Staff Member: Logan Chamberlin, Therapist
The purpose: Getting to know him, getting to know all about him.
I sat down with Turning Point alumni, Logan Chamberlin, recently on a beautiful fall morning to see what I could find out about him. He was very busy and at first was reluctant to speak with me. Only later did I find out it was because he was in session with a client!
Anyway, I came back later, and we were finally able to sit down together and talk. I tried to keep it light.
I began by asking about his experiences in high school where he played guitar, bass and marching band drums. It quickly became apparent that this line of questioning was irrelevant to his recovery from alcohol addiction, which I was in fact there to discuss. I persisted.
Both of Logan’s parents were social workers, which was very lucky for him! It probably saved his life. Suffering from alcoholism from an early age, his drinking career was cut tragically short at 19, after his parents decided to attend some Alcoholics Anonymous meetings to find out how to deal with him. Due to his parent’s intervention, he was admitted to residential treatment at Turning Point of Tampa for alcohol addiction in August 2009.
Following his discharge from Turning Point of Tampa in October, 2009, he promptly got involved with Twelve Step Recovery. He followed direction, got a sponsor and began attending 12-Step meetings. His sponsor directed him to get a job, which he did, as a shopping cart attendant at Target and a barista at a Starbucks kiosk. He got to collect shopping carts and ride around on that little machine. You know the one that looks like a miniature Zamboni? Fun!
He rode that job as far as he could, at the same time resuming his education at HCC. However, he had no specific goal in mind. He was just following his sponsor’s direction. While at HCC he saw a flier that asked the question: So you want to help people with addictions? He decided he did and proceeded to finally declare a major. Logan has been working here at Turning Point of Tampa since 2011. He began here as a House Manager, then progressed to Detox Coordinator, Admissions Department Coordinator, and then as a weekend therapist. Post grad school, he currently holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Behavioral Health and a Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling & Rehabilitation, as well as a Mental Health Intern.
The interview began innocuously enough:
So, you must be Logan? “Yes”, he replied.
And you work here at Turning Point of Tampa? “Yes. Yes, I do.”
And what do you do here? “I am a therapist. I work with the clients to try and prepare them to go forth from here, stay sober and have productive lives.”
Wow. Sounds like an awesome responsibility. “Certainly, it is. I am very grateful to work at a place where I believe in what we do. The alumni are my favorite, because they show me that it works!”I didn’t expect him to pop all serious like that right off, and it took me by surprise. I persisted.
So I can’t help noticing you are majorly tattooed. “Yeah, most of my upper body is art. I got most all of these post-sobriety.” (So, like nothing for the pain? Wow, that’s seriously badass!). “The most meaningful one is here.” He pointed to some words on his forearm that read “tabula rasa.”
Right! It means blank slate. Why is that your favorite? “It’s meaningful because it reminds me to try and always see things with an open mind.”
Nice! So what do you like to do in your off time? “Meetings, of course, and I like to power lift at the gym. I take my Rottweiler, Coby, for walks, and in between I really dig listening to true crime podcasts and watching movies.
So do you play any instruments now? “No. Now please get out. I have clients to see and work to do”.
Apparently I had overstayed my welcome! Yeah, keep it light.
To conclude:
Turning Point of Tampa’s addiction treatment program apparently worked out pretty well for Logan. Our goal is always to provide a safe environment and a solid foundation in 12-Step recovery, in tandem with quality individual therapy and groups. We have been doing Licensed Residential Treatment in Tampa since 1987. If you need help or know someone who does, please contact our admissions department at
