Welcome to the couch, old and new! A place to hang out - sometimes you get immediate feedback, sometimes you don't. Shouting, "Cool Whip" tends to bring others out from between the cushions if you're feeling lonely. This is a chatty thread. All are welcome. We're kind of psychologically oriented, sometimes. We try to be supportive. At times we discuss what that means. It’s a place to plop down on the couch when you come home from work or wherever, or wake up in the middle of the night, or check in at lunch, rant a bit or not, and be among friends. We advise you not to drink or drug and tex ..read more

The T I've been with for 6 years is moving his office in a couple months. It's not that far away, and will actually be slightly closer for me. But I'm pretty attached to his current space. And he's said his new one will be "75% smaller," too (his current one is quite large). I struggled when ex-T and ex-MC changed offices (even though it was literally up the block). I'm thinking it might help to honor/say good-bye to the old space, including the work we did there, and welcome the new one. I'm trying to figure out what might feel meaningful that my T would also agree to. Ideas? I know another ..read more

I’m in the UK, and saw a new T last week. I think she may be fairly newly qualified. I quite liked her, but am really put off by the fact that she hasn’t asked me for details like my address, date of birth and the name of my GP. It seems unprofessional. I’m seeing her again later today, but am unsure whether to continue with her. Perhaps she will ask for the details today ..read more

I haven’t posted here in years, so I’m not sure that anyone here remembers my situation with my (now former) therapist back in 2021. essentially, I disclosed that I was attracted to him, and things spiraled from there. he engaged in a lot of sexual conversations with me, commented on my appearance, etc. toward the end of 2022, I was hospitalized and told the inpatient T what was happening with my outpatient T. she reported him to the licensing board, and I reluctantly agreed to go along with it (I was still super attached to him). the investigation lasted a year and I was given little to no d ..read more

Today I saw my therapist for the last time after six YEARS. He retired after finally settling on the end of March as the best time for him. The goodbye was hard for both of us, though he choked up more than I did. He said I could keep in touch with him, and I will every now and then. After, I met up with a friend to play games for a few hours and had a great time, then I visited my folks. When I came home and closed the door behind me I could finally cry. And boy, have I been crying. I keep thinking about those last few minutes with him. About everything he is done for me. How I'm strong now ..read more

I have been seeing my therapist for about 10 months now. It is very difficult for me to open up and trust people but I thought I was making slow but steady progress. At the beginning she was always prompt and gave me at least week in advance warning if something were to interrupt an upcoming session. Since January it seems like she is always sick with the flu, Covid, family emergencies, and remembering at the last minute that she was going on a trip out of town. She is always switching me to phone in sessions, which I don’t like because I have thin walls in my studio apt and I am paranoid my ..read more

I started seeing a therapist. I took this step because I've been having a bad time with depression since November . . . and it's been getting worse. I've been in and out of depression all my life. Years ago, I got all kinds of treatment. I went to shrinks who prescribed a long list of different meds, most of which did nothing. I did therapy for years, though it never seemed helpful. I gave up on all that stuff. I figured it's really up to me to tough it out when I get depressed, get through it and move on. That was more or less working. But I'm in trouble now and can't seem to pull out of it ..read more

I have heard this question a few times in various formulations, as well as thought it myself before starting therapy. I wonder what you guys think about it, would answer to it, whatever, just a topic on my mind. I was on a trip with a friend recently and during the few days I talked about my T sometimes. Not big discussions, more like "my T would say X" or "my T's comment on that was Y". My buddy at some point commented that he thought I value the guy's opinon too much and said: "You realize you pay this person to listen to you?" I know this is a common thing for people to consider. I rememb ..read more

My psychoterapist allowed me to use emails during pauses, and today i sent one where i mentioned Possible trigger: suicidal thoughts in details I am aware it is wrong to threaten (indirectly) however i have been quite desperate for years because of a mix of factors and can't help it She replied she is worried and I feel stupid and guilty now I am usually a pretty calm person despite my situation and i pay professional regularly But Possible trigger: i am necesseraly suicidal and sorry Should i end psychoterapy ..read more

So on Monday my therapist terminated via email for the second time after two and a half years of twice weekly sessions. He terminated last year but then contacted me to say he believed he had made a mistake. I tentatively went back as I am so deeply attached to him and we were able to get back on track and things seemed really positive. But then we hit another rough patch, I fell back in to a repeated behaviour pattern of getting frustrated with him for not meeting my needs (blinded by paternal transference which I couldn’t see at the time). He encouraged me to express that anger towards him a ..read more