Couch 232: Not Sully!

Therapy today with IOP Individual therapist. I'm nervous even though this will be the sixth time I've seen her (so the same amount of times as Dr. K). Only she is much harder on me and I have a few topics to bring up but I'm afraid of her reaction for some reason. But I like her so it is really confusing! Then I wonder if I can keep seeing her after I am done with IOP because she has been at least useful and not a complete disappointment.

After yesterday's stress filing the proper forms, today I have to go to court in person for the restraining order hearing. I apparently can't do it remotely because the DV resource center does their hearings over video. Last year that place wasn't open, so I had to do it myself. When I've gone through them before Covid to handle this, it takes half the day so I thought I could avoid that by doing it myself. Guess I was wrong. It's still going to take half the day and I have to drive farther to do it. Why can't they make this process simpler? Or offer a permanent one?

HUGS so sorry @NP_Complete

Dunno. I'm betting there are still Boundaries, though, therapists being so fond of those (i.e., would not bet on the 1 am phone calls).

Yay! They just called back and said I could do the hearing on Monday remotely, just not today. Unfortunately it's at the same time as my session, so I might be going to court during my session. The whole process is still a PITA though.

Glad to hear that you can do that remotely. It seems really wrong for you to have to jump through so many hoops for it.

Is it possible to reschedule your session maybe?

Good point. Ex-MC took one from me at 2 am once, though only for a few minutes. Boundaries were not his thing though. Well, until they were.

Hugs, Kit, I hope it goes well. When will you hear if you're approved for more time with the IOP? It's worth asking if you can still meet with her after it's done--likely depends on if she has a separate practice or mainly works for the hospital. If not, maybe see if she has any suggestions for a referral who has more time available than Dr. K?

Today in session, I was talking about something that I won't go into because it's partly political. I made a comparison between two things and said I understood how it could potentially be considered offensive. Dr. T: "My wife has actually said something very similar before." Me: "Oh...OK."

SD - im breeding a new batch of leeches for you right now! Just say the word!

Thanks LT!

The session went really well. I got sad for some reason in the middle of it and she could tell. But I couldn't tell her why I was sad (I have no idea). But we did talk a lot about when is the right time to go to the hospital and stuff like that. She wants to make sure that I am safe.


I have another appointment with her on Tuesday so I know I have at least one more. I don't know how much longer my insurance is going to pay but she did say it could be possible for us to continue after IOP .But she's concerned about the distance (2 hours) although, hello, Zoom. That's how we do it now. And the SH. So we'll see. I hope she will let me stay with her even after IOP is done. She's tough but she's good.


Thanks for being supportive! HUGS Kit

Kit - I have often found that the tough-love women in my life actually have really big hearts. I also tend to learn a lot from them. If she is good, whether tough or not, then she's worth it.

Thanks - I will take two packages of them -one for me and one for tweaky blind dog.
I will try anything that keeps me far away from western corporate medicine madness

What does it mean for a therapist to be tough? I wouldn't take any guff from them but I guess if it is helping then good.

Day 6!

Session with L went really well. It was mostly a relaxing day. We played Connect Four, my dog ran between us giving us kisses and then plopped on the couch, L and I laughed a ton. It was really good and needed after two months of ruptures and stresses and threat of losing Fridays.

The second one I hired told me to call any time day or night and even explicitly said even in the middle of the night. I never found calling her (I did try it once -during the day) to be useful but she did offer it.

I once had a client who had been a therapist. Her husband described her as "she was a kickass therapist" which I thought was not a good thing. I would not work with such a person.
The fun thing I found was in family will fights - the therapist sibling was often the one who the rest of the family hated - and I usually knew why. Certainly the therapist sibling was usually the craziest one out of the bunch of decidedly ill-functioning family group.

I can only speak for myself but what I mean when I say that the therapist is tough is that she challenges me a lot. She isn't afraid to cause me pain if it will ultimately relieve me of pain. She doesn't see me as weak or vulnerable but strong and courageous so she feels that she can push the strong and courageous parts of me in order to help the weak and vulnerable parts of me. She does a lot around safety with me, more than any other T has and I think her "rule" of no SH is tough. It's tough to follow but I don't want to get kicked out so that's something. I know she cares though because she has given me an extra session this week, an extra half session last week and an extra session next week. So that's really good. I think she's helping. There were a few times that we met where it just felt off but today felt on and when it is on it's good! I don't know if any of this makes sense, stopdog or maybe it only makes sense in my funny little brain.

I have to stay late today because an employee has a hostile work environment complaint. I thought it best if we meet after almost everyone has gone home so that way no one is up in our business. But I am not looking forward to the meeting. Especially because I don't know how to fix it without firing someone and I don't have that authority. But I requested a meeting with the General Manager and the Owner on Monday so we can discuss it then. They do have hiring/firing power. I'm just "HR" in name. Since I do payroll and all.

Watching my brother suck up to the lawyers etc at the end of parental lives were some of the worst experiences of my life. Huh, you think im freudian!

Eta - how about one of those stair-stepping shopping carts? Or a child stroller?

I like this dog ramp its adjustable

For me or my special dog?
Special tweaky dog will not do any adjustable dog ramp. He flips out if he gets near a manhole cover or any thing that makes a noise when you step on it -all the adjustable movable dog ramps freak him out -he literally stood and shook for an hour after we tried to get him him up one. I felt horrible. and plied him with special snacks which he would not eat until the next day. The other non tweaky dog (nicknamed Tigger) benefitted greatly that day as he ran up and down the dog ramp with glee and abandon

Thanks, WFS. Pretty uneventful appointment as far as the procedures, happy to say. just the usual discomfort with contorting around the mammo machine haha. Then I dang near fell asleep during the thyroid ultrasound, it was such a non-event. I AM a little curious about why the dr ordered that now, though; I saw on the computer while I was there that she wrote "Hyperthyroidism". Um, excuse me? I don't have that. I'm on medication for hypothyroid/hashimoto's! Or is she saying that my thyroid has suddenly decided to work correctly and now the meds I'm taking are giving me too MUCH thyroid hormone? I'm so confused. I'm waiting to hear back from dr to get an explanation.

Well, that’s not going to increase stopdog’s faith in Western medicine.

I filled out consulting therapist’s paperwork. Alas there are no typos from which I can pre-nickname her, like Info. I may have to meet her first.

Well might one imagine it difficult for me to think less of western medicine or therapists - and yet every time I read about or deal with them - I find indeed I can

So that's where "stopdog" comes from.

P.S.
Nope. You haven't had him long enough. Interesting coincidence though. Stopdog's stop dog. Metastopdog.

To be clear, I have little affection for law as well. It is also a terrible system if one is expecting justice.