The Upstream Analogy
Imagine a river with people floating down stream. It’s easy to focus on those in the water to try and save them from drowning. But why are they falling in the river in the first place? This is called the Upstream Analogy. It’s a lesson in prevention, which is relatable in both therapy and parenthood.
When I first decided I wanted to be a therapist, I wanted to work with adolescents, specifically in treating eating disorders. However, once I started working with adults in higher levels of care for eating disorder treatment - many of them parents - I felt drawn to working with this population.
I noticed that many of these individuals would often come back to treatment. Even though the majority of these people developed effective coping skills while in treatment, going back to their environment - where their eating disorders thrived, and where little to nothing changed while they were away - led to a relapse, and an eventual return to a higher level of care.
Which brings me to The Upstream Analogy: a way to think about the importance of prevention (Why are people falling in the river?), rather than solely focusing on the people who are already drowning downstream. What comes first, the chicken or the egg? What could prevention be like with eating disorders, or even with trauma and perinatal mental health?
I noticed in my work with adolescents how frustrated I felt with parents. Most times, parents are willing to make necessary changes for the better of their child’s recovery. Far too often, though, other parents are not. Trying to recover in a system that will not change can feel impossible.
What I noticed in my work with adults through my private psychotherapy practice is that people who came to me for therapy wanted to work on their own recovery as new parents, or even before becoming parents. They wanted to stop unhelpful generational cycles, and to create a more positive experience for themselves as parents and for their children.
This is where I believe the most important work can happen: to help people make necessary changes in their lives, and to heal from past wounds and traumas, so that they can help prevent falling into the river - a cycle that may have been repeated in past generations, but one that can end with you.
This is where our work together begins. The fact you are already reading this is a sign you are a change maker; you want to be brave and break unhelpful generational cycles - not just for yourself but also for generations to come. I created a free guide to help you in this process and you can find it here!
