[healinginprogress]

Sparked by the talk about extended sessions and whether you see people in the waiting room (or if there is a waiting room) I'm curious as to the set up of people's therapist's offices and practices.

I said private practice in home. For the first year I saw t in person, she was in a proper office building with a waiting room, it was a warmly appointed area, comfortable chairs, tables with magazines, soothing music playing, soft-colored walls and paintings (I remember it so well and it's been like 5 years since I've been in there! I even remember the smell) and her office had like a back door that went from her office out to the parking lot to leave by (cool setup, that!) so I never saw another client. Now I've been seeing her in person again and she has a home office, so no waiting room except her front yard, still never seen another client. Either she spaces out her appointments on purpose so that clients don't see each other, or because the others are done & gone well before my late in the day sessions.

[Argonautomobile]

Two plastic chairs with a box of tissues on the floor between them. Filing cabinet, hand sanitizer dispenser, and a pervasive feeling of futility. Occasionally someone stuffs unused medical equipment in there. Bare walls, kind of a taupey grey color. I hate it.

[LonesomeTonight]

I said "private practice outside home," but he shares his waiting room with a few other therapists plus a couple massage therapists and I think an acupuncturist. They aren't all in the same practice, just share office space. So I'll see other people in the waiting room, but mostly just people there for other clinicians. T doesn't generally walk his clients out, so if someone is leaving when I get there or in the waiting room when I leave, I have no way of knowing if they are also T's client. There were two times when he walked me out because we went slightly over and retrieved his next clients--once, a couple, and the other time, a teenaged (maybe young adult?) guy. There is no receptionist.

ETA: The waiting room generally has classical music playing (apparently this is from T), plus there's a cart with tea bags and mugs on it and a hot/cold water dispenser (also from T, since I saw him refilling it once and lamented the lack of caffeinated tea, so he went to the closet and found me some).

[velcro003]

I said "private practice outside home," but she shares the "home" (and it is an old house) with a bunch of other therapists. I am the last client of the day, so I rarely see anyone else.

[ElectricManatee]

My T's waiting room is exactly like LT's therapist's waiting room except all the other practitioners in the office are therapists. The waiting room has a comfortable feel with soft music and a little drink station with coffee and tea. I believe it has seating for six. I can sometimes guess if another client coming out before my appointment was seeing my T, but I really have no way of knowing. Ditto for people waiting as I leave.

Mine does not have an office any longer. We live in separate countries and talk on skype from our bedrooms.

[Elio]

I said other because she is in private practice and shares a suite with 4 other therapist in a house that has each floor a separate suite of therapists. Each floor shares a waiting area and bathroom. The group in her suite did create a company for the lease but she runs her practice as an independent practice with her own business license and such.

Mine is a clinic with multiple therapists. Whenever I call I dial an extension versus his number, and my bank statements have the name of the clinic versus previous therapists who showed up as a name.

The waiting room has 4 chairs and a small loveseat, along with a white noise machine, a water cooler, and a rug that's been in the corner ever since I started seeing my therapist in January.

[NP_Complete]

Private practice outside home. His office is in a suite in an older building. One or two (not sure, but there are two nameplates other than his outside the outer door) therapists share the other office in the suite. There is a small waiting room with two chairs and a bench. There is a water cooler and tea bags/cups/etc. and a radio tuned to the classical station and the requisite white noise machines outside each door. I rarely see anyone in the waiting room.

I put clinic, but they are individual therapist that share office space only. No receptionist, bookkeeper, etc. There is a small desk, bookshelf, end table, magazine rack on wall and floor, sofa, and five chairs. There is expensive artwork and knick-knacks on the wall and bookshelf. The classical music is no longer on when I am there.

My former attachment therapist had an office in her private home with 60 minute sessions scheduled 1/2 hour apart. It had a tiny waiting room with only a loveseat. I never sat in the waiting room because her door was always opened. I had 2-3 hour sessions several times a week. I never saw another client, but one showed up during my session because he had the wrong date and time.

My current therapist works at a clinic with other therapists, but I have had the two other types in past years.

I was really uncomfortable when I went to the home practices. It felt like I was trapped, and there was always this giant relief when I would get out and nothing bad had happened.

The clinic with other therapist setup works best for me... public with other people not in the room, but in the vicinity.

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by Argonautomobile

Two plastic chairs with a box of tissues on the floor between them. Filing cabinet, hand sanitizer dispenser, and a pervasive feeling of futility. Occasionally someone stuffs unused medical equipment in there. Bare walls, kind of a taupey grey color. I hate it.

Gosh. Even Lucy in Peanuts has a more cheerful setup!

[MessyD]

His office is in a house shared by several therapists. Little waiting room that luckily doesn't usually have many people moving around (but I also don't spend more than 5 minutes there). I think there's is usually some music too but I love the smell, it can calm me down just by walking in.

[Argonautomobile]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Gosh. Even Lucy in Peanuts has a more cheerful setup!

Poor me!

But seriously, I would totally take a booth in the park on a sunny day.

[starfishing]

The business setup is a solo private practice, but the physical space is a shared office suite with some other therapists/psychiatrists. Very simple, just a few offices that share an entrance, small waiting room, and a bathroom. I did realize the other day that there are fewer waiting room chairs than offices, so if it were somehow a full house one day things might get crowded! But whether incidentally or by design they seem to stagger their office hours and appointment times, and I've only seen more than one person in the waiting area a handful of times.

[autonoe]

Small private practice inside a nice office building. There are a couple of chairs, a couch, and some magazines in the waiting room. My therapist's space is nice and relaxing.

[ChickenNoodleSoup]

It's multiple private practices all in one apartment.There are 6 therapists working there, but somehow there's at most two others there at any given time I go. It's an apartment meaning the waiting room is a transformed living room, there's a kitchen and I could theoretically shower in the bathroom.

Converted upstairs bedroom in T's home.

[LonesomeTonight]

Originally Posted by starfishing

I did realize the other day that there are fewer waiting room chairs than offices, so if it were somehow a full house one day things might get crowded! But whether incidentally or by design they seem to stagger their office hours and appointment times, and I've only seen more than one person in the waiting area a handful of times.

T schedules his appointments on the half hour to help avoid this. He also has a large waiting room, and even when there have been other people there (like yesterday), there has been plenty of seats and space. He said when he had the office suite designed (he owns it, I believe), one of his priorities was a large waiting room. I'm wondering if it's partly because he used to work with MC and ex-T, who have a rather small waiting room that can get quite cramped--once I even had to stand, it was so crowded! (then someone offered me a seat). I really like the bigger waiting room, makes me feel more calm and so I don't have to sit in close proximity to a stranger when I'm likely already stressed.

[88Butterfly88]

Current t is a clinic. But I've had all of the above at points, one t had a room in her house with a private entrance, another t had a cottage on her property she used for art therapy, and I've also had ts who come to my house.

[nottrustin]

Private practice outside of home. Both my Ts have private practices. They both have offices in large old buildings (in different towns) that also has other T's who share a waiting room. I see both T's for the last appointment of the day. With T1 I rarely see anybody while waiting plus she sees clients on the half hour so that helps.. usually there are a few people in the waiting room with EMDR T

[ElectricManatee]

Why does it make a difference in seeing other clients or not if the appointments start on the hour or on the half hour? Isn't there still just a few minute gap between clients if everybody is spending 50-60 minutes in the office?

[LonesomeTonight]

Originally Posted by ElectricManatee

Why does it make a difference in seeing other clients or not if the appointments start on the hour or on the half hour? Isn't there still just a few minute gap between clients if everybody is spending 50-60 minutes in the office?

With my T, it's more about clients of other therapists there and the lack of a crowded waiting room. If other T's see clients on the hour, then they wouldn't be in the waiting room on the half hour. Still certainly the same risk of seeing my T's other clients...

[Argonautomobile]

Originally Posted by ElectricManatee

Why does it make a difference in seeing other clients or not if the appointments start on the hour or on the half hour? Isn't there still just a few minute gap between clients if everybody is spending 50-60 minutes in the office?

I always assumed that meant the T was scheduling with a 30 minute buffer - appt at 8:00, 9:30, 11:00, 12:30, etc.