Posted by seldomseen on August 7, 2009, at 12:20:02
In reply to The Other Side of the Relationship, posted by Daisym on August 7, 2009, at 1:25:33
I know that I have had an effect on my therapist - though potentially not all bad. I know he thinks about me outside of sessions, he's told me and he brings me things - like newspaper articles about tigers, or, once when he was abroad, he brought me a little journal from the Freud museum. It wasn't much, but I do treasure it.
He is also absolutely intrigued by my fascination with blood (it's not as bad as you think, I'm a benign hematology researcher) and had consulted with me on the effect of SSRIs on blood clotting. He was very nice about it, let the session go over so I wouldn't have to pay him for my expert opinion. To be fair, though, I *was* shortchanged - I bill out at 300+ an hour ;).
He's very open about his countertransference and has expressed the times where he has notably felt a special tenderness for me and the like. He has also expressed his frustration - pointedly so.
Not that my story is any worse than anyone's here, but I do worry about the sadness that must also touch him about certain things in my life, because they *are* sad. I guess he has heard so many stories that he has learned to carry them. I truly think he believes he can help (which he can) and that must alleviate some of the burden
Sort of like "yes this happened, but I can do something about it" That would be a powerful insulator in my opinion.
Seldom
poster:seldomseen
thread:910727
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20090730/msgs/910774.html