What the Therapist Thinks About You

The New York Times recently ran this article; What the Therapist Thinks About You View Article

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And our therapists have a response!

“Notes! I have to take notes,” I said to Susie Berg, therapist and co-owner of Sound Mind Cafe, when he said she want to bring me on board as a counselor.  As a therapist in private practice for over 25 years, I’ve prided myself on not taking notes, exclaiming that I remember what my clients say and never wanting my notes to be subpoenaed for court.  After all, I’m married to an attorney and he had schooled me well.

No doubt, taking notes was non-negotiable for this position and I couldn’t wait to work there.  So here is the deal I made with myself.  My clients and I will share notes and better yet we will sometimes write them together during our session.  If they want, I’ll give them a copy of the notes and if not, no problem.

Who knew?  Never did I dream it would revolutionize (raise the counseling process to a whole new level) our counseling process.  Clients have an opportunity to clarify their thoughts, summarize what they have said and take in what they have learned both visually and auditory.  We become a team working together.  Many times, we use the last five or ten minutes of a session to pull our thoughts and action plan together and see the overall threads of the session and action plan we have come up with.

With that said, one of my most favorite moments was turning my computer over to my client and asking her to type what she just heard herself say-so I would know the most important points she wanted me to hear.  I was so in tune with what she had written, I couldn’t wait to type my response and ask her to read it aloud to see if she agreed with me.  Yes, it was a match!

 

Evonne Weinhaus, M.A., LCSW, LPC, M.A.T

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“Yes notes” I said to Evonne.  Not only do I take notes, but I give them a copy to take home with them. When I started taking notes for clients it was solely for personal reasons. I am naturally a note taker because it helps me remember what was discussed and definitely organizes my cluttered and chaotic brain.  I thought if it helps me than it would probably do the same for my clients. The positive feedback from my clients receiving the progress note confirmed the notion that a summary of the session helped them identify unproductive patterns in their lives and served as a gentle reminder of the strategies to practice that would create change and spur their personal development and growth.

 

Susie Berg, M.Ed., LPC, NCC

Therapist/Owner