Video by Nick Sperry

Before enrolling in the M.A. Counseling program at Saybrook University, Bo Aucoin had to find his way back from a dark and dangerous place in his life. Suffering from addiction and untreated mental illness, the father of two lost a promising career and found himself unhoused, living out of his car in San Francisco. It’s not rare for patients who receive life-changing mental health care to later pursue a career in mental health care and in turn help others. Aucoin is one of their number. Like so many students at Saybrook, he brings hard-won life experience to his training and has found that the faculty is positioned to help him pursue his goals.

“The first thing I noticed about Saybrook is that professors are very approachable, very human, and really want to see us succeed,” Aucoin says.

Given what Aucoin witnessed on the streets and under the fluorescent lights of a residential facility, he not only understands the vital importance of treatment and therapy, but he also has developed deep concerns about the inequities in American society. He believes that, had he been a person of color, he would have ended up in jail or dead.

“I had a lot of ethical questions about becoming part of the system,” Aucoin says, “and I appreciate that Saybrook has always made the space for those discussions.”

After graduating from Saybrook, Aucoin began working as a clinical counselor at a residential substance use disorder treatment facility. He feels a kinship with people in addiction recovery because of his own struggles with addiction. He tells those he has counseled that, while he may have achieved a lot in his life, “There is nothing that I have been through or accomplished in my life that is harder than recovery from addiction.”

Aucoin also sees a lot of the unhealthy mindsets ascribed to addicts as a reflection of our culture. He believes we are all suffering from addiction, whether it is to capitalism, unsustainable consumption, or unbalanced power structures. “We need to learn to let go of these things, and we can learn a lot from those who have overcome addiction,” he says.

Saybrook’s M.A. Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Counseling Specialization trains students to apply holistic and systemic perspectives when working with individuals, relationships, and groups in a range of settings.  Aucoin was impressed by this focus on the big picture but wondered if this was just marketing speak. “I was a little skeptical and wondered what that is going to look like,” he says. “What I’ve found is that the professors really are committed bringing others in, to learn how they can grow, and how they can be part of social change.”

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