[merighteouswow]

At the end of every session my T says "How shall we close today"? I always just say "I guess I need to make another appt.". I was thinking about this and am now wondering, "do people close the session in different ways"? I wonder if he is giving me the opportunity for a hug before I leave? That would be nice, although a little uncomfortable at first, but I think I might like that. What do y'all think? How do you close your sessions?

[Perna]

I use to be a little jealous because I had read that some therapists "sum up" the session for their clients as a close. Mine use to just gently say something like, "We have to stop now."

Were I you, I'd ask for a "High 5" one week, just to surprise your T?

[onlymedid]

We close with a hug at the end of our session and it's a nice way to end it. I think it would be odd to end it any other way for me.

[Suratji]

No closing - when time is up, I leave.

[rainbow8]

Often my T asks what I need to be okay when I leave. Sometimes it's a hug or to hold her hand, or sometimes it's to say something I want to say or ask her something. She usually tells me when there's 5 or 10 minutes left so I can do that.

[BlessedRhiannon]

My T usually asks me what I heard myself say that I want to take with me.

[ladyjrnlist]

We usually shoot the BS for about five minutes as he gets up and goes to his desk to make me another appointment. Sometimes, he talks and talks and talks and we go waaay over. LOL. Oh well, I don't consider that a problem exactly. Last time he read funny poetry to me. He's a riot sometimes.

[merighteouswow]

Oh, that's funny, Perna! If I were to do that, he would probably faint! lol

[merighteouswow]

For those of you who do get hugs, did you have to ask for them, or did the T suggest it? I don't think I could ever ask for one.

[Elli-Beth]

No hugs here, but he usually lightens up for a moment by asking me about my dog and then confirms our next appt.

If asked, I would ask the therapist to watch as I closed the door on the way out.

[ladyjrnlist]

For some reason, as fond as I am of him, I can't stand the thought of my T touching me. And I'm an affectionate person. I hug my friends all the time. Paging Dr. Freud??

[WePow]

He says my name and smiles and gives me a very safe hug :-)

[egoalien]

Most of the time he just says "See you on X then" and occasionally "We have to stop now". Usually he tries to do it when we have had a pause but sometimes he's pretty abrupt, no closing remarks or summing up. I think my behaviour mirrors his as I tend to just get up and leave as it all is very unnatural, and I am uncomfortable with the time limit.

[Suratji]

Originally Posted by BlessedRhiannon

My T usually asks me what I heard myself say that I want to take with me.

I'm going to ask my T if we can conclude with something like that. We need some wind down time anyway. It's way too hard to leave right in the middle of high emotions.

[ljp1979]

I feel exhausted by the end of the session, and that's when I know it is time to end. My T always gives me some sort of homework, to think or write about something specifically.

[Sweetlove]

My T usually will have some closing remarks about what we talked about, his thoughts on things we may need to work on. If we are working on something pretty rough and I'm having a hard time, he will give me as much time as he can then very softly say "I have to stop now"

[SpiritRunner]

mine will sometimes say, is there anything else you need, or, is there something else you need to mention before we have to end?
we used to have a hug and now we don't of course but now she will tell me 'It will be OK, you will be OK' right before I go......

[merighteouswow]

Thanks for all the posts! Seem as though every T has their own way of closing. I'm happy for those of you who have T's who are comfortable enough in themselves to offer a hug. That must be very comforting. I am thankful for my T, as he is a very good one, in my opinion (even if I never get a hug!)

[sunrise]

Originally Posted by beautyforashes

"How shall we close today"?

My T usually just asks if we should look at scheduling another appointment. Or says, "when do you want to come in again?" Pretty boring but it works. I like your T's question. We sometimes hug at the end of a session, as I am on my way out, but this isn't part of how T wraps up the session.

Originally Posted by beautyforashes

For those of you who do get hugs, did you have to ask for them, or did the T suggest it? I don't think I could ever ask for one.

No, I don't ask for one. Sometimes my T asks, "share a hug?" Other times there is no commentary on it. We just do it. And other times we don't do it. We do it when it is "right", if that makes sense. If I had had to ask for one, I don't think we ever would have hugged, as it didn't occur to me that a therapist and client would hug. It seems to make sense that the T would mention it first, as the client wouldn't know that was an option (at least if you were an experienced therapy-goer like me).

[PTSDlovemycats]

My T always says "Ok Kiddo, get your shoes back on, I gots to go" Smiles and then walks me to the door and sometimes gives me a hug.

[SpiritRunner]

today T said, OK Miss PG, what else can I do for you today? I liked that she called me Miss PG (real name of course, not PG)...it sounded affectionate, and felt like a hug!

[Suratji]

I want a good closing. I guess I'm so worried that I'll overstay, that I watch the clock and then I'm out of there immediately. (very conscious that I don't cross any boundaries). We don't have a good transition. It's not bad but it's not a transition.

On the other hand, one time when we still had time during my 50 minutes, she did have us do some quiet meditation for a couple of minutes to be able to transition. But then, I had told her - "I need a way to transition from here to the street"

[nannypat]

My former therapist first asked me if I wanted a hug. He used to say " I don't think you got enough hugs as a child." I was with him for 20 years. My new (1yr,) doesn't seem to touch at all though he knows my previous one gave me hugs. It is not a place I feel comfortable going yet. He is not a clock watcher though. We usually end up with something like" ok, till next week then, drive safely"or if it's been a tough session "are you going to be ok driving?"

[onlymedid]

Originally Posted by beautyforashes

For those of you who do get hugs, did you have to ask for them, or did the T suggest it? I don't think I could ever ask for one.

It's just one of those things that's a given at the end of session. I walk up to her and we hug, I say thank you, she tells me to have a good week and I leave.