[mountaindew24]

Today I went and got my file from my old T office. May 1 start see new T well I was reading all the stuff my old T wrote down and I'm like how could you remember all this stuff sitting in her office for like an hour an half and don't write anything down. It might sound stupid really how can they remember all the stuff U talk about

[Fuzzybear]

I think therapists often write notes after seeing each person, in between sessions. It might seem like a lot to remember but their training helps them know what to look for and write down.

imo

Well, some makes notes immediately after your session has ended. Others take time during the day to write notes in between a number of clients.

The other thing to note is that their are probably common threads in the notes like "low self-esteem" "self-hatred", etc. Once the threads are in place, the details fill in.

[lauren_helene]

How do you feel reading about what your T wrote? Once earlier in therapy, I freaked over what might be in my records and asked for a copy from my T.

It had to do with custody of my son but my thoughts were irrational and I let others freak me out.

I got to page one and it said this: "the patient is a somewhat overweight white female" I am so sensitive about how I look and new I was overweight and feared others perceived me this way.

That did it. I started shredding the remaining documents. I don't know why I reacted that way, I probably wouldn't do that now.

Poor T he thought I was quitting him...nope just neurotic!

[Fuzzybear]

gggrrrrrrr at the "somewhat overweight white female" comment

[mountaindew24]

I was reading it all the stuff she wrote down and, i'm like oh Great new T is going to think Crazy or something, when she reads this then i'm like well i'm not going to worry about

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almeda24fan said:
: "the patient is a somewhat overweight white female"


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I hate this %#@&#! part of notes. It sounds SOOOO clinical.
I think it would be better written like "the patient is a fat white girl who was dressed like she just got out of bed" LOL

(Not to you Almeda...just a general example)

[Kiya]

my old t took copious notes in session... pages and pages... i really want to know what they say... i've been thinking about asking current t to have them transfered to her for me

[sunrise]

I don't get why they need to single out a person's weight as worthy of including. Why not height, eye color, hair style, style of dress, education level, sexual orientation, etc.? It's sad to me to think a perfect stranger like one's T on the first visit would choose to memorialize his impressions about a new client's weight in his files. (I am overweight so am sensitive to this.)

[PsyChris]

It's an aquired skill. That is why most therapists bill you by the hour, but usually have 50 minute sessions. They use the 10 minutes to sumarize notes.

It gets much easier once you know the person. Empathy goes a long way to promoting memory recollection too. I can remember much more details about patients that I care about or find very interesting. Especially mental health patients.

[Perna]

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sunrise said:
I don't get why they need to single out a person's weight as worthy of including. Why not height, eye color, hair style, style of dress, education level, sexual orientation, etc.? It's sad to me to think a perfect stranger like one's T on the first visit would choose to memorialize his impressions about a new client's weight in his files. (I am overweight so am sensitive to this.)

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">It does seem cold but weight can have a lot to do with health and mental health and can be "seen". Eye color doesn't mean anything and hair and dress haven't been seen over time and may/may not mean anything. Education and sexual orientation might not be known right at first.

It is weird but I saw my T from about 1978-87 when I weighed 127-160ish (I started to gain when I started to see her; later I blamed my weight gain on the success of therapy ) and then again 1996-2005 when I weighed 220-270. Only once in that second period did we ever discuss my weight and on another occasion in the second period she made an unsolicited :-) comment about it, noting that she saw I had gained a lot of weight since she knew me before.

[chaotic13]

The weight comment would freak me out too. Perna, I've done the opposite. Just before starting therapy, I decided that I had let myself totally go physically. I had been sick a lot the winter before starting so, I was scared and focused. I've only mentioned my weight loss a few times in therapy when it related to my H. I think therapy has helped reduce my stress so indirectly has helped with my weight loss. I know she has likely, noted the change in my file somewhere, because it has been noticeable.

After about 3-4 session, I got angry/frustrated and sent an email, requesting my medical records saying I was considering stopping. This was the only time my T actually called me. In the end I scheduled an exit appointment and then ended up continuing. The topic of my records was not raised. I wonder sometimes what the hell might be in my record at this point.

[Perna]

I was "nervy" before therapy and lived inside myself and therapy helped me move out into the world but I made "more" of me (think armored "tank" LOL) so I could have such a mobile unit outside of myself; the better I got psychologically, the bigger I got. I love thinking about the possible psychology of weight (do not love being overweight :-) It's like analyzing dreams.

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sunrise said:
I don't get why they need to single out a person's weight as worthy of including. Why not height, eye color, hair style, style of dress, education level, sexual orientation, etc.? It's sad to me to think a perfect stranger like one's T on the first visit would choose to memorialize his impressions about a new client's weight in his files. (I am overweight so am sensitive to this.)

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">

Normally on an intake this is all included. I remember reading my 1st pdoc's notes-- he lncluded cognitive level of functioning, general appearance (as far as how well groomed I was), alertness, etc.

As Perna said, weight is connected to mental health, just as sexual orientation and education-- things like eye color have no bearing on that.

What if a T or pdoc described a person as "underweight female" in his initial notes or intake? Would you think differently about that?

[chaotic13]

Pink,
For me it is a matter of being physically judged. What about if it said "homely" or "not very attractive" female. I agree that weight, dress, education, physical attractiveness are all things that affect social status and overall mental health.

We just have to remember, the information contained in medical records is there for medical reasons not to make us feel good or bad. Typically they are just simply medical facts or clinical conclusions. They are intended to document care rendered and facilitate communicate among medical professionals, not for us review and critique. What is written may have a totally different meaning for medical professional than it does for the untrained (layperson).

[sunrise]

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pinksoil said:
What if a T or pdoc described a person as "underweight female" in his initial notes or intake? Would you think differently about that?

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">No, I probably wouldn't think differently, unless they made a comment about possible anorexia or something.

I'm a little sensitive to this because I just read this book by a psychotherapist in which he related the cases of 5 of his patients. He was always commenting on the females' physical appearance including their figures (size of breasts, attractiveness of legs and hips), their style of dress and how "feminine" and appealing it was in his judgment. To him, it seemed a sign of mental health was how "girly" the woman dressed and in a couple of instances he cited as evidence the patients were getting better that they now dressed in a girlier way, showing more flesh (shorter skirts, lower cut tops, etc.). I found it kind of offensive because I am not a very girly dresser and I do not consider this a sign of dysfunction! Similar comments were not made about his male patients. So, I'm kind of sensitized by just reading this book. almedafan, I can definitely understand why you would have found the weight comment from your T to be hurtful.

[foreverlost]

I don't think they do remember; they fake it.

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foreverlost said:
I don't think they do remember; they fake it.

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">

How is that possible? My T remembers lines from poems I have written and exact things I have said during previous sessions.

[lauren_helene]

It was the 'somewhat overweight' part that struck me. What does that mean slightly overweight or significantly overweight, what exactly is somewhat?

T will never tell me now because he knows this is my hot button. Oh well that is what I get for trying to read it.

I don't even want to know what his impressions are now.

[Jully]

I am TERRIFIED of reading what might be in my file, but I am also so curious. A comment about my weight or general appearance or intelligence level that I didn't like would tear me apart. What if my T thinks I am a poorly groomed obese female of low to average intelligence?

I really would like to see the records. I think it might help me gain insight. Maybe I should ask T if there is anything that might hurt my feelings in his notes and make my decision based on that.

Back to the original comment though, my T makes notes while I am talking. Sometimes he gives me a general idea of what he is writing. I don't know if he makes more notes after I leave or not.