Posted by fallsfall on April 25, 2005, at 9:09:35
In reply to Using Therapy, posted by daisym on April 25, 2005, at 1:07:37
My advice would be to not plan your sessions. Try not to make a list of the things you want to talk about. Try not to rehearse how you would present them. Try not to anticipate what his response would be. Try to go into the session open to letting the session unfold however it needs to unfold today.
When you get in the room, sit down and breathe deeply. Then let your heart speak. And if you heart feels like changing topics in the middle of a sentance, let it. Don't control what you talk about or what you say - just let it be. What is important will come out. Trust yourself to know what you need, and trust your therapist to help you appropriately.
I find that I can fit a lot more into a session when I stop worrying about transitioning from one topic to another, and often the juxtaposition of ideas provide as much information as the ideas themselves. My therapist is able to follow these less structured, less orderly sessions. I think it is more like free association.
When I can do this, it means that I don't have to agonize about what to talk about or what to say. Deep down, I *know* what is important, what I need to clarify, what I need feedback on. It sounds like giving up control of the session, but it really isn't - it is giving control of the session to a different part of you.
Whatever you do, please try not to figure out what you "should" be talking about. Therapy isn't about what your therapist wants to hear, or what you think is socially acceptable, or even what you think (i.e. reason) is the most important. You will see him again tomorrow, if you run out of time today, you can continue then.
You get 2 sanity marbles for just going to therapy.
(((((Daisy)))))
poster:fallsfall
thread:489106
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20050420/msgs/489169.html