[suzzie]

has your t ever had to open your file. in front of you. to figure out who you are. after guessing a couple times. and being wrong. do some ts ever have so many clients. that they never really know who any of them are. they just follow the steps with you each time. and forget you as you walk out. each time.

Ugh. No. That has never happened, even in the beginning of therapy. You need a new T.

[pbutton]

No. And I went to a super-busy county mental health dept. The second time I visited he came out in the waiting room, saw me, and waved me in.

I am very sorry that happened to you.

[rainbow8]

Suzzie, that is awful if it happened to you! Is this a T you've seen for more than a few sessions? I know my internist has to look in my chart for specifics, but even he knows who I am. If your T doesn't know who you are, please find someone else.

[Wren_]

did the T ever know initially? i've never experienced that ... but I have struggled to remember peoples names at work myself so I can imagine it happening if someone has a bad memory hard though I think especially with a therapist

it may not be that they forget you so much as a mental blankness on the name itself; did you raise it with the T?

I'm so sorry that happened to you. My t looks in my file occasionally during a session when we're trying to remember when we talked about some particular thing, stuff like that. But she always knows who I am. I agree with MKAC you need a new T.

[stopdog]

That sounds bad. But to be honest, I doubt if the one I have seen for two years would know my name if she did not check her appointment book to see who was scheduled. She does not remember anything about me from week to week. And she is partly retired.

You've only seen her twice, right? And this is a busy government facility? Give it a couple more tries to see if she finally gets your name straight or not. I say this because I have a HORRIBLE time learning and keeping names straight in my head. It is a terrible trait for a teacher (or a therapist), but at least for me it has nothing to do with caring for my students or my ability as a teacher. I really, really struggle with attaching names and faces. I always have despite all the tricks and methods I've tried to be better at this. Give her a few more tries. Even bring it up with her. If this is something she struggles with, actually talking to her about it might actually fix the problem; it might fix you in her memory better. I know that sounds odd, but for some people it takes a particularly distinctive interaction for the names and faces to connect.

[kiki86]

ouch. no that hasn't happened to me. but my (ex as of tuesday) T is a pdoc and doesn't see that many clients for actual therapy.

if as Chris says it's only your second session and it's a busy state service then maybe give her another week or so to remember your name. really she should have checked the file before you came in. i agree that talking to her about it is a good idea. but don't let it go on too long. if she can never remember who you are she's not going to be able to help you very much!

[healed84]

I could see how upsertting that would be. That has not happen to me, but I fully expect that some of the time that T takes before coming out to get his clients is spent looking at the name and maybe even the chart to refresh his mind. I could be wrong, but it seems like it would make sense to do it before hand instead of right front of the client.

No Way! I vote for New T. New T. New T

[WikidPissah]

No.

My daughter's rheumatologist (whom she had been seeing quarterly for 6 yrs) asked her what her name was. "What's your name again?" Stupid doc, you would think that she would have looked at the chart. Anyways, new doc.

I wouldn't tolerate a t not knowing my name. They have a chart, and an appointment book, there are places they can look to refresh their memory. They don't have to ask you and make you feel unimportant.

[bluemountains]

It concerns me that the t didn't even bother to look at your chart before entering the room, not just for the correct name, but also to be better prepared to work with you. So far, I have never come across a t or dr. who didn't look at the chart before entering the room. I don't really believe that I make an impression on every professional to the point that they remember my name, but when one enters the room, in my experience, I am greeted by my name.
What a lack of professionalism!

[Perna]

Mine called my husband by the wrong name in the middle of a session after 7-8 years. I'm like, "Who's Steve?"

If you are just starting to see the T and neither of you know one another very well yet, I wait a bit, see how he is once you all get settled into working together. If you haven't said much, there's not much for him to hold to? If he does it again, I'd joke and say something like, "It's Suzzie, Mr./Dr. Wrongname" (make up a name for him).

[granite1]

Originally Posted by suzzie

has your t ever had to open your file. in front of you. to figure out who you are. after guessing a couple times. and being wrong. do some ts ever have so many clients. that they never really know who any of them are. they just follow the steps with you each time. and forget you as you walk out. each time.

is this what it has been like for you?? i'm sorry. maybe give it a bit more time and bring it up.i don't know what i would do if my T had to do that . i hope that in time this relationship will become stronger .just give it a chance ok .i know it is hard

[Sannah]

I am a volunteer social worker at the middle school for several students and at the beginning of the year when I am still trying to get to know them and their issues/lives it takes me a few months to get everything plugged into memory. I am really, really bad at names. My recall isn't good. I can remember a lot of issues but the names are the hardest. The names took me months to remember. None of this means that I don't care about these students and I would certainly recognize them in a crowd.

I have also worked for the government as a social worker and time is something that government social service workers don't have enough of.

Does she seem like a caring person?

[suzzie]

there are little moments. it seems like she might care. but im not sure. becuase i make her mad most of the time.

[Sannah]

I'm wondering if you are just interpreting her as being mad?

[suzzie]

i could be. but it doesnt feel like it. she keeps warning me. so much.