Couch 248: Curiouser and Curiouser

'I don't feel comfortable with my photograph being displayed.'

There's your boundary...stick to it.

I’m going to reply the day before with that! Don’t want to get into a back and forth about it with the organiser.

Oh, he has---he's mentioned before that he maybe runs into one a month or something like that? But I imagine they'd all be like, "Ha, I ran into my T--awkward!" Whereas I'd be affected and want to analyze it. I'm sure I'm not the only client he has like that, but I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority (I almost said "vast minority," but I don't think that's a thing!)

Yeah, that is ridiculous that L called that "stalking."

It makes me think of when Dr. T seemed alarmed that I knew where he grew up, and I was like, "it's on the front page of your professional website! I read it when I first started working with you and remembered because I know the area." He checked and admitted I was right. I noticed that's gone from his updated site--suppose I shouldn't mention I saw that.

Agreed that they can be pretty weird!

That seems like the best approach. I hope the event goes OK.

Think most T’s have got an added layer of fear ever since the movie the 6th sense came out. There was a poster here whose T stopped seeing them after they drove by her house.

Want me to hack into his website and add "wanker" to that pretentious list?

Ha! He's probably somehow suspect me. But I appreciate the offer

Do it !

Oh, and what's really funny is that last session, I was attempting to connect and shared some of my initial false impressions of him. I said one was that he probably drove some fancy sportscar (in reality, he drove a Prius for a while that his wife now drives, and he now drives and old Toyota RAV4). He asked why I had thought that: "Was it that I seemed pretentious?" I was like, "Well...."

When you’ve done that, I have some therapists who could also use website editing…

My initial impression of him was arrogant jackass. Pretty sure it’s not a false impression.

I came home from work with a headache, pain in my feet and a pain in my chest (like if I go to take a satisfying deep breath I feel it). Pretty sure all the symptoms are not connected and all the little things just hurt at once.

He's become a bit less arrogant with age--or maybe I've just gotten used to it? I've come to realize it hides a lot of insecurity, so maybe that helps in a way. The jackassery still appears from time to time. I suppose "don't come into the lobby of this public building in case I'm there" could qualify.

How are things going with you? Any work updates?

Ugh, I hope you feel better soon. And if the chest pain gets worse and/or is accompanied by nausea or other weird symptoms, go get checked out ASAP, like ER. Just in case.

I don't think any of those people do anything and from the description the therapist has always seemed a bit arrogant (the "dr" thing would have ensured me spending no more than 5 min before walking out), and he is not good at holding firm boundaries, but other than that -I don't see what he has done wrong. I agree with his stance, as iterated here, on a lot of things. In his position, I would have been thrown by the idea of going by and checking out the new office before an appointment. I have been in similar situation with a client and my own office - which is odd because who cares what building a lawyer is in - but this was one of the mental health docket clients - and frankly I was not completely certain how they would react in the lobby or trying to check out my group's suite of offices and so on. I admit I had no idea why the client was telling me they wanted to see the office we were moving to and why they were bothering to tell me they were going to do it -but once they told me - I asked them not to. I couldn't stop them and did nothing to attempt to stop them, but it was a bit creepy and I warned my colleagues.

Yeah the heat is hard on people. I think i got dizzy today from retaining water from drinking too much. Dont be a hero. Af least lie down with your feet raised.

Is the heat/humidity bad on the east coast? That could add to feeling bad and breathing when it is really humid can be a challenge if one is not used to living in a swamp

Oh funny. My therapist lists Somatic Therapy in their additional training certification. When I asked if we could try incorporate some somatic work into our sessions she said she didn't feel competent enough in that area. am.k...lol

In other news: Jillian Assange is free and the number of states who have started a lawsuit against Pfizer over their safety and efficacy claims is no five. Kansas was the first. The other confirmed is Idaho. Other three will file independenty soon according the Kansas attorney general.

For some clients desire to familiarize yourself with the new location is understandable, especially if it helps reduce anxiety about the change. Like SD said It does also become about boundaries.

Dr. T, has expressed clear boundaries regarding his space and potential interactions outside of scheduled sessions. His limits aim to set a professional distance, though he does not own the building.

Maybe it’s also about exploring the limits of the therapeutic relationship. Pushing to test his commitment.

Yes. The heat is causing my shoes to feel tighter. My feet were swollen yesterday.

We have been stuck in an extended heat wave. Last night the heat broke slightly and it didn’t feel quite as humid. Today it’s supposed to be hot again.

I sent a frantic email to R yesterday, expressing everything that I couldn't express through sheer emotion on Thursday.

Now I'm having a Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy moment as in 'Don't panic.'

Is 'I'm OK with it, but let me freak out first' something therapists have experience with?

It makes sense that a lawyer isn't interested in a client's internal process and has no interest or skill in unpacking what's happening and making enquiry about what it means for the client. As a therapist, it's literally his job.

You would hope that they have experience of it, it seems like a well trodden path for some people. Maybe another question is what experience do you have of it and what is the value of it for you?

My therapist made a mistake last week which I found humiliating and which caused her shame. It was a very intense session. She was shaken and that in itself was difficult for me to observe. Anyway, I have done something art-based on the back of it - I have created her mistake in a form which we can hold, change, unpick, literally do something with it. It has been such a valuable thing for me to do. I had a period of art therapy in my 30s after having been very unwell and I often think about the importance of what that gave me - the different forms of things, metaphor, creation, etc. It has a similar effect to that of somatic work or embodied endeavour in that I like experiencing the meaning in these different ways.