Posted by CareBear04 on March 9, 2004, at 19:52:53
What does everyone think about the idea that people who are young can't get as much out of therapy as people who are older? It has come up several times with my T, and I've been wondering whether I should save my time and money until I'm at least in my 30s or 40s and am more settled and not still trying to get to where I will be long-term. I'm always very quiet in therapy, not by choice, but because I literally can't make myself talk. My T knows that silences are uncomfortable for me, so instead, he just talks and talks. I asked him today whether he always talks that much with his other patients, and he said that he's usually very silent, especially during analysis sessions. He said that he doesn't work much with college-age people, and that someone more specialized with that age group and younger probably would talk more and listen less. Do you think that's true? Why would it be that older patients/clients talk and free associate more, while younger ones have more trouble with it? My T's goal for our work together is to keep me from "getting snagged"-- ie, to keep me out of psychological trouble since I've just recently come back from time off and hospital stays. I'd like for him to have more ambitious goals for me, and I'd like to meet them. I get the feeling my T doesn't really like me and that he's not invested in my care long-term. He took me on because a friend/colleague referred me to him, and he just wants to keep things from getting worse. I think he also thinks that I'm not in the right age range to get much out of therapy with him. Is there a proper age for when therapy becomes effective? What kind of therapy goals are appropriate for someone my age?
Thanks everyone! I'd appreciate your input!
CB
poster:CareBear04
thread:322592
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20040308/msgs/322592.html