Table of Contents
What are the key elements of the therapeutic alliance?
According to the author, the therapeutic alliance consists of three essential elements: agreement on the goals of the treatment, agreement on the tasks, and the development of a personal bond made up of reciprocal positive feelings.
How can I be a better therapy client?
Here are 6 key things:
- Successful clients choose to trust their therapist.
- Successful clients are willing to tolerate short-term discomfort.
- Successful clients are willing to do things that feel counterintuitive or even illogical.
- Successful clients accept that they will have to make sacrifices and take risks to get better.
Why do clients stop going to therapy?
Therapist anxiety and experience. Clients are more likely to discontinue therapy when a therapist is new or unskilled. New therapists may feel anxious in therapy, and those feelings can affect their interactions with clients, making it more difficult for the client to share. Some therapists do not know how to help clients open up.
Do therapists have a duty to their clients?
Just as a surgeon has a duty to operate regardless of the patient’s ideology, moral character, wealth, or ethnicity, so must a therapist accept, listen, and seek to understand, respond appropriately to, and honor the humanity of every client, regardless of how much the therapist “likes” or approves of the individual.
Are therapists a good match for all clients?
Not all therapists are a good match for all clients. While therapists and their clients do not have to share the same personality or values, they must be able to establish a shared baseline. When the therapist and client have radically different worldviews or approaches, there may be a mismatch.
Is it OK to judge a client in therapy?
Never judge the client. It’s nearly impossible to go through life without judging people. Judgment, however, is therapy’s death knell. While all therapists strive to be nonjudgmental, clients can pick up on the slightest hint of judgment.