The Insider as Therapist

A Poem by Dr. Barry Lubetkin / New York City

The pandemic darkened my mind.

Everything changed.

Office closed.

Masks for frightened faces.

Friends moving, dying.

Time deranged.

And then the invitation:

A poem, please. Just a poem

about what you see,

what you feel,

what you fear.

The Insider gave me a chance

to share all that I felt,

all that troubled me,

all that I had to say (scream)

with those I would never know.

And for this therapist,

it became therapy,

and I will miss it deeply.

---

Barry Lubetkin, Ph.D. is the co-director and co-founder of the Institute for Behavior Therapy in New York City. The Institute for Behavior Therapy is the oldest private cognitive behavior center in the United States.