I just read this on another thread and I didn't want to hijack.
Does your therapist lock the door during therapy? Would you like this? I was once talking about when I was a child I would feel really insecure until the door was locked at night, and T offered to lock the therapy door. I had a strong negative reaction to that suggestion and I would feel trapped if he were to lock it. How do others feel?

T's office door is locked so that you can't open it from the outside, but it opens without a key from the inside. Since the door leads straight to a stair hall - there is no waiting room - I would feel very insecure if there was no lock. I like locked doors as long as I'm inside, so I like this arrangement.

[Ellahmae]

T's door doesn't have a lock and part of me wishes she had one and part of me doesn't. I've never thought about it before. Right now I'm glad it doesn't because when I get sick it would be another obstacle to get to the restroom. Another part wishes it had a lock for security. I like how your T's door locks, Mast. Locking from the outside but easily "accessible" to get out.

[Daystrom]

She doesn't, but most of my sexual fantasies about her start with this.

[MusicLover79]

I don't think she has a door that locks but that would freak me out. I would feel like I was trapped or something in there.

[junkDNA]

no way!! i would hate that. my T used to leave the door cracked because i did not like being in a closed room with a T. i feel comfortable being behind a closed door with him now, but i would not like it if he locked us in there

T has a door you enter in and a different door you leave through. I have no idea if the one I come in through stays locked, but the one I leave through is always locked. It wouldn't bother me to know I was completely locked in with T. I guess I do trust him enough to feel ok with that. LOL

[FranzJosef]

None of my therapists has ever locked the door. Closing the door is enough.

I didn't even like it when a therapist I saw only once just sat between me and the door. I think I would have a meltdown if I could not get out without unlocking the door.

[Willowleaf]

Nope but once I left slamming the door and the door stuck and apparently she had to climb out the window! She only told me about it months later I'd hate it if the door was locked

[Chummy]

My T doesn't lock the door. I don't think I would care if she did. It itsn't necessary to lock the door. There's a waiting room and clients have to wait until their T comes to get them.

None of the T's I've had locked the door.

[ruh roh]

She doesn't have a lock on the inner door to her office, but I wish she did because I can hear whenever someone comes through the outer door, and if it's at an odd time, my fear level rises. I'm not afraid of being in a room with my therapist, but I am afraid of what's on the other side. (Violent crime history.) She did an exceptionally kind thing for me at the end of my last session that alleviated some stress around that.

[stopdog]

I don't care if it is locked from the outside in. Someone walked in while I was still there once - so I guess it is not locked from the outside. I would definitely not want to be locked into a room where I could not get out.

[precaryous]

No! And no! PsychPerp locked the door before...stuff.

[Sarah1985]

Other. Mine locks from the outside, so no one can come in, but I'm free to come out. I feel safe with it like this.

I can't open doors anyway so it is irrelevant

[feralkittymom]

I doubt any of the doors were ever locked, but I honestly don't know. I know at one office the entrance door to the outer office was unlocked with a bell. It rang once during session and startled us both a bit. My T excused himself to see what was going on because he said he wasn't expecting anyone. I almost never saw another client before or after me--it was extremely private, and I always felt very protected because he was there.

No locked doors here its my only way of escape.

[precaryous]

The door of her office/therapy room is not locked but the door separating the waiting room from the hallway leading to her office/therapy room ..is locked.

[atisketatasket]

I had one once - exactly once - who locked her door. I discovered this when I told her 15 minutes in there was no way this would work, please find another profession, and thanks for being no help at all, and headed for the door. I had to wait for her to come let me out (it was not obvious how to unlock the door). Ruined my exit.

[pbutton]

Mine does not lock his office door, nor the door to the hallway/restroom. I'm pretty neutral about this.

Although, one afternoon I caught myself turning around and locking the front door to the outside right after I came in. Not totally sure what possessed me to do that, but I am SO glad that I realized I did it, as he had a client after me on that day.

[musinglizzy]

I've actually thought of this. My T does not lock her door, but I wish she had a door that was locked on the outside, but can be opened from the inside. Normally I wouldn't think twice about something crazy like this, but there was one session where she had to reschedule me for 5pm. I'm guessing she does not normally see clients that late. Towards the end of my session, I was upset and had been crying, and all of a sudden there were two quick knocks on the door, then her colleague just walked in. Saw she was with a client, apologized, and left. I did not like that experience at all. Of course, it is my thinking that someone should knock and wait to be invited in, not just knock then open the door. I only assume she doesn't normally see clients that late because I doubt he would have done that if he was used to her seeing people that late.

So I voted no, but wish they did. But I would want it to freely open from the inside, as a lot of doors do.

[nottrustin]

Voted no and I am glad but really I don't care. Her office is in her home and I am always the last appointment of the day. So we don't even shut the office door. I do like that as I don't feel as closed in

[Cinnamon_Stick]

The door that I enter the waiting room and leave the waiting room has been locked before. I showed up to a session one time and the door was locked and I thought she had forgotten about me and was not there. I called and left her a voice mail asking if she was there and I knocked for about 10 minutes. After 15 minutes she came out with a client looking worried. I asked her why the door was locked and she said when the battery dies on the alarm the door locks. She said she was worried I didn't show for my session.

Her office door is never locked. I don't know how I would feel if she locked it.

[maykins]

My T works from a communal clinic which is basically an apartment. She doesn't lock the therapy room and it's fine. There were rare occasions that people knocked/opened the door mid-session, NEVER her clients, just rude people waiting for another T and not realizing how inconsiderate they are.

I would actually hope not for a locked door as much as for a private place, I have ADD and sometimes people talk in the waiting room and it makes it hard for me to concentrate. I talked with her about this but she is adamant that this clinic's pros outweigh its cons so I let it go.