3. LIST FACILITATION: Guideline of the Day

[Guest guest]

The 12 sections of the " WTO Guidelines " are

posted at the rate of one per day, as below:

1 - Intro to WTO

2 - Technical Stuff

3 - List Facilitation

4 - List Netiquette

5 - Posting and Getting Responses

6 - Eggshell Resources, Abbreviations

7 - Offended? Send Problems to Us

8 - Confidentiality

9 - Humor and Off Topic Posts

10 - The Family of WTO Lists

11 - Live Chat, The Buddy System

12 - BPDs on the WTO Lists

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3. LIST FACILITATION: Guideline of the Day

The Role of the WTO List Facilitators:

The facilitators are here to help you re-create your own sense of

reality and guide you through the pitfalls. We try to resist the urge to

" rescue " others on the list while offering validation, suggestions,

education, information, and our own personal stories.

Internet Support Group Lists:

If you are new and have never been on an Internet support list, we think

you will like it. You can access it any time (not just Tuesdays from 7-9

pm), they're totally anonymous, you can save insightful posts,

journaling helps, and you can get support from strangers and be in a

ratty bathrobe at the same time! Many people find that these lists

become a lifeline and that members become important friends.

LIST FACILITATORS ARE HERE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT

List facilitators give information and support, help members take back

control of their own lives, and make the WTO lists a safe place. You

can reach them by sending an email to WelcomeToOz-owneregroups.

Please specify which list(s) you're on and DO NOT USE THIS ADDRESS TO

SEND LIST MAIL.

Note: Unfortunately, due to list volume (more than 1,000 subscribers),

facilitators cannot provide therapy, technical assistance, or answer

private therapeutic questions. Please post your BPD questions to the

list; many people will be there to provide assistance and help you.

The WTO List Facilitators are:

* Randi Kreger: Randi has cowritten one book _Stop Walking On Eggshells_

(SWOE) and three booklets about BPD, with another book on the way. SWOE

is in its 6th or 7th printing and has sold around 35,000 copies. On

Amazon.com SWOE been ranked as high as 184 (meaning it's the 184th most

bought book on Amazon.com, which sells just about every book in print).

Randi founded the first Non-BP lists and gives seminars across the USA

for clinicians and laypeople. She was a presenter at two Non-BP

gatherings. In addition she is a PR and marketing consultant with 18

years of experience.

* , MSW, (aka Bear) is a therapist with 15 years of experience. He

has worked in private practice, hospitals, addiction treatment centers

and even prisons. BPD and the other personality disorders have been a

long-term interest of his. He has been on lists as a participant and a

facilitator. has taught social sciences on the college level and

has worked as an alcohol and drug consultant to two colleges and one

university. says, " I look forward to sharing the lists with people

who are working to understand BPD. " cannot and will not provide

therapy on the list, however he can provide information in a supportive

and helpful way.

* Edith, MA, (PsyProf & PsychProf5) had a mother, now deceased, with a

significant number of BPD traits. After juggling family responsibilities

and a teaching schedule (music) for 10 years, she returned to college

and completed her degree in clinical psychology - in an era before BPD

was recognized in the DSM. Edith taught full-time at the same college

for the next 37 years and is now retired. It was in early 1996, when she

found Randi's first Internet email support group, that the lights began

to turn on. Edith has been an active member on several of the

WelcomeToOz lists since.

* Many other people who have been here a while also help on an informal

basis. We're a friendly bunch. If you have a question, ask! We reserve

the right to be regular people, to make mistakes, and to try to correct

them when we do so. Please remember we are volunteers. Our payment is

seeing the lists run smoothly and watching people get out of them what

they need.

Randi Kreger

List owner, Welcome To Oz Lists

Coauthor, Stop Walking on Eggshells

Love and Loathing, Hope for Parents

www.BPDCentral.com

Addendum:

A portion of the guidelines to the WTO groups are sent out each day

because altogether they can be rather overwhelming. They are sent to all

lists in approximate order of what is important and are not making any

comment on any particular message on any one of the WTO groups. Please

note our guidelines have developed over the years by the group as a

whole to meet situations that come up again and again. Before you post,

you must agree to try to read and try to meet them. If you have any

questions, comments, or feelings you wish to voice about the guidelines,

please write to at bear454us@... or Edith at

psychprof5@.... Thank you!

______________________________________

Posted by Edith

Facilitator / WTO lists

PsychProf5@...

..