I remember looking up how to be a good client when starting therapy, from what I can remember all most therapist seemed to want was a client that would take therapy seriously and was ready to do "the work".
But it seems that my efforts earned me no improvements. Even if I didn't have obstacles like scheduling around work or financial concerns, there's the problem of being in my own way. Right now I guess I'm just going off the fact that I'm supposed to know what's best for me right, and if I'm unable to do well in therapy it's because deep down I don't want to. I've gotten myself into these situations where I can't really blame anyone else that it's now more difficult than ever to improve my mental health.

Idk I feel like I'm losing my train of thought, but if you want a question to respond to.. What do you do when you're your own problem and the reason you don't see progress?

[Omers]

IMO, you are with the wrong therapist. I worked with 9ish T’s that made me feel like a failure in therapy. Now I am with new T and when I talk about being a difficult client, being avoidant... how ever I word being a “bad client” he just lovingly laughs. “I don’t have a problem working with you at all so I can’t say what was happening in the other relationships”.

[Xynesthesia2]

Try to figure out what it that that's holding me back. Change my stubborn perspective or explore different approaches. I figured therapy was not really useful for me after experimenting for a while, stopped forcing it and looked for more constructive/helpful things.

Well... I guess you accept that you’re the problem and that you’re a terrible client! You’ll see that the world won’t shatter and that being a problem and terrible sometimes is okay too.

“Good clients” probably don’t need therapy as much as “terrible clients”. I don’t think that habitual “good clients” are necessarily being genuine either - could be pathological people pleasing. Who knows.

Therapy is hard and sucks sometimes. It’s totally normal to lose steam. Your therapist will just have to meet you where you are at.

[susannahsays]

Maybe you could ask yourself what would need to change for you to want to do well.

I don't really believe people always know what's best for them, but that may be my domineering streak showing. But, I mean, you see people making dumb decisions all the time. And I'm not saying I'm immune, either. I guess my point is that nobody knows what's best for them all of the time. Sometimes we do, sometimes we don't, sometimes we pretend to ourselves and/or others that we do/don't, and sometimes we do know but pretend it's something else we like better.

I wouldn't really worry about your therapist and being a problem over this issue. It's not her place to get worked up over your ambivalence.

[kaleidoscopeheart]

Therapy is hard and changing thoughts, believes, and behaviors that have served a purpose and have been there for a long time is incredibly exhausting. Maybe you need a break from trying to be a good client and just be yourself instead. I would even recommend bringing this all up with your therapist. I often find just talking about what I am doing and how I am approaching therapy to be incredibly difficult but worth it in the long run.