Posted by fallsfall on December 16, 2003, at 7:06:46
In reply to Re: Said she'll miss me..., posted by naiad on December 16, 2003, at 6:43:13
That's nice to know that she feels like you are part of her life.
I was with my first therapist 8 1/2 years. I wanted "forever therapy" with her. But things got bad and I had to find a new therapist. It was traumatic, but it is now 6 months later and it really is OK.
Get suggestions from your current therapist about what type of therapy you should look for (CBT, Psychodynamic, humanistic...), and what qualities you should look for in a therapist.
Do you know anyone in your new area? Friend, relative, person in your company that you have a good phone/email relationship? You need to find at least one person in your new area who seems compatable with you (are you in a club that has branches where you will be going?). They might be able to point you to a good regular doctor or pdoc or even therapist,or they might have a friend who is a therapist. Once you find one person who is related to the therapy field, they can give you a list of people who might be your "style".
Check these people out according to the criteria your current therapist recommends. Do a phone interview. They should be willing to talk to you for 10 minutes or more on the phone. If you don't like them on the phone, you probably won't like them in person. Go to one of the "how to find a therapist" sites and get a list of questions to ask them. Ask if they have experience with your particular issues, and how they would handle them.
Interview 3 or more therapists (if you can) in person before you decide. This lets you get an idea of what kinds of choices you have. These initial meetings have two purposes. The therapist will be deciding if they can work with you and if they can help with your particular problems. MORE THAN THAT, though, you are interviewing THEM to see if you feel comfortable with them, their approach, their emergency after hours procedures, their pay structure, etc. I found that when I sat down with someone it was pretty clear to me very early on if I felt comfortable with them. That is really important.
Maybe your current therapist could help you evaluate the candidates over the phone.
It can be done. I've been with my new guy 6 months and he's really different from my old one, but I am making progress and learning a lot. I always thought she was the only one who could make me feel safe, but I was wrong.
Good luck!
poster:fallsfall
thread:290376
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20031213/msgs/290414.html