Becoming a therapist is certainly not for the faint of heart. Scrutinizing every puzzling statement a patient makes is not as easy as it sounds.
But a therapist may reveal more than just your words and the words you use to glean insight about who you are and what you're going through. It turned out that I couldn't do it.
Counselors shared 5 things therapists notice during sessions and 5 things therapists may reveal about you.
If you've ever been to therapy, you know that it can sometimes seem downright mysterious. It often seems like a therapist can magically read between the lines of your words and discover hidden meanings and lessons you were unaware of, but somehow everything makes perfect sense. Masu.
Of course, extensive training in psychology and how the brain actually works is obviously helpful. (It's not at all surprising that they know more about this than those of us with English degrees and such!)
But as a certified therapist and TikToker @Therapy Point Mental health professionals glean more context from therapy sessions by focusing on simple, subtle cues that might not seem to make much sense, a recent video reveals. I found out that it can be done.
1. The therapist will focus on where and how you sit, including how you use cushions.
“Therapists are always interested in where you sit on the couch and how you position your pillows,” he said. “It's subtle, but the therapist can really get to know your comfort level during the therapy session.”
For example, one commenter reported that she held one of her therapist's couch pillows in front of her during a session. “About a year later, my therapist said we were doing exposure therapy and stole my pillow shield (lol).”
Another person said they had “fidget fibers” sticking out of their couch, although it didn't last long. “He called it off the next session,” the person wrote.
2. The therapist will be aware of your punctuality and will recognize whether you are early, on time, or late.
She says, “Therapists pay attention to whether you arrive on time for your sessions or if you're consistently late.''The reason for this is that “What tends to happen during a therapy session is “It tends to happen outside of sessions.”
Basically, he said, people who are regularly late to therapy sessions are probably not doing well in other areas of their lives as well. Or, as another therapist pointed out in a comment, if time is always early, it could be a sign of anxiety. These are all useful contexts when dealing with the problem.
3. The therapist notices your body language.
The TikToker said the therapist “carefully observes” your body language, looking for clues to how you're feeling. “This means we pay close attention to whether you cross your arms, cross your legs, or start fidgeting. We pay close attention to whether you cross your arms, cross your legs, or start fidgeting. “I notice everything,” he said.
why? There are also body language experts for the same reason. ”[It] “It will give you valuable information to access your thoughts and feelings,” he said.
4. The therapist notices the tone of your voice.
The tone of your voice can give clues to your mood and current state of mind. “We notice when your voice gets high-pitched, because it can indicate that you've been emotional, or that it's really important to you,” the therapist said. .
On the other hand, if your voice becomes quieter, “it could be a sign that you're embarrassed to share or that you're closed-minded.”
5. The therapist notices your eye contact.
Eye contact is very obvious. We innately use it to find out everything from whether someone is attracted to us to whether they are cheating on us. And it turned out to be just as much, if not more, a revelation for therapists.
“The amount of eye contact you make during a session may reflect the comfort you feel with yourself, your relationship and trust with your therapist, and your level of interest in the session,” says the therapist. Ta. Among many other things. ”
Avoiding eye contact is one of our primary defense mechanisms, and this is clearly evident in the context of therapy and is one of the reasons why so many therapists are so eager to make eye contact with their patients. One.
Of course, knowing all the subtle things your therapist notices about you may make you feel a little anxious. If that's you, do what one commenter is about to do. “During the session, I'm going to stand in the corner and start waving my hands in the air. See what happens.”
here we go! Let your therapist guess and earn that co-pay!
John Sundholm is a news and entertainment writer covering topics related to pop culture, social justice, and the good of humanity.