[newbieposter]

Hey there,

Wondering if it is okay to send my T a holiday card? I konw there are some unspoken and spoken rules about this.....I would hate to offend him if it wasn't okay....

Keep smilin'
Sarah

[(JD)]

Hi newbieposter and welcome to psych central! I think a card is a great way to share holiday good wishes!

[SleepsWithButterFlies]

My T accepts them I dont think I ever send one but I know he does cause he has shared a few that made him lol

[(JD)]

I don't SEND them.. I take them and leave them on his desk or even at the front for him

[SleepsWithButterFlies]

lol sky my T gets his by mail and hand delivered but I am too shy to do either so he gets none from me

[JustBen]

I don't think there's a hard and fast rule about this. Most therapists are cool with this, though, I think.

[newbieposter]

Thanks Justben, Sleepswithbutterflies and Sky,

I have heard that there are so many eithical rules involved in therapy (for the therapist), so would hate to offend or make him uncomfortable....I have heard that gifts are not a good idea, so wasn't sure if the same applied to cards! Think I will send him one....not sure i could hand deliver it though!

Thanks,
Sarah

[Lexicon78]

I know that you're not supposed to give them gifts and such, but I don't think a card would be considered a gift. So why not?

[bipolar_bear]

I think a card is fine for your T. I give one to mine every year and have never had a problem. I don't think that you will offend anyone.

[ErinBear]

Hi,

I think it would be just fine to give your T a card if that is something you'd like to do. I've never heard of a conflict with giving a card at the holidays with any Ts. Some Ts are uncomfortable with receiving gifts at holidays or special times, but some are just fine with it. That varies among Ts. But so far, I haven't heard of any Ts who had rules against receiving a card. So I say go for it if you'd like to do so!!!!

Take care,
ErinBear

PS. I've seen two main counselors in my life. Both were fine with receiving cards. One wasn't okay with receiving gifts, but the counselor I see now is just fine with gifts as long as it is something small or homemade. So I think the policy about gifts varies a lot from therapist to therapist too.

[Oleander5]

Good timing with this question--I actually brought it up w/ my T today.

She pretty much got away with not answering, by saying something about it being up to me. Last year she actually did say it was inappropriate, but then there were other issues around that so that isn't necessarily a good example.

I'm not sure yet what I'll do. I sort of feel like her "non-answer" was a way to avoid saying it's ok--in other words, I'm guessing it's sort of ok with her, but she'd prefer if I didn't. At least, that's my interpretation.

Argh..therapy can leave you feeling so vulnerable sometimes, and I'm definitely feeling that way tonight. It's so easy to feel rejected by the slightest thing.

[jbug]

I always make my T a card. I found a really funny one last year and got it for him along with a small gift. I also get one from him. Last year it was a picture of him and his family which made me feel kind of icky but I thought it was thoughtful of him to send it to me anyway.

Jbug

[allthegirls6]

We make a christmas card for our T and give a gift. We get one back too and it never seems to be a problem. She always seems pleased and never says anything about it being wrong. Ive never even gave that a thought before.

atg

[newbieposter]

Thank you all so much for all your advice....I sent him one!