[benzenering]

My counselor asked me to bring in 8-10 childhood photos for us to look over next session.

I had to get my parents involved to pick them out as they live several hours away from me and I don't have any of the pictures. Pretty much all the photos my parents took of us kids are in boxes up in their attic. My mom is a bit of a hoarder so I was unsure if they'd even FIND the pictures Anyway, they did and I'm now in the possession of about 30 pictures...some are portraits (I'm assuming my counselor isn't interested in those?) and some are various cutesy pictures of my two sisters and me.

...anyway, all that to ask...what in the world does he want these for?

Some of my most insightful sessions revolved around the stories behind old photos. They bring up lots of emotion and memory not only about events and people, but also about the way we perceive ourselves in our past and our present.

[ElectricManatee]

I took some old photos in to show my T once and was surprised at some of her insights based on things like posture, who was sitting next to who, etc. I also just liked having her see my history, after having talked about it so much. Candid photos were more interesting than portraits, in my experience.

[growlycat]

I think a photo especially candid shots can reveal a lot about family dynamics and emotion. There are a lot of old pictures of me as a tween looking very unhappy and not comfortable in my own skin. Ten photos would give a good slice of life I think

You can tell a lot from a portrait. I would take the whole kit and kaboodle. The photos your parents picked might also give some insight to your situation. I brought pictures in, in addition to some live bodies.

[MessyD]

Mine asked me to see some pictures as well and when I finally did, I was glad, I felt like I was able to share little more about me. And it sure was interesting how much he could tell from the pictures. I thought they were boring because it was mostly pictures from birthdays and holidays but he had lot of good observations. Like at certain age my smile disappeared, and also that my dad looked kind of distant which is true and I never told him that before. He was able to see things that I didn't.

I'd say give it a shot if you feel comfortable enough and bring even those that you think he might not be interested in because he might have a different is insight. Good luck!

[benzenering]

Thank you all. I had not really considered taking the portraits, as they seem boring. But now that I understand what he is likely after, I guess the more information the better. Wow, my eighties hair!

[toomanycats]

I like to bring pictures in so that, when I talk about my childhood, he can literally see me as a child. It just adds another layer of "being seen" and "being understood"

I took old family photos once to a therapy session and it ended up being one of my best sessions ever. We looked at them and talked about what was in the pictures, impressions based on them, and stories. I also enjoyed being so close to my therapist physically to view the photos (I was sitting on the floor next to his chair), it was in a period when I was very fond of him. I think that looking at pictures can also help to engage both T and client in a conversation.

[kecanoe]

Like others above, my T1 asked me to bring in pictures. It was interesting. I'd like to hear how it goes!

[feralkittymom]

I agree it can be really valuable both in terms of family dynamics in the past, but also on the dynamic between client and T. There was a feeling of being held by my T after we spent a few sessions doing this that is hard to describe, but very deep.