I've been lurking on this thread and figured I post a comment. I personally like consistency on every level. For the most part my T has been very good at being very consistent in her interactions with me. Most of the time I have the same time block on the same day. However, one several occasions My T has simply said, I am not available at 1; but I have a __ block available. Now, for me this works because she has never said, 'sorry I am completely booked so I can't see you.' I would definitely feel rejected and not cared for then!

I think because I experienced some fluctuation in session times early on, it never occurred to me that I had a guaranteed (designated) time slot. Maybe this is because of my attachment issues or MAYBE it was by design. Since I tend to be a bit on the annal side, I think I could have easily fallen into the expectation that I OWNED a particular time block. I also have a tendency to be a bit paranoid and look for all kinds of negative reasons for various statements and events that occur in therapy. So if I had developed this expectation I would definitely think a change in schedule meant something negative. So I can appreciate why some people get upset. My T whether through planning or by accident successfully dodged this bullet.

I wonder.... would it be prudent for a T to occasionally change treatment times? This would kind of indirectly send the message that time blocks are flexible and that no one can OWN a specific time block. If from the very beginning the patient experience some fluctuations in slot availability, they would not automatically think (assume) these changes are negative--just normal fluctuation that sometimes are unavoidable.

I am grateful that I for whatever reason I did not develop this expectation. Sooner or later, scheduling conflicts develop and appointment times change.

Maybe it would help you if you imagined that one day you were having a really hard time coping, and needed to schedule an extra session. When you called in crisis, your T or the office staff heard your despair and assigned you to an open slot. The patient that would have normally had that spot is now bumped to another one.. and so on.. and so on. The resulting scheduling changes had everything to do with your T caring for YOU and had nothing to do with him/her forgetting the needs of the other patients or attempting to punish, ignore, or hurt anyone.