Hi, I have had six sessions with a Psychologist now yet I am still none the wiser as to what he should be doing. Usually we just have a chat. Is this appropriate? Thanks for your help…
I had a motherly type psychologist and I would talk and she take notes. She was there to reassure and maybe provide a listening ear a little advice
You could mention cbt he might be able to help you out with your thought processes
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Yeah i didnt have anything productive come out of my appointments with my psychologist also. i found her to be really attrective after a while though. but whatever. she usually talks about what i should do in the future rather than what happend to me during my illness.
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chat is good, maybe it will lead somewhere, maybe you can learn to trust him
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My psychologist just asks me what’s going on. He doesn’t really do therapy per se. It’s pretty pointless other than having someone to talk to. I can’t complain anymore since I don’t pay anything. It would be nice to get actual therapy like CBT but I’ve never had a psychologist that did that.
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The good mood handbook is worth a read
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Ask yourself, what are the pressing issues surrounding you and your illness. Have a concrete idea of where you’d like the sessions to go. I told my psychologist on the first day that I wanted to improve the relationships. From there, I got job support, a clearer, more logical way of thinking/ behaving, and self confidence when it comes o other people. Have a goal, do not just go your meetings and have nothing you want to work on. Try it, see what happens.
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I decided to opt out of psychotherapy. I realized that only I can know what’s best for me. Outsourcing that independence to others became crippling.
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just chatting is actually therapy…its called interpersonal therapy.
Those chats are training and honing your social skills
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Who’s paying for this?
Any (true) clinical psychologist (like a Psy.D.) evaluates the pt for cognitive capacities and emotional triggering to see, hear and feel what the pt might be able to handle psychotherapeutically.
If the pt can handle focused work, the first algorithmic “fork in the road” has to do with either going psychodynamic to untangle historical factors that continue to drive shame, guilt, worry, remorse, regret, anxiety, depression, confusion and/or dysfunctional beliefs… or go straight into skills training and cognitive restructuring.
If the pt cannot handle focused work, the therapist goes to a combination of (“comforting”) supportive therapy and whatever skills training he or she thinks the pt can absorb. With sz pts, medicinal compliance is attended to first and foremost.
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I don’t know if you pdoc is just listening, or doing pscho-analysis. He’s probably just listening, because psycho-analysis is very involved. It’s been my experience with pdoc’s that you’re not into discussing heavy issues every session. You can kind of drift for a while before you get into the crux of your problem.
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Thanks for your response. I am not paying but all I seem to do is listen to his light conversation and I am not sure if it is helping…