[ChickenNoodleSoup]

Has your T ever warned you that things they might try could make things worse or of similar dangers?

From my experience, my T seems to try to educate me when things might make my symptoms harder to handle. He also empathizes how some clients might react to their T (for example transference, projection) and that we can always talk about these things. Of course there's still remaining risks, but it seems to make talking easier for when something is not working.

However, reading things on here sometimes, I wonder how common that is?

[toomanycats]

Yes, my T has done this every step of the way.

[Lemoncake]

I had heard of the term "transference" but nobody told me how painful it would actually be. Every rupture we have hurts more than the last. Then it's the constant yearning for and wanting to be comforted by him.

[maybeblue]

No. I have never had a therapist tell me that anything that they do could make me worse...despite the fact that I have had it happen multiple times. Overall I think therapy has improved my life, but there have definitely been some negative side effects.

[here today]

No, I never had a therapist who warned me. I learned the hard way, from bad experiences with therapy.

[ElectricManatee]

I don't think my T has ever warned me about potential "side effects" ahead of time, but she is quite open to talking about things as they come up. Sometimes she and I adjust the pace or the depth of whatever I'm working on until I feel like I'm in a better place. I don't know if the stuff that has been disruptive or destabilizing was totally predictable, but it's helpful to know/believe that she and I can deal with pretty much anything that comes up.

[starfishing]

Yes, absolutely. My current therapist has been very conscientious about frequently discussing the fact that therapy can stir up difficult things and/or make some things worse before they get better. We're in the midst of exploring some particularly challenging/painful territory right now, and my therapist frequently checks in to make sure that those explorations aren't doing more harm than good or making it too difficult to handle the other things I need to handle.

Any therapist who doesn't talk about the possibility of therapy causing problems isn't upholding their ethical responsibilities.

[stopdog]

No. The woman mocked me for trying to talk about the downsides.

[emeraldheart]

Yes, my T is pretty good about that. He says therapy is not for everybody and that if it doesn’t seem to be helping me anymore that it needs to be addressed.

Before going into some really deep trauma work, he warned me that with this level of trauma, it has the tendency to make a person feel like they are breaking, so we stepped into it gently and has also offered extra support when needed. He would also remind me that if it gets too much that I can stop it and he will back off. He constantly talks about how this can be painful work, but that I can control where it starts, how fast we are going and when it ends.

[tomatenoir]

Originally Posted by emeraldheart

Yes, my T is pretty good about that. He says therapy is not for everybody and that if it doesn’t seem to be helping me anymore that it needs to be addressed.

Before going into some really deep trauma work, he warned me that with this level of trauma, it has the tendency to make a person feel like they are breaking, so we stepped into it gently and has also offered extra support when needed. He would also remind me that if it gets too much that I can stop it and he will back off. He constantly talks about how this can be painful work, but that I can control where it starts, how fast we are going and when it ends.

Your T sounds like a keeper.

At the end of certain sessions (the harder ones), my T will tell me I'm likely to be tired over the next few days. Then he tells me to make sure I get lots of sleep, ha ha!

[Fuzzybear]

I never had a therapist who warned me that there could be possible ... side effects. A therapist did say once something like “you might feel worse before you feel better” (probably those exact words.. but I didn’t “record” the sessions) but that was all. I “learnt” the hard way.

Maybe the therapist themselves “might feel worse before they feel better” - at some time in therapy anyway... ... they “should” be trained to handle their own countertransference. Some of course are and don’t let their stuff spill into the client’s therapy.

Psychoanalysis is psychoanalysis. Of course it will have effects. I'm a big girl I can handle the highs and lows.

[TeaVicar?]

No, it's not in his style. I wish he had though.

The therapist who did my assessment hinted at possible relationship break ups, although I can't remember if she was referring to therapy or the training I was about to do.

[BudFox]

I've had at least one session with about 18 therapists. None gave any meaningful warnings or informed consent. #NoTransparency

[koru_kiwi]

neither of mine did

[satsuma]

Mine tried to warn me at the beginning, but a) I was too nervous /frightened to take in what he was saying b) I had no idea about therapy and so it just sounded strange and didn't mean much to me at the time.

Afterwards though it all made sense! I've been through some really difficult therapy times, especially the intense feelings that cone up and sometimes the longing for T to be a parent-figure. I stuck with my T though and he stuck with me and it had been very very good in spite of these difficult side effects.

I don't like to imagine the mess we would have ended up in, if T himself had not been able to handle these things as they came up. Psychologists in the UK have to have supervision throughout their career and they have their own therapy as well, at least throughout their training. I think this is crucial!

[velcro003]

My T's informed consent thingy said that therapy can make you feel worse before you feel better, and she has mentioned on and off over the years. We just had a conversation earlier this week where she was re-writing her consent, and when she read that line she thought of me. She goes "You shouldn't feel worse session after session. That concerns me, and what can I do to help?" Unfortunately, I don't know the answer.

[stopdog]

I never felt better after an appointment. A few times I felt not completely enraged and frustrated at the lack of a point, but usually I left in a frustrated rage.

[feralkittymom]

I doubt any sort of consent form would have meant anything to me at the time because I felt that I'd run out of options before trying therapy. I really wouldn't have cared about any articulated risks. As it happened, my former T was very careful about pacing the work and getting me through rough spots. He always adjusted in some way to provide me the support necessary. I never thought difficult feelings were a "side effect" but rather the stuff of therapy.

Current T asked me if I regretted having had therapy, which I thought was an interesting question. It was mostly about dealing with abuse memories, but my feeling was that it wasn't a matter of regret because it was probably inevitable. And I had been depressed most of my life, and I haven't been since therapy.

[Anne2.0]

For me the conversation about whatever the effects of therapy have been (and they are not just categorized as positive or negative) is part of therapy itself. I don't believe an accurate or meaningful "consent" form would be useful to me in therapy, but growing my awareness about what helps me or doesn't and understanding how therapy affects me have been important conversations to have. For me the best "consent" is one where I am part of the conversation, not simply a party to a consent form.

[BudFox]

Details aside, in my experience the biz is very very negligent when it comes to making consumers aware of the possibility of psychological harm.

Even if a client doesn't care to hear it, there should be a formal conversation about risks, if the therapist wants to maintain minimum standards of ethical practice. It's partly symbolic... shows willingness to be transparent and honest. The fact that this is not taken seriously gives the whole enterprise a deceptive snake oil vibe, in my view.

One problem is that if they did a serious accounting of what can go wrong (assuming they are capable of even seeing what can go wrong), some people would run for the hills, and business would suffer.

[ruh roh]

Yes and no. I don't think she issued any kind of general caution, but she often will do so when something specific is tried or is something I ask to try. She is very conservative and cautious, though, so mostly she will not do whatever thing I want to try (like hypnosis, since she's a certified hynotherapist) and then explain her concerns. There have been times she said her peace and I insisted anyway, with awful results. I tend to want to push things because I am impatient to deal with my issues, and she tends to want to slow it down, and it's when we clash that she will tell me her concerns.


As for outright side effects, like things getting worse or transference happening, she has not said anything. It's more to do with specific approaches or pushing into territory she doesn't advise.

[downandlonely]

I've never had a therapist warn me about possible side effects. I do know that sometimes therapy makes me feel worse though.

[velcro003]

My T has always been up front with me about therapy limitations--to the point where I am like Do you WANT me to quit.never do therapy again? But I do appreciate her honesty.

[Amyjay]

I had to sign a consent thing at the beginning that talked about stirring up emotions etc and T often tells me in session to be aware there might be fallout from particular things we have discussed. She doesn't talk about "side effects" as such. Therapy isn't a drug. It's a relationship in which internal conflicts can be brought to the fore. Personally I expect therapy to be intensely emotionally challenging. That is why I go there.