[Mactastic]

My T already gives me a good amount of wait time but I still get stuck in sessions. My brain goes blank and I can't think of a thing to say.

Tomorrow we're going to talk about my feelings for him (gah!) and it's by far the hardest (yet most important part) of my therapy so far. Is it weird/bossy to email him asking for more wait time tomorrow? There's SO MUCH I need to say but I really need time to find the words.

[Leah123]

Why don't you write the words today, so you'll be prepared? It doesn't have to be a script to use verbatim, but notes to help you stay on course and express the key things you need him to hear.

[purplemystery]

I don't think it's bossy. If you phrase it as "just to let you know, what I talk about today will be very difficult for me, and I will need extra time to pause and find the right words," I'm sure your T will be cooperative. Does he sometimes dominate your conversations? Good luck!!

[CantExplain]

Madame T (who is not the world's most patient therapist) once waited for fifteen minutes for me to speak.

I understand that Granite's T would sometimes wait the whole session.

[growlycat]

Asking for what you need is a good thing to practice in therapy

[JaneC]

I think it is more than ok to ask for this, it is what you need.

I needed to tell my T about a very difficult subject that had suddenly resurfaced after being in hospital. I wasn't sure that I could say what I needed to say, but knew I needed to get it out. I told my T that I needed to tell him something that was going to be hard to say, especially as I did not know what his reaction would be, and asked him to please just give me time so that I could start to tell. He did, without issue. It was one of the first times I asked for what I needed in therapy.

It worked out well and I am sure it will for you too.