Matching your Pdoc/T's mood empathically

Does anyone else do this? I consider myself an empath, meaning I sense/feel other people's emotions really easily - even if I can't always express those emotions verbally (eg I might feel/sense someone is sad, but I can't then verbally say 'this person is sad', it's weird like that).

Anyway I'm going to discuss it with my Pdoc next session, but it took me ages to work out that I was doing this, and when I am doing it (in the moment) I don't really know that I am. It's not until after our session when I sit down and go over stuff more that I realise, 'Oh yeah, that happened again'. Like if my Pdoc is in one of his hyper moods, then I'll become really hyper and chatty, if he looks like he's had a really busy day and I'm picking up that he's a bit stressed and a tad all over the place (he thought he was 15 minutes late the other day, when he was actually early) then that's what I'm going to be feeling and the session is coloured again by that (I should point out when I say 'a tad all over the place', I don't mean he's not paying full attention to me, it's just an underlying emotion I pick up on, he's still very good at connecting in therapy).

Usually I go in to a session with a list of things to talk about, and what I subconsciously pick up from my Pdoc guides me as to what actually gets talked about, but again I don't know I've done/am doing that until after I've had a chance to go over the session. I'm not sure if my being this way is adding to the therapeutic connection, if we're flowing more on the same primal emotional level without even realising it, or of it's interfering.

I don't. I generally don't consider the therapist's mood any of my business or problem. But then again, I don't think I would qualify as an empath, so perhaps that makes a great difference.

Wow - that's a great insight! I think I might do that too.....maybe that's why I could've sworn my T was upset with me last week. He denied it but...something was off. I know it. I'm not paranoid either, I just pick up on subtleties. He suggested I was the one who was angry or expecting an angry reaction based on past experiences but I don't think it is all that projection stuff...

I wonder how this can be stopped? I mean, should it be? Or how to use it to help in therapy and in life?

Imo, thats kinda bogus - it should be going the other way. Like i am absorbing my t's consistently calm and civilized demeanor. It helps that we both hold dolls. Maybe your t needs a doll!

It did use to be something that was very negative for me, because I felt the emotions of others too strongly and I'd take those emotions on myself and become overwhelmed. I think it had a lot to do with where my mental health treatment was at the time though (ie completely non existent), so I was taking a lot of drugs and pills that GPs were prescribing just to cover symptoms up only it made me more unstable. These days it's not as pronounced, like before I could tell it was happening when it was actually happening, but it's still there.

In some ways it makes me feel more connected to Pdoc, like we're channeling the same wave length. But then again if there's something I really want to talk about, and I don't talk about it because it doesn't match the emotional atmosphere in the room, then that's not good either. Definitely something to discuss with Pdoc I think.

I like my Pdoc just the way he is, scattered, hyper and all. He's very empathic himself, so who's to say he's not picking up on my emotions and reflecting them back to me without realising it and we've just got this giant empathic emotional loop happening. I'm looking forward to exploring this more with him.

Yeah, i REALLY needed calming down!! It took him a while! But look at me now... BEFORE AFTER

I'm the opposite at the moment, depression is really slowing me down and making me feel very shut off, so I need that boost from a Pdoc who's more energetic. It's like my therapy pick me up.