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Originally Posted by piggy momma
That would bother me too. My T is often a few minutes late but we usually go late, or sometimes he’ll end early and it bothers me but I don’t say anything because we do go late sometimes, and he allows contact between sessions at no charge so I still feel like I’m getting my hours worth.
I do think it’s important to bring up, so maybe something along the lines of “I noticed we usually start late but always end on time. Is there something I can do to ensure we always start on time so I get my full 50 minutes?” I would put it on me and not say “you’re always late” (even tho that’s actually the case). Hopefully something like that will get her thinking about how her punctuality affects her clients.
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For certain awkward situations in life, I've developed what I call "stock lines" to use and that helps me out.
I often open by saying, "I find this kind of uncomfortable (or awkward), so I am just going to jump right in." That helps me get primed. Then, I blurt out what it is that's on my mind. But I try to "own" the observation as well. So in this case I might say:
"I'm finding this topic a little unsettling (awkward, whatever word you'd like) so I am going to jump right in. I've noticed that the last couple of sessions, we've gotten started about 5 to ten minutes later than the appointment should begin.
OR:
I've noticed that we don't really get into the swing of things until 5 to 10 minutes past my start time. I'm having a tough time with that, as the time that I spend here is really precious to me -- I'm pretty serious about my therapy with you. Would it be possible for us to start on time, going forward?"
Just my two cents worth. Good luck to you!!