Is Anyone Having In Person Sessions?

I was just saying that I don't think it's a legislative decision. I could be wrong since I don't know where you live and I obviously don't know everything and the circumstances in every state. I guess I was interpreting that you were angry at people making policies that allow people to go to bars but still don't allow you to get therapy. I don't think that's what is happening because I don't think there was ever a policy made by the same people who are now allowing bars to be opened regulating whether you are allowed to see your therapist. I think the person or people making decisions about that has always ultimately been your therapist or the clinic. Since your therapist/clinic did not decide to allow people to go to bars, the gym, etc., it doesn't really make sense to say that their individual decision is azz backwards - because they had nothing to do with making those calls. They can only control what they choose to do.

Decisions made by different entities will not always be in alignment because they don't usually have the same concerns. One entity has made a decision based on one set of circumstances and the other makes a decision on a completely different set of circumstances. If hairdressers could somehow cut hair remotely, they probably would.

I have had in person sessions the whole period since March and I do have them also now. No masks or sanitizers or anything like that involved.

As far as I understand, the T does not shake hands now, but I have preferred not to shake hands for the last several years now, so this change hasn't really affected me. He also has moved is chair a bit further away from the couch than previously and keeps a bit more physical distance when I come in and leave.

In my country, covid wasn't that bad. Although the country was locked down until the middle of May, there weren't any rules that would have prohibited therapists working in private practice seeing their patients. Hospitals and public places yes, but not private practices.

Part, if not all, of the problem with covid (besides the illness itself) is exactly what I'm reading in this thread. Every nation, every state, every territory, every county, - there's no cohesiveness. Terribly poor leadership, everywhere.

Someone in Nevada can say to me that I should be able to see my therapist in her office. Oh, but...I'm in this county, in this state, where medical clinics and private practices are required to do telehealth. And that includes therapy.

I wish I could just roll with this era. I have times when I can, but those were back in March, April, May. This month it's becoming much more difficult to keep living with such uncertainty.

Nations have not been great at working together for as long as humanity has existed, and even smaller regions can struggle easily to find the best path in a crisis like this. It's frustrating, but unfortunately not a big surprise. We can just hope that overall things don't go over too badly.

I’m doing in person sessions with no mask. I tried telehealth one time and it was bad because my ADHD had me very distracted.

therapy opened a few weeks ago here. T works in a private office. We both wore masks and sat 6 ft apart. I think of therapy as essential for people and think it can be done with precautions. My city has very low rates and a great testing program.

I'm curious...does everyone in your therapist's practice have a choice, or is there a certain number of people she sees in person because of videotherapy issues?

The one I see has asked me two or three times when I have been really upset about something if I think it would help to come in for a session. We would wear masks. I have not taken her up on it. I don't know if she has offered this to others.

In person is optional. They do offer video sessions. However, when people go in person, they wait in their vehicle until they come get them.

However, on a side note, ever since the pandemic began, my sessions have mostly been anxiety filled. He told me to stop reading so many news articles.

This is how it worked both when my husband saw and orthopedist and got an MRI for an injury last week. He waited in his car until they were ready, then they called him in. That seems the safest way, to avoid a bunch of people in a waiting room.

I took my brother to his primary care doctor and they actually had let people in the waiting room. I was shocked.

Were they at least distanced and wearing masks? Hope so!

Thankfully they were! I was SO nervous.

I thought this thread was about how those of us who do in person handle our sessions. Not judgment on how we aren't doing tele health.

Just look at the title and stay out of the thread if you're here to judge how people do their in person sessions. People live in different countries with different laws or advice, and wildly different control levels of the virus.

I don't see why a poster here has to detail all the precautions they're taking outside of their in person therapy. Or why we're labelled as thinking we're the "exception to the rule". You don't know everyone's circumstances and can't read their minds. Or aren't in their country where the rules, might, good lord, be different than yours.

I’m sorry if I caused it to get off topic.

I'm concerned, but not terribly anxious. My therapist is a bit over the top, though. She's more than concerned...she seems phobic. I want to tell her to stop watching the news

My T is starting to do in person again. We will have our first in person session at the end of the month unless things get worse in our county. We have to wear masks and sit six feet apart, which I'm good with. I have a PCP appointment on Wednesday. AFAIK it's in person. There has been no mention of telehealth.

Thank sounds very reasonable. Good luck with your appointments!

Maybe she has some underlying anxiety issues that this whole pandemic is exacerbating. That's what's happening with me. I'm not anxious about COVID specifically, but I seem to have developed agoraphobia anyway.

Agoraphobia here as well...it sucks.

Good observation. She does, and it's reasonable. In the winter of 2018 she very nearly died from pneumonia. She was out of the office for 3 months. She's truly terrified of being unable to breath again.

I understand her fear, I only wish she'd come to terms with it somehow, since being in a closed room with people is her profession.

Yeah, I had a therapist who had pneumonia and got extremely sick. She was on a ventilator for ages and afterwards when she was in the rehab facility, she said she developed panic attacks related to fear that she would be put on a ventilator again. She said it was like never being able to get enough air or like being suffocated.

I know her lungs were damaged, as well, because they kept removing chunks. Hopefully your therapist isn't worried because she has reduced lung capacity.

Thanks for sharing this. I can't even imagine how frightening it must feel to not be able to breathe well. And who knows...maybe my therapist does have panic around the issue. Actually, both my pdoc and my T are immune compromised. Pdoc is recovering from cancer she had last year and T has her lung issues. Yet they both dislike telehealth sessions. No doubt both are struggling with it all.

Weird times

I found out today that my therapist will start doing in person sessions in two weeks. I’m looking forward to it!