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Old Nov 01, 2015, 11:52 AM
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Persephone518 Persephone518 is offline
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Member Since: Sep 2015
Location: ABQ
Posts: 109
Thank you Mountainbard and rcat for your input.

Would it be unreasonable of me to explain these concerns at the beginning of the initial session and ask that, whenever possible, the new therapist allow me to finish responding before they jump in?

I understand that there are time constraints and that I'm not just there to be "listened to" in a one-sided way. That makes sense. But, as the patient, shouldn't I also feel comfortable letting my guard down and speaking freely? Knowing that I may be interrupted (especially if it's already happened) just causes me to clam up and feel disrespected and misunderstood. It feels like the opposite of empathy.

Likewise, is it okay for the patient to say "I'm sorry, but I think you're getting the wrong impression about me. I was about to explain that..." and then finish the thought? I would think that this would be useful information to the therapist's perspective.

It wouldn't even bother me as much if these particular therapists had put their hand up or said "excuse me" or "do you mind if I jump in for a sec?" to indicate that they had an important thought they wished to share at that particular moment. I would have stopped to allow them to have their say. Maybe if I also explained this at the start of the session...like "if you want to jump in while I'm talking, that's cool, but please say so at the time instead of simply cutting me off" that might help me feel more comfortable about proceeding. Would that he unprofessional of me?

It is tempting to interrupt right back. I'm just afraid that will cause me to be labeled "antagonistic" or something along those lines and impede the progress of the conversation even more. I want to show that I'm cooperative and receptive to what the therapist has to say. I just don't want to allow myself to be interrupted and have the therapist's opinions dominate the conversation at the expense of my perspective. Does that make sense?
Hugs from:
avlady
Thanks for this!
emwell