How do you learn to move past your inability to trust a therapist so that you can go to therapy?
First of all, trust must be earned. It’s not a given. OK, so you have broader trust issues. I understand that. There’s probably [...]
When mental progress begins with new awareness, is it normal for things to get worse before lasting progress occurs?
While I don’t love the word, “normal”, this is very very common, and is something I’d expect in many cases. This is how [...]
Are therapists ever attracted to their clients?
While many of my clients are attractive in various ways, I have never wanted to be involved with them in any other kind [...]
What are the dangers of not addressing unsolved issues from our past?
The danger is that those issues will continually impact and shape our lives without us understanding what is going on. This means that [...]
Why are those with personality disorders encouraged to have relationships for their mental health, when healthy people are told to avoid the personality disordered because they’re abusive and unstable? Shouldn’t the personality disordered isolate?
My initial reaction is to be very disturbed by such a stigmatizing and negative perspective of anyone with a diagnosed personality disorder. In [...]
How do you evaluate a therapist’s ability to deal with depression?
More significantly, how do you evaluate a therapist’s ability to deal with your depression, because it’s not going to be the same as [...]
As a mental health worker or someone affected by mental health issues, what is one thing you would want to say to educate people about mental health and to lessen the stigma and shame surrounding it?
Mental illness is no different from physical illness, except it’s…..mental. Some people seem to forget that the brain is part of the body, [...]
How do therapists deal therapeutic ruptures and client criticisms?
I see both therapeutic ruptures and criticisms as opportunities to deepen the therapeutic alliance and promote internal growth in my clients. In fact, [...]
Why is it that some people are so slow/dense/stubborn at changing their behavior? They’ll get called out on it, they will outright admit it was wrong and apologize for it, and then the next day they will turn around and do the exact same thing again.
They are not “slow/dense/stubborn”. They are human. People develop their behaviors for reasons. Once you understand how important those reasons are, it’s quite [...]
I have made a lot of progress in therapy over the past 3 years. Yet I feel out of control when my therapist leaves in holidays. What can I do to maintain stability when he’s away?
That’s an excellent question. Ideally it’s something you should discuss with your therapist but I’m guessing you probably have. I think it can [...]