How Do We Psychologists View Our Patients?
Most people looking for an appointment do so driven by internal needs for improvement, promoted by moments of instability. Patients who come to therapy usually do this when they are close to losing control, to hitting rock bottom. That’s when psychologists realize the great strength and value of these people, who instead of getting lost in excuses, face themselves.
Despite many clichés and society’s ignorance of the roles of psychologists, patients face therapy seeing it as an opportunity to realign their lives. They will have to learn to unlearn the behaviors, habits, and thoughts that got them there.
I want you to know that patients who come for an appointment are very brave and have a great sense of responsibility to themselves, they are not “crazy” – as a society full of ignorance and fear strives to see them.
We psychologists don’t give advice – we do therapy
If you need advice, go to your best friend, your partner or someone in your family, they know you better than anyone else. But if you need someone to explain your behavior and why you feel that way, choosing the appropriate techniques and treatment for your personal characteristics, then you should see a psychologist.
We are very aware of how difficult it is to make the decision to make an appointment in a psychological office. For this reason, we always try to give as much information as possible from the beginning, and we try to let the person know exactly what we are working on and why during therapy.
It is very gratifying for psychologists when they are appreciated after having worked through many thoughts and emotions that have caused so much harm to the person – who is now able to have control over those feelings. When this happens, the patient feels much better, starts doing more activities, focuses on problematic situations from another perspective, and is able to filter their thoughts to see them in a much more objective way.
We are convinced that many people would take the first step of asking for psychological help if they saw the results that can be obtained, both on a personal and on a social level.
We learn from our patients
Psychotherapy is an experimental and dialogue process, where the therapist and patient influence each other, with mutual learning and transformation. Not only does the patient change, learn and transform, but therapists too, to a greater or lesser extent.
As any good teacher would, our patients teach us by their example. It is necessary to clarify what it means for us that our patients teach us. In fact, when we tell a patient how much we admire him for his courage or his decision, a puzzled and haunted look comes to him, as if he doesn’t believe he’s teaching us things too.
All, without distinction, patients and therapists, are exposed to suffering and disappointment, while on the other hand we share a deep yearning to improve our sense of well-being, enjoying something greater, joy and peace. Our patients do not come to consultations to teach us something explicitly, but they do so implicitly, with their lucidity, their commitment to their own processes and their ability to make the necessary decisions.
