Topics cause your T to make a note

For the most part... I really don't care what is in my T file. HOWEVER.... I have detected that there are certain things (topics) that cause my T mark in the my file. My T does not write much in my file during the session, that's why when she does it catches my attention and peaks my curiosity. Today I am curious about this....
Does anyone else experience this?

Yes, I know what you mean. My T does not take notes at my sessions. We just sit on the couches and talk. But occasionally, he will bring a notepad over and a pen, and I never know why. Why does he think that today he will need to write something down? How does he know in advance of our conversation? It is so rare, that when it has happened, I have sometimes asked him about it. On the rare occasions he brings the notepad, often he doesn't use it. Like last session, when he first came over to the couch, he brought his notepad, and I wondered what does he have in mind? He must be planning something because he brought this. Toward the end of our session, he said, "is it OK if I change the topic now?" as he gestured at his notepad. I said yes, and then we talked about something that had been on his mind, but yet he never wrote anything down. So I have no idea why he felt he needed the notepad. Chaotic, why don't you just ask her when she is writing something down, why she wants to note that. Is it somehow important and why? I'm sure she would answer.

Well... because then she will know that I am aware of her note taking tendencies and might become more covert about it ... AND... I am curious but afraid that by asking about it I might get into a conversation that I might not like getting into. :-)

I know I am being an *** here. I've got to get a spine and just jump into it.

Whatever her note taking method is she appears to be keeping track of things..She doesn't write much. It is more like she has a list of key things that she then checks off when I mention them. I just want a peek at this checklist for some reason.

Mine does also. I asked her about it once and she said that she uses to ensure she remembers things....
I also sometimes notice her watching my body language ( I fidget a lot) Makes me uncomfortable to move. Sometimes I just feel like I'm under a microscope.

Chaotic,
My T has a legal pad and a pen in his hand more times than not.

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Well... because then she will know that I am aware of her note taking tendencies and might become more covert about it ... . :-)

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ROFL! I feel the same way! It's like, I don't want to ask T what he is writing because I've kind of figured out a cause/effect as to what he is writing about what I say. If I tell him this, he may change his behavior. Thanks for the laugh This is just hilarious!

I am curious also, but I kind of feel like I would be crossing a boundary or something by asking him. I have been with my T for 3 years now, and the curiosity does lessen over time. Best of wishes to you!

ROFL... so glad I am not the only one. The really funny thing is the cause/effect connection that WE THINK WE KNOW may be totally wrong. Then if you bring it up you might have to answer the >>>> "Well why did you think THAT?" follow-up questions. Or the "Well now that you've mention it, I am interested what all these comments about ____ really means."

mick07 absolutely the same with me regarding the fidgeting... I know my T is observing this as well. But then again I give her no choice since I don't SAY what is on my mind.

I find it ironic that I want so desperately to be listened to....understood...cared for...to get to the bottom of what is bothering me; but I make it soooo difficult for her. What'z up with that?

My T doesn't take any notes while I'm there. He may write things down after leave, but never in front of me.

He DOES comment on my body language a lot. I was talking to him last session about a situation in my life where i feel trapped, and I was saying "I'm just going to have to accept that this is how it is, and deal with it" and he said "you don't believe that" - I said I did, and he said "your eyes tell me you don't - they were all wild when you told me that". ?!?! He's spooky! It feels like he can read my mind sometimes.

One time my T was holding a pen the entire time I was talking to him and I said, "Why are just randomly holding a pen?" He laughed and said that he is just used to it because he takes notes with a lot of his clients, but not with me, because he knows I would hate it.

I appreciate that.

The non-note taking during session does not affect his memory of what's going on with me... he recalls things that I don't... small details of stuff that I have told him in the past. Obviously, he does notes after the session.

One time he showed me a note that he did during a phone call we had, in which I was totally manic. It was so funny because his note literally matched the state of my mood at the time... there was stuff just literally written all over the page, some of it in big capital letters with exclamation points, some of it crooked, fragments of sentences, etc.

I never take notes with my clients. The notes are always done after they leave.

my T takes notes...not too many but enough that its noticable. id also like to see what it says...its just one piece of paper on a clipboard...but she never writes down the little things i say, probably only things that deal with psychology. It makes feel alittle funny when she asks questions we covered in other sessions, but of course i only saw her 7 times over 4 months, so i shouldnt expect so much of her.

Come on Guys haven't you figured out they just thought of something else to add to their grocery list!!!!! Or yeah rember to get the dry cleaning etc... HAHA We think we are so special that they are writing all about us!

My T and my pdoc both write down everything I say - I'm just used to it now. My addictions Dr. doesn't write down everything I say, she just takes notes occasionally, which to me feels weirder.

It used to really weird me out in the psych hospitals when one of the night nurses would ask be about something, then obviously she'd chart it, and the next morning my day nurse would bring it up when I was getting my meds - made me feel like I was living under a microscope.

That is totally it... the type of notes she writes is like... "Ah....MILK!" opens my file checks it off then closes it. While the whole time acting like she is listening to what I was saying.

Actually, I have an image of my chart with Key Topics (Maybe possible Dx's) listed. Then she tick marks when I mention something consistent with the Dx.... or that is related to a key issue. Maybe... she has codes for different repsonses. H= hostile, A= Agitated, W= withholding, T= Clear trigger--hit this topic again when you at to see squirming. LOL

It is amazing how wild my imagination can get. I would probably be very let down if I actually saw my real notations... her grocery list.

I don't mind my t taking notes when I've said something, made a point she wants to write down. BUT, I hate it when I'm silent and she's watching me and taking notes. That's just creepy to me. I really DON"T want to know what those say (although my imagination can run wild with this!)

My T never made any notes in the two years I have been seeing him. I never even saw a file.

I would ask her what she wrote.

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chaotic13 said:
For the most part... I really don't care what is in my T file. HOWEVER.... I have detected that there are certain things (topics) that cause my T mark in the my file. My T does not write much in my file during the session, that's why when she does it catches my attention and peaks my curiosity. Today I am curious about this....
Does anyone else experience this?

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YESSS!!!! same - hardly ever writes, then suddenly her brows will knit together and she'll write something down. I want to jump up and see what's in there!! What did she write? What does it say? Did it translate the way i said it? What does it mean!?!? Grrrrrrrr. One day i ought to just ask her flat out.

omg i HATE when im not able to think of a topic or just cant find a way to talk. she just sits and stares at me. just stares. then she'll write something.

im probably going to ask her monday what she writes down.

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pinksoil said:

One time he showed me a note that he did during a phone call we had, in which I was totally manic. It was so funny because his note literally matched the state of my mood at the time... there was stuff just literally written all over the page, some of it in big capital letters with exclamation points, some of it crooked, fragments of sentences, etc.

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LOL.
The only time I've ever called my T for anything other than paperwork was when I had an "agitated manic episode"-resulting as a side-effect from a medication I was taking for asthma. I really am glad that I was somehow able to make the decision to do that before I became worse. I did manage to empty my bank account over what I can only guess was a six day period and of course have nothing to show for that little shopping spree.

I haven't seen my T's notes from that day yet (and my memory of that whole week is really sketchy at best), but they have got to be some of the best notes yet ! On second thought, maybe I don't want to see them. I have no idea how crazy I really sounded, but I scared the crap out of T that's for sure.The only thing that kept me out of being locked in a psych ward that night was the appointment I had the next morning. This incident I remember really solidified my trust with my T.

!! Never want to go through that again. I would hate to be Bipolar and deal with that all the time! Maybe I should talk to him about that incident. Since I don't remember much about what I said, it should make for interesting reading material (or an interesting piece of artwork,LOL!)

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Miss C said:
I would ask her what she wrote.

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Of course I know this is what I should do. Maybe this thread is my way of getting up my nerve to do it next week. If the situation presents itself again, I want to be ready ask her about it and go with where ever that leads. This might prove to be another comfort benchmark for me. BTW I still have not moved from the remote corner of the ugly couch. I did however think about it one session. NOW that would likely definitely noted as a behavior change in my chart somewhere. "Pt abruptly changed location. Rationale for change- undetermined."

I made a lot of progress in "communicating" last session and I am trying to keep the positive feelings I had regarding that alive. However, the negatives are starting to seep in at this point. Honestly I think some of the things I finally expressed last session she had no clue about. Luckily she seemed to handle them OK. Unfortunately the energy I felt after that session is starting to fade.

You know, this reminds of something that happened today in session. I was talking and T's facial expression changed and I go, 'What?" and he said, "Nothing." But I pressed him, and he goes, "Okay, I had an emergency and I remembered I had to make a call." (Again, so much for them always thinking of us...)

I asked him if he wanted to go write himself a reminder note and he declined.

LOLOLOL

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I still have not moved from the remote corner of the ugly couch. I did however think about it one session. NOW that would likely definitely noted as a behavior change in my chart somewhere. "Pt abruptly changed location. Rationale for change- undetermined."

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LOLOL!!!!

I love it. I just had a vision of purposefully doing as many things different in your session as you can, and the T struggling to keep up with all the notes.



(My T only made notes in the first session. I know he makes notes after I leave, but I never see it.)

THIS WOULD BE GREAT FUN!! My T would be like ... WTF is she doing? It would probably lead to ... "Have you seen Dr. ____ recently?" "Has he changed your Adderall Rx dosage?? " "Are you taking anything I should know about???"

OMG... I just thought about yet another thing that I disclosed in my reconnection with my T...in one of the emails I sent after the previous session I mentioned having to use Propranolol to reduce my anxiety before MT class. I never told her that had gotten this medication! My comfort level with her really must have changed in the wake of last appointment.

My T took alot of notes the first session. Wrote things all over the page. Actually made me stop talkin so that she could write it down. She never took notes after that but always seems to remember things that I say, even things I dont remember saying. I know I have a file, she has said she will be putting like the letters I give her in the file but Ive never seen it.

Once when I was doing an internship in her office I couldnt resist the temptation and went looking for my file. I couldnt find it. I guess she knows Im always around and could go looking for my file so she keeps it at home or something.

One day Im gonna pluck up the courage to ask her to see it. I am so curious to see what insanity is in there.

I just yelled at my p-doc last week for this. I needed to tell her about something that happened to me recently.

I said I would not say much because she will write it down. She put her pen down and then said go ahead its fine. I told her then she said "oh okay, I'll write trauma"...

I said see this is why I oughta shut up when I come here. My T will just capture various topics without details. I have no idea how he remembers everything but he does.