Ugh- question about past family- how far to get into on first session

I am trying to get ready for my therapy session- I work nights and i have a break here at work so I am writting some stuff- I looked at this page on psych central: http://psychcentral.com/lib/2006/wha...eling-session/

May be questioned about past family life-

I have noted that i have already spent a half hour trying to write down how things go chronologically- Naturally I have to go back at places cuz I am like- Oh yeah that happened, and i still seem to be all over the place and I have 2 pages already..And I am not done!

Is this really needed for the first session? am I going too detailed as I do on things.
Cant i just say "to sum up I am the 6th Child of a chaotic family?"

I go to the clinic a few hours after I get off of work, any suggestions that may come would be helpful

Hi Beauflow...
Perhaps you could be thinking of what you would like to get out of your sessions with your therapist..perhaps in the next 6 mo or so..stress reduction..work with past traumas...issues in relationships...working on thinking patterns...whatever you might want to do. It is common to discuss what things are causing you stress or strife and where you would like to be in 6 mo or a year..or things/therapies that might have helped some in the past...or the ways you like to communicate the best. Things that will make the relationship effective and honest.

Perhaps just finding your footing with her/him and seeing if you feel comfortable..they will have questions for you and probably explain the way they work and how they view their style/background.... Relax..just let it happen and listen to your heart. See if there is a connection there.

Just a few ideas...Best wishes for a great relationship and healing!
I hope this all helps just a little..

Wysteria Blue

I remember I kept it really general in my first session ever (and my family is a big issue for me). I don't think you need to say everything about your family, just the really important things that pops in your head, maybe not a single sentence but definetely not 2 pages ... the rest you will cover in the next sessions.

If it's your first session, I'm sure your family will not be the only thing your therapist will want to know.

The 'getting to know you' and mapping of your history often occurs over the first two or three sessions, so you don't have to feel rushed to include everything. In my first session, my T dictated a lot of what I talked about--he had a whole list of questions to go through.

It's good that you are considering what you need to talk about.. You sound motivated!

Don't overprepare. You'll just make yourself anxious. These things unfold over a period of time.

Yes, you could say you are the 6th child of a chaotic family and then give an example or two of what you mean by "chaotic" and what being 6th child of a chaotic family means to you. Therapy is about exploring yourself and your experience, not about the other person "doing" something to fix you so the more you can figure out how you actually feel about your experience, past and present, the easier life becomes.

thank you all, yeah I'm mixed at one moment I'm trying to get stuff ready but this last hour I have just sat in a daze telling myself it'll be ok..just go with it.
I agree I should not stress so much I felt a little ill earlier, I gagged, so chilling out is best, calm my self down
I'm too detailed on everything any who.

thank you Perna, I think I may just do that.
Exploring me I've done a lot these past years by myself, so I hope I can come to words with stuff yeah to be honest top on the list on why to go is I want suggestions on what I can do with some issues that I can not seem to ''fix'' myself even with what I've been trying to do...

Thanks all again!

Just go with the flow. Talk as little or as much as you want.

I guess I'm seeing a psychologist for the first time, Ekk. My dad always said to not talk to them Lol.sorry just a joke.. I'm waiting as I type, Idk what to do.... I'm antisocial so phone and pictures of dog are helping me to relax

it went well as in it wasn't that bad, I even made a joke about it lol, Idk it was two hours, the front desk said a psychologist but he said he was a social worker, Idk I don't care right now cuz ya know I think this was a good first step,
I wish I could talk with my boyfriend about it but he has stuff going on and has to get to work, so understand it...
Anyways a part of me feels bad for revealing so much, I yapped a lot and didn't mean to..I guess I just wanted them to get to know me a little, and I needed to explain some things, I didn't talk much on the more serious issues about me and we didn't even talk about anything deep deep,... two hours wow to be honest it went so fast..... But maybe part of feel bad is due to what he asked twice about why has it taken so long, I stumbled and said Idk, I do know partially on why- family secrets are only family business... I'm sorry I didn't say why its taken so long. But I do think that's part of why I feel just a little bad... I won't let that bother me that much or try not to let it, cuz I know its wrong with how it was handled by my family and maybe talking will help me and my relationships with people.

I'm sorry I wanted to tell someone and I figure here its safe

Glad you posted - I think it was a good idea to write everything down, even if only for yourself. This can help to remind you of things you may want to share as the sessions continue. I think it is an unfolding process and am supporting your journey.

:-) thank you butterflies are free

Yeah it help me post out some of what i've cope with already and stuff i need help with. I'm sort of interested to see how this goes.