The texting, like answering phone calls, during a session is really quite unprofessional. I'm seeing this complaint come up more often with younger Ts, so I suspect it is partly a consequence of a generational relationship to technology. But it has psychological consequences, as you've noted, and I would wonder about a T who hadn't considered that.
Silences are not unusual. And there may be some expectations on your part about her role happening here. While some Ts do give advice, that's often not the primary function. So I'm not sure if your pattern of communication has been to tell her about an issue/situation, she gives you feedback, and then the conversation stops--and you feel like she should pursue it further? But it's generally more your job than hers. If you're not being clear about the emotional importance of these issues, then she may think what you're expressing is simpler than it is to you. After only 10 sessions, she's not going to have a deep sense of you emotionally, so her ability to lead in that way is minimal.
Referring to other situations as examples isn't unusual. I guess my question would be whether your reasons for pursuing therapy are basically situational or emotional? I'm getting a feeling of emotions not expressed, and most Ts take their cues from the client, especially early on. So she could be running out of things to say because of the manner in which you're presenting whatever you talk about.
But I would also keep an eye on the note-taking. If your T practices psychodynamically, the thinking is that most Ts write summary notes after a session, rather than during, because the activity takes their attention away from the client to some extent. Every moment of attention away, also distracts the T from sensing their emotions in reaction to you. This tends to objectify and possibly limit the effectiveness of the therapy, and may feel to you like disengagement--especially when made explicit by the texting.
|