Actually, some of us charge more! So, if my T is late, does that mean I can charge her for my time, at my usual rate? Sweet!

While tardiness and double-booking have only rarely been an in my relationship with T, I do think Ts should face consequences when they occur. The client's time is equally valuable and Ts should be held to the same professional standards as the rest of us. For instance, if I was late, double-booked, or skipped appointments in my profession, I wouldn't have a job anymore. Ts should be held accountable as well.

That said, I still think the client is an adult who should have the capacity to handle mix-ups gracefully in the moment. Then, at an appropriate time, the client should hold the T accountable and express their disappointment and/or feelings about what happened. For instance, about 6 months ago, my T offered me a time slot via text message and, about an hour later, I texted her back accepting the appointment. However, when my T didn't hear back from me immediately, she gave the spot to another client. She then didn't check her phone again for the rest of the afternoon. As a result, both me and the other client showed up for that time slot. When I saw the look of sheer panic on the other client's face at the possibility of losing her appointment, it was clear she needed the spot more than I did. T saw this too, and gave the appointment to her. I was disappointed, but I merely said "I understand. Please call/text me later so we can find an alternate time." Then, I went to my car and had my emotional response privately. I wallowed in self-pity for about ten minutes, and then I collected myself and went back to work. I understand everyone handles things differently, and some struggle with inappropriate behavior more than others. However, it seems to me that aggressive or intrusive behavior from a client should not be tolerated. Therapy is about teaching the client what is and is not acceptable behavior-- and then helping the client transition towards the latter. It's hard for me to imagine a scenario in which enabling an attached client's acting out would be constructive. I can't imagine my T ever allowing me (or any client) to stay in her office for even five minutes without her there, let alone kick her out of her own office. I can guarantee that if I tried to do that, security would be dragging my ***** out of there. I will say, though, that in my opinion, responsibility lies more with T's acceptance of a client's acting out, than with the client's acting out itself. It should be the responsibility of the T to set reasonable expectations and then hold the client to those expectations. Just my 2 cents.