There is an ongoing discussion in the fields of counselling and psychotherapy about the duration of the therapeutic process, or a counselling episode: how long should someone remain in therapy? Sometimes people say that therapists and clients should be careful that the client does not become dependent on therapy. Another question is how long someone needs to attend therapy in order to achieve particular goals. In some contexts, there is a limit to the number of sessions offer

I noticed something after a recent session while writing my notes. With a long-term client, we talked about their feelings of insecurity about their relationship, triggered by certain behaviour from their partner. Afterwards, while writing my session notes, I found myself using the phrase: "triggered trust issues." It was simply shorthand; I knew this client struggles a lot with trust, and it is something we often talk about. I immediately felt uncomfortable when I noticed wh

Many clients who talk about sexual abuse often struggle with difficult questions: Did I cause this? Is there something about me that attracted the abusive behavior—was I asking for it? Frequently, the women I have worked with worry that their actions somehow invited or permitted the perpetrators to abuse them. Additionally, some of them have questioned whether they are exaggerating. They wonder if, because it wasn’t a full rape, they are making a big deal out of nothing. Once

In my work, I often meet clients who struggle with social anxiety. When we explore it, we usually find it’s connected to self-doubt, lack of confidence, and low self-esteem. Closely tied to this is the deep and painful fear of rejection. To better understand these feelings, we often explore their origins, which are commonly rooted in childhood. I discuss this further in another article about the benefits of talking about childhood experiences in therapy. Here, I want to highl