Psykolog skriver om egne pasienterfaringer

Det var interessant å lese en artikkel av en psykolog som selv har vært pasient, både i institusjonspsykiatrien, hvor hun som ung fikk en rekke ødeleggende sjokkbehandlinger, og i mange år med psykoterapi.

Looking back, I can say that the best psychotherapists understood their work as a collaboration with each patient. They weren't afraid to journey together through an unknown, and possibly dangerous, land. Subjectively, when I felt understood and respected, that is, taken seriously, I was grateful. In return, I gave those doctors or nurses enormous respect. 

Terapeutene hennes steppet minst én gang ut av den forventede terapeutrollen. Jeg likte terapeuten som brakte med sjampanje til timen:

With our champagne celebration, I felt he had welcomed me into a community distinct from mental hospitals, his own adult community. It made sense for me to expect more for myself.

Om å være både pasient og terapeut sier hun:

I was aware of the irony in my listening to patients who used the same terms, phrases, and even the same sentences as those I used with my own therapist, imploring me to understand their terror, apologizing for their desperation and  their need for me to keep them safe. Sometimes they pushed forward when I remained stuck in my own therapy. They gave me courage when I was paralyzed with fear.

Hun lærte mye om makt i terapirommet gjennom egne pasienterfaringer:

[My] experiences made me particularly aware of the power we wield as psychotherapists. Our words and our behavior nourish, but they also can wound. If we remember what's at stake in a clinical encounter, we may pay better attention to ourselves and to the unique individual in our care.

Let's talk: a narrative of mental illness, recovery, and the psychotherapist's personal treatment