dont get the point..

last session my t gave me a rock keep with me. so today i went to give it back. and she said i could keep it again. i dont get why.

Can someone help Suzzie understand this? I'm not sure I can explain it adequately, but don't some of you have items like this? I just hate to see her go unanswered.

I don't know what that means. I've never been given a rock. Sorry I don't have any words of wisdom for you.

WTH

I wish my t would give me a rock to keep. To me it might feel like a reminder of our relationship, of her care or of what ever I'm working on that week. sentimental value?

Why are you looking to give it back? Did you ask t why she wanted you to keep it?

I'd ask her if there was anyone's window in particular she wanted me to throw it at...?

Then let us know what she says.

Therapists will sometimes give their clients a "transitional object"--something that belongs to them that will remind the client of them during difficult times. It can be an object that the client picks on their own or it can be something from the therapist's office that the therapist chooses to give to the client. It is used to enhance the connection between the client and the therapist. Some find it comforting or connecting. It allows the client to hold the object when not with the therapist and "remember" the good in her connection with the therapist--to remember and FEEL the good in the therapeutic relationship. Sometimes it is helpful and comforting. Not all clients find it helpful and if it doesn't reasonate with you, don't despair. You might not have that kind of need or you might not have that kind of connection with your therapist yet!

Adequately. . Oh, farmergirl, I can't explain it at all!

Best guess I could even make is that it's supposed to stimulate a sense of responsibility, like those sacks of flour new parents carry round. But suzzie isn't a new mom, either.

suzzie, I hope you find out. None of my Ts have done anything even vaguely like this. Did you ask her why?

Roadie

excellent explanation, jaybird! my T gave me a coffee mug before he went out of town once, that I think was a little more useful than a rock your T must be new age, mine is definitely old age, he is starting to make grunting noises when he gets up out of his chair at the end of session.

Man, lucky you, something with utility! I now have a collection of three rocks from my last three Ts. I didn't solicit these, so I must attract rockin' Ts.

Suzzie sometimes therapists give their clients a little something to hold on to in between sessions. I cant speak for yours but mine did it because she thought it would help remind me of what we discussed in sessions, help remind me that I am not alone when I feel like Im all alone, and to be a way of self comforting me.. holding on to the smooth rock in one hand and the rough one in the other, noticing the two conflicting rocks can help ground me back in the present during times of stress when I tend to space off, not care or have intrusive thoughts...

like I said I cant speak to why your therapist wants you to have the rock. only she can answer that question for you... all we can do is tell you why our own treatment providers did the same for us.

suggestion... maybe you can contact your therapist, and maybe ask her why she wants you to have the rock right now. or if your treatment provider already explained why, maybe holding the rock will remind you of what she told you already for the reason why she wants you to have the rock.

I have a clipboard!

Kewl.. sounds like a cool T. A rock is an earth object. Good (I guess) for help sorting out soul/self .

Hankster- "I got a coffe mug."

Elli-Beth- "I got a clipboard!"

Eastcoaster- "I got a rock."

Sounds kinda familiar- huh?

An old t asked me if I would like to have something that would remind me of her when I was in an agitated space or a bad situation. She shoved a box at me and I selected one of the polished stones about the size of a nickel.

I carried it in my pocket for awhile. It might have helped if I liked her more, but I didn't, so she and the rock had to go. They did and I'm the better for it.

Can you tell I didn't like her?

Whaaa? I'm just laughing so hard! Elli-Beth's clipboard struck me funny - the 3 bears? what?

ETA: for the longest time, I felt like I had to give it back to him, that he would want it back, it was not mine to keep. So that was something transferential to work out too.

I have had trouble with speech when I've been in panic mode, so the clipboard was originally for practical communication purposes. Now it's more like a black metal safety blanket

It's the "k" sound in each of the items - in the movie The Sunshine Boys, the old comedian explains that the K sound is just naturally funny. Maybe that did it, the 3rd item also being a k sound. Sigh! Good thing I have perfected the
silent "Augie Doggie / Doggie Daddy" laugh "heh heh heh heh" or else I would wake up the whole apartment building when you guys do this to me

Charlie Brown trick-or-treating.

That makes sense!

Good old Charlie Brown

I asked my T for something to take with me before her vacation this week, but the request got tangled up amidst a bunch of other stuff, and we never got back to it

I made a second request in an email, but I wasn't clear enough, apparently, because my T replies that she wasn't sure what I was talking about. I tried to clarify, but I must have missed her before she took off.

I rhink jaybird is right. I have read about this but have never experienced it.

Ding, Ding, DING!! Charlie Brown Trick or Treating is RIGHT!!! Can'tExplain wins the prize of the day.......


Back on subject..... My T has never given me anykind of a transitional object, although there have been many times when I wish she had. On the other hand- she's been very good about letting me call or email when I need to connect, so maybe her willingness to do that for me has helped me in not needing one so fiercely.

Suzzie, what are you thinking? What about it made it confusing?

I had a shell and a small, smooth pebble as transitional objects at my request and in return I left one of my shells with her. My intention was to 'make' some kind of connection and I thought it help me feel more connected to her when I wasn't with her. It didn't work for me though and I gave them back a couple of months ago. I think for them to feel right and serve a 'connection' purpose you have to feel somewhat connected in the first place. And more often than not, I don't.

A talisman? SOmething to use for grounding?


(alternativelly... something to throw on cops. J/k).