I have never taken preparatory notes into a session, I think those are the kind of notes you mean - like a summary or points to cover. It would seem like a presentation if I were to do that. I do take images or my creative writing to work with, but that is a different kind of information.

I also don't go with my gut because I don't have a good gut sense. Do you mean not preparing at all?

I suppose I do something in between because I almost always journal or do other work between sessions. This work informs what I speak about.

Sometimes I forget things and I don't know what to say, or I can't express something clearly, or my shame shuts me up, or my hostility kicks in and things deteriorate. It's uncomfortable to not be able to express yourself perfectly, but isn't that part of the point? I can imagine that notes might help with fluency, but I would lose so much emotional information by not experiencing the discomfort - the hard work is in those unspeakable bits. Plus, any kind of somatic work is lost with notes.

Interesting question because I have just started a creative course which is focused on your own words and language and place. It has prompted me to think a lot about how disconnected I am from those factors about my self; it feels like the idea of notes and preparation fits into my reflections.