[Syra]

What are your thoughts and experiences with seeing the same person who faciliates the group therapy also being your individual psychotherapist. Is it a good idea? bad idea? risky idea? What are the pros and cons?

[Travelinglady]

Off hand I think it might be helpful. I assume your T recommended it.

[sunrise]

I have mixed feelings about it and can see pros and cons. I've heard the T likes it because he can get to know you better by observing you in a different context. And if he knows you better, he can help you better. Do you feel you need group therapy? Will you get something out of it that you are not getting from individual therapy? If you think you would get something different and helpful from it, do you think that would be impeded or helped by having the same T as the group leader? What is your gut reaction?

If you really want to do a group, you can always go to the group of a different T, if it's the thought of having the same T that is holding you back.

FWIW, I did do a group for a couple of months as part of a course I took. The therapist who ran the group was delightful and I am very glad I had the opportunity to get to know her and see (and experience) how she ran the group. I was enriched by getting to know this new person.

The worry I would have about doing group with the same T is that talk of what went on at group might invade my individual sessions. Sometimes people on PC have posted about doing group with their individual T, and there have been times they wrote that they talked about group in individual therapy, sometimes practically every session! I wouldn't like that, because my individual sessions are so precious, only once every few weeks, and I wouldn't want them wasted on rehashing group stuff.

[Perna]

I guess I'd think about what order you do things; if you start with an individual T and they have you join a group; it is my experience that eventually they will phase you out of individual and just into group. However, if you have a group T and they want to see you for individual therapy, it would signal to me that I might be more interesting or messed up than I thought?

I had a group T find me my individual T and that worked very well as they did not overlap in any way or cause conflicts and I got a different perspective when I got upset in group from someone who didn't wear both hats or have an ax to grind or anything.

[3velniai]

Having the same T for individual appts and group didn't work out for me, I dropped the group after two or so months. It was art therapy group though and I guess talking groups (or how to call them) can be a totally different thing. It was just too weird. Sometimes the T would comment on something based on the extra info she had that the group didn't and everyone was like "what was that? tell us". I didn't like it. Also there was a lot of me getting angry at T and thinking: how can you say this now when I told you that an hour ago. But that's me. And everyone is different. I guess you'll never know before you try and see how it goes.

[struggling2]

my t is both individual and my group T....i wouldnt want it any other way. i trust her and i know her and she's really good at what she does. All the other clients in the group are her individual clients as well....i think it works so well because she knows each of us so well individually that she knows what we all need. she never misses a beat! I think if i had any other kind of group T id always be comparing that T to her.

[Switch]

When I went to group I had the same T for individual and group. I found it helpful. She wouldn't bring up group topics unless I wanted to, and she was able to judge my mood and how good I was doing by how I was in group, which was very helpful. I liked it.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by PAYNE1

Off hand I think it might be helpful. I assume your T recommended it.

Yes. Sort of. She didn't actually recommend group therapy. i just knew she had a group that were all her clients and I was interested. I have a very cautious attitude toward dual relationships and I wonder how it has worked for other people.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by sunrise

I have mixed feelings about it and can see pros and cons. I've heard the T likes it because he can get to know you better by observing you in a different context. And if he knows you better, he can help you better. Do you feel you need group therapy? Will you get something out of it that you are not getting from individual therapy? If you think you would get something different and helpful from it, do you think that would be impeded or helped by having the same T as the group leader? What is your gut reaction?

I think group therapy can be helpful for me. I'm just not sure about the dual relationship. My gut reaction is sort of like yours. It could be good, but it could be risky. I also think it could be useful to get another perspective.

If you really want to do a group, you can always go to the group of a different T, if it's the thought of having the same T that is holding you back.

I've done some looking and they aren't real prevalent around here for some reason. Or at least I don't know how to find them.

FWIW, I did do a group for a couple of months as part of a course I took. The therapist who ran the group was delightful and I am very glad I had the opportunity to get to know her and see (and experience) how she ran the group. I was enriched by getting to know this new person.

[COLOR="rgb(65, 105, 225)"] That makes sense and feels good to me.[/COLOR]

The worry I would have about doing group with the same T is that talk of what went on at group might invade my individual sessions. Sometimes people on PC have posted about doing group with their individual T, and there have been times they wrote that they talked about group in individual therapy, sometimes practically every session! I wouldn't like that, because my individual sessions are so precious, only once every few weeks, and I wouldn't want them wasted on rehashing group stuff.

[COLOR="rgb(65, 105, 225)"]THanks so much for your thoughts. It's helpful to my processing.[/COLOR]

[Syra]

Originally Posted by Perna

I guess I'd think about what order you do things; if you start with an individual T and they have you join a group; it is my experience that eventually they will phase you out of individual and just into group. However, if you have a group T and they want to see you for individual therapy, it would signal to me that I might be more interesting or messed up than I thought? That's probably exactly what I'd think, but for me an emphasis on the "messed up" IN this case the Ind comes first.

I had a group T find me my individual T and that worked very well as they did not overlap in any way or cause conflicts and I got a different perspective when I got upset in group from someone who didn't wear both hats or have an ax to grind or anything.[COLOR="rgb(65, 105, 225)"] That idea intrigues me. And then I get scared that the group T won't be "good enough." I think it's hard to find a good therapist that I "click" with[/COLOR]

Thanks so much for your thoughts. It's helpful to think things through.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by 3velniai

Having the same T for individual appts and group didn't work out for me, I dropped the group after two or so months. It was art therapy group though and I guess talking groups (or how to call them) can be a totally different thing. It was just too weird. Sometimes the T would comment on something based on the extra info she had that the group didn't and everyone was like "what was that? tell us". I didn't like it. Also there was a lot of me getting angry at T and thinking: how can you say this now when I told you that an hour ago. But that's me. And everyone is different. I guess you'll never know before you try and see how it goes.

Thanks. I guess it's kind of weird how to keep boundaries in group when the T is both individual and group. The T won't want to ignore information, and won't want to let you go on in a direction she doesn't think is profitable, but then how much can she reveal to the group in order to be helpful to you. I'm thinking I don't like that either.
ON the other hand, I don't think Ts should be directing therapy traffic anyway. There are ways to be helpful besides telling me I'm on the wrong track. In fact, telling me I'm wrong does not seem therapeutic. Questioning? suggesting? clarifying questions all seem good, but not being the expert on me

[sunrise]

Originally Posted by Syra

I've done some looking and they aren't real prevalent around here for some reason. Or at least I don't know how to find them.

You can always ask your T for referrals. If he does group regularly, he may be in a network of colleagues who do groups.

I would like to do a group myself, since my experience in class was so positive. But I don't know how to find a group either, and for some reason, I wouldn't want to ask my T for referrals to groups. I'm not sure why. Maybe I don't want him to think I'm more dysfunctional than he already knows. It can be tricky navigating this stuff!

[Syra]

Originally Posted by struggling2

my t is both individual and my group T....i wouldnt want it any other way. i trust her and i know her and she's really good at what she does. All the other clients in the group are her individual clients as well....i think it works so well because she knows each of us so well individually that she knows what we all need. she never misses a beat! I think if i had any other kind of group T id always be comparing that T to her.

Thanks. In a way it makes it more difficult. But it also makes it more real. It seems sometimes it works, and sometimes not. I wonder what the deciding factors are to tell if it's likely to work, or not likely to work.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by sunrise

[/COLOR][/B]You can always ask your T for referrals. If he does group regularly, he may be in a network of colleagues who do groups.

I thought about that. In this instance, he doesn't know of others who do groups.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by sunrise

I would like to do a group myself, since my experience in class was so positive. But I don't know how to find a group either, and for some reason, I wouldn't want to ask my T for referrals to groups.

There is a way to search for group therapists in your area on PSYCHOLOGY TODAY website, Find A Therapist portion. I didn't find anything in my area, but it's a place to start.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by Switch

When I went to group I had the same T for individual and group. I found it helpful. She wouldn't bring up group topics unless I wanted to, and she was able to judge my mood and how good I was doing by how I was in group, which was very helpful. I liked it.

It seemed like it's sort of like finding a therapist, and tryhing to figure out all the things that need to work, and a sense of how good the therapist is at managing the dual roles, before you have enough information to make a good decision. Sort of like marriage, especially the first time. So you make your best decision, and keep making your best decision as things come up. And maybe you find out you made a good decision <sigh> and sometimes find out you wished you made a different decision and learn all kinds of things

Thansk for your comments. It's helped me think thigns through some more.

[ThisWayOut]

My Old T started out as my group T. Then my original T dropped me, and she offered to pick me up. While the whole termination with original T sucked for so many reasons, it turned out to be for the best. My old T is a trauma specialist, and she helped me a LOT. Being in group with her was nice because we got to check in more than just that once session. It was also nice to see her interacting with others, and I got to trust her more. I did not remain in the group though, as I was not in a place to be doing it... I think it also helped her get to know me more than what I presented as in session.

[Hope-Full]

I have very mixed feelings about this. I have been in group and therapy with the same T before, and it worked out ok. The way this T ran group didn't work all that well with me, as there were NO boundaries. The reason that it did work ok was because I had no attachment to this T whatsoever. If I were to go into group therapy with a T I was attached to, I know that I'd have a hard time sharing my T with others.

[EllieBear]

I've had the same therapist be my group T and individual T as well...with three different T's in fact. I went to a group first, and then ended up seeing both of the group leaders as individual T's...one at the same time as the group, and one later. I found it helpful because I had a hard time talking in both places, so the therapist was able to understand me and my issues better seeing how I related to group members and what I said there. Even though it was more vulnerable because my T was getting information about me that I wasn't necessarily telling her, I was in therapy to change so any information she gained about how to help me got me further towards that goal. The challenge actually came with some if the other group members...kind of like sibling rivalryof some kind. One of them always wanted to be the "favorite child" so she would tell my T things about me that weren't true. My T and I talked about it openly, though, and she was very good with boundaries and confidentiality. So overall, I'm glad I did it, but there were challenges along the way. Dealing with those challenges helped me learn how to interact with people in the real world, though, so I'm still glad for the experience. My current T is also a T I first had in a group setting, and that was a huge blessing. I trusted her already, which is hard for me, so we were able to really "get to work" a lot faster. I knew her and she knew me and that was a huge benefit. So is it always easy? No...but I do think it was worth it and I learned a lot through it.

[Syra]

Originally Posted by EllieBear

I've had the same therapist be my group T and individual T as well...with three different T's in fact. I went to a group first, and then ended up seeing both of the group leaders as individual T's...one at the same time as the group, and one later. I found it helpful because I had a hard time talking in both places, so the therapist was able to understand me and my issues better seeing how I related to group members and what I said there. Even though it was more vulnerable because my T was getting information about me that I wasn't necessarily telling her, I was in therapy to change so any information she gained about how to help me got me further towards that goal. The challenge actually came with some if the other group members...kind of like sibling rivalryof some kind. One of them always wanted to be the "favorite child" so she would tell my T things about me that weren't true. My T and I talked about it openly, though, and she was very good with boundaries and confidentiality. So overall, I'm glad I did it, but there were challenges along the way. Dealing with those challenges helped me learn how to interact with people in the real world, though, so I'm still glad for the experience. My current T is also a T I first had in a group setting, and that was a huge blessing. I trusted her already, which is hard for me, so we were able to really "get to work" a lot faster. I knew her and she knew me and that was a huge benefit. So is it always easy? No...but I do think it was worth it and I learned a lot through it.

Thanks for the detailed (but not too detailed) description of what worked and why and how. It really helps me thinking about my situation.

[stopdog]

A long time ago with the first therapist I saw I was in a group and individual therapy. It was a group put together by a friend of mine, and most of us saw this therapist individually. The group was a disaster and I think only met three or four times. So in my case it did not work well. It was both ill conceived and ill executed.