusiveness.

This group is free and open to the public.
Text or Call Paula Shulman, facilitator, at 802-379-5117 to register or for questions.
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Location: The Arlington Common 3938 Rt 7A – Arlington, VT 05250
Date: Thursdays at 6pm – Beginning January 26, 2023

Resources
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What is Psychotherapy?
Psychotherapy is a process of reaching your highest inner potential with the ultimate goal of helping you to feel more alive and present in your life.  It is setting your goals with a caring therapist who supports and respects you in a nonjudgmental and non-pathologizing manner.  It is finding and going at your own pace and building inner tools to manage feelings, or perhaps a particularly stressful event in your life.  It is building resilience and making room for the wealth of inner positive energy and motivation already inside you. It is releasing old patterns and shifting energies to have access to your positive feelings, connectedness and belonging.
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What is Somatic Experiencing?
SE is a body-awareness approach of healing trauma developed by Peter A. Levine, PhD who is a medical biophysicist and Psychologist. “SE facilitates the completion of self-protective motor responses and the release of thwarted survival energy bound in the body, thus addressing the root cause of trauma symptoms. This is approached by gently guiding clients to develop increasing tolerance for difficult bodily sensations and suppressed emotions.”  Cited from The Somatic Experiencing® Trauma Institute

Substance Abuse and Recovery
As a licensed substance abuse counselor for over 30 years, I have continued to learn and grow in this field.  I utilize the Craft and Invitation to Change approached developed by the Center for Motivational Change to help families and loved ones affected by substance abuse.  I work to develop an individualized treatment plan for each client that is the best fit for them. 

Location

Offices in Arlington, VT and Cambridge, NY
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​To make an appointment, call Paula at (802) 379-5117

What Paula's Clients Are Saying

"Great to have found a therapist with with so much wisdom, love and compassion​."

"Paula is amazing. She is my favorite counselor I have ever been too. She listens and helps come up with solutions that make sense."