Effective Communication in Therapy

We spend day in and day out communicating in many different ways. At times, communication is done through verbal responses and expressions. Other times, we communicate through gestures or body language. We are basically in a state of constant communication in varying ways. Some situations such as therapy, can leave one feeling very exposed and vulnerable which can inhibit one’s ability to communicate effectively. Therapists are trained to watch for many ways their client may communicate their feelings and pick up on subtle gestures or cues in order to understand their client’s feelings and better respond to them. Communication between a therapist and their client is most effective with a strong relationship. This type of relationship rests heavily on trust, consistency, and the connection between the therapist and client.

Therapist/Client Connection

The connection between a therapist and their client has a huge impact on the outcome of the actual therapy process but even more so, their connection serves as a starting point in effective communication. Without a healthy connection, communication may be forced, uncomfortable, or seriously lacking. Considering the process of therapy is for an individual to be able to work through issues, effective communication is a must for the process to work.

When considering the connection between a therapist and client, many factors come into play as to how well the connection will be. Sometimes, personalities can be too different and cause distance in the relationship. Other times, the connection is instant and perfect. Some people seeking counseling may have to try several therapists before finding the one that feels most comfortable for them. Each therapist is different based on their own personalities and training. Finding the one that works best for you is crucial to developing the best connection and relationship.

Once a client begins to get to know their therapist, they learn the therapists communication style and their own response style. This process of getting to know one another deepens the connection. As time moves on and the relationship grows, this connection allows the communication to become deeper which is often needed for the therapeutic process.

Therapist/Client Consistency

Consistency is a huge factor in effective communication between a therapist and client. Consistency could include scheduling, availability, expected responses, emotional responses, and more. There are a variety of reasons one may seek out counseling and often times this can involve things such as anxiety or other conditions that are heavily disrupted by inconsistency. Considering a client’s history and reasons for seeking therapy are all the more reason to keep the therapeutic environment and relationship very consistent.

Typically, scheduling for a client is fairly consistent. Most therapists will schedule a client weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly depending on their needs at the time. This regular schedule helps to ease any anxiety and allows the consistency needed to develop the relationship and lead to better communication. Disruptions in scheduling can have an extremely negative impact on the client’s feelings and communication. An example of the necessity of consistency could be a therapist taking time off for vacation. A client who is used to seeing their therapist weekly depends heavily on those appointments, especially if there are working through difficult issues. The time between sessions is spent pondering and thinking over the previous session as well as preparing for what they’ll discuss at their next session. The consistency in a regular schedule helps ease those in between times and lesson the anxiety one may feel anticipating their next session. When a disruption arises, one may be left feeling confused, forgotten, abandoned, unwanted, or a number of other feelings. While these may seem irrational, for one who depends on the consistency of their therapist and these appointments, it can be a huge factor in their ability to communicate. After a disruption like this, it could take several weeks or months for one to get back to the place of comfort they were in prior to the disruption.

Therapist/Client Trust

Therapist deal with a range of issues, but most often, these are incredibly personal and the relationship between the therapist and client becomes quite intimate on an emotional level. Effective communication is a must for both parties for the process to be helpful and without trust, the communication is severely hindered. Trust is one of the most crucial aspects of the therapy relationship. Trust with a therapist is an absolute necessity when it comes to a client being able to share the intimate details of their struggles. Without trust, communication may be severely hindered or even non-existent.

A therapist is bound by many legal and moral ethics as far as privacy and trust goes. A good therapist honors their clients privacy and goes above and beyond to create a safe, comfortable and trusting environment. Many clients seeking therapy come from histories where trust has been at best, shattered. That is all the more reason for the therapist to provide the most trusting environment possible.

The trust between the therapist and client is not instant. It takes time to build this trust. As time goes by and the client is able to see the therapist’s responses to different things, their trust in the therapist grows. As mentioned above, consistency from the therapist is one of the areas that help with developing the trust a client feels with their therapist. The connection they share also plays a huge part in this trust. When one feels a closer connection, they are more willing to open and up and share the more intimate parts of their lives.

In conclusion, the therapist’s job is to provide an environment where communication can be highly effective. Communication is how the process of therapy works. Without a good connection, consistency, and trust, one will most likely not have a successful experience with therapy or see the possibly benefits of a healthy therapeutic process. But with the right therapist, all of these can be achieved and lead to a deeper level of communication, progress in therapy, and ultimately, healing from whatever issues led them to therapy to begin with.

Article/Link #5

The article linked below, written by Richard A. Singer Jr., M.A., CAC, discusses several different studies that address the significance of the therapeutic relationship. The findings continue to support that the relationship continues to be the foundation of successful therapy.

"The therapeutic relationship forms the foundation for treatment as well as large part of successful outcome. Without the helping relationship being the number one priority in the treatment process, clinicians are doing a great disservice to clients as well as to the field of therapy as a whole." - Singer

http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/Singer7.html

Article/Link #4

Below is the link to an article on Psychology Today written by Laurie Meyers. In this article, Meyers discusses some relevant findings by Psychotherapist Carl Rogers and the fact that many studies since then support Rogers same findings, "a strong therapeutic alliance was more closely correlated with positive client outcomes than any specific treatment interventions."  

Meyers also quotes therapist Jeffrey Kottler who says, "[Obviously] in many cases, clients need a lot more than feeling understood or enjoying the benefits of being in a respectful, facilitative alliance,” he adds. “Yet without the foundation of a constructive relationship, anything else that we do isn’t going to work very well or last very long.” 

http://ct.counseling.org/2014/08/connecting-with-clients/

Article/Link #3

For another view on the client-therapist relationship, here is a link that discusses the process and results of a study done based on the similarities between the client-therapist and how that affects the therapeutic process and relationship.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3330484/

This article, written by Steven M. Herman, PhD., details the process of matching similarities between the client and therapist in order to provide the best outcome in therapy. Dr. Herman states that the results "suggest that therapist–client similarity would be most advantageous for treatment outcome and client satisfaction."

It's an interesting thought. In the client-therapist relationship there has to be a comfort level for the client to be able to open up and respond to the treatment. With that, having some similarities or commonalities would be a big factor in providing that level of comfort.

Article/Link #2

In the link below, Ellen McGrath from Psychology Today, writes about the significance of the relationship between therapist and client.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200308/between-client-and-therapist

"A solid patient-therapist relationship is a crucible of wellness. And the path out of depression begins with a compatible therapist." - Ellen McGrath

In this article, McGrath focuses mainly on a client with depression as to their reason for being in therapy. A couple key points mentioned by McGrath are:

"One of the most helpful elements in recovery is the quality of the relationship with the therapy professional and how consistent and trustworthy the connection remains between client and therapist."

"The patient-therapist relationship is generally representative of the nature of all other relationships you have, and so learning to resolve problems while maintaining connection provides skills that are widely applicable. To experience conflict with a therapist and learn to resolve it is often the path out of depression."

Article/Link #1

This video details information about therapy but in this video, Dr. John C. Norcross, PhD., also discusses the significance of the therapist/client relationship.

Dr. Norcross mentions a very controlled, well funded study with results that overwhelmingly report the biggest help factor in therapy is the relationship between therapist and client. This by far surpassed other factors such as medication, types of treatment, and so on. 

https://psychalivemedia.pivotshare.com/media/achieving-lasting-change-an-interview-with-dr.-john-norcross/21574

From the website, "John C. Norcross, PhD, is an internationally recognized expert on behavioral change, as well as a Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Scranton and an Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at SUNY Upstate Medical University. Dr. Norcross specializes in psychotherapy, clinical training and behavioral change. Dr. Norcross has authored over 300 publications and edited or co-written 22 professional books, including his acclaimed self-help book Changeology."

Topic

My blog topic for this project is communication in a therapy/client setting.

The therapist/client relationship is unlike most relationships. There are boundaries that prevent the relationship from being a friendship, however, there is an openness, vulnerability, and closeness that makes the relationship, at times, feel closer than any other relationship. A client most often will share intimate parts of their lives with their therapist. Their therapist may be the only one they share these things with. The therapist has to remain objective, therefore, even if he or she would like to have a deeper relationship such as a friendship, or sees that he/she has a great deal in common with the client, he/she must still stick to ethical boundaries in order to remain objective. This henders the therapist from being able to share much personal information about themselves. At the same time, the reservedness of the therapist can cause a client to fear opening up. It's a very unique relationship and often times the therapeutic relationship itself can stir up issues that have to be addressed between therapist and client.

Introduction

I'm Jen. I'm a full-time student doing this blog for a computer class. I am 38, a wife and mother to three kids. I have a photography business, teach Bible studies, and am a writer and blogger. I also enjoy drawing and other artsy kinds of things.  I am in my last semester in our community college and hope to transfer in the fall and major in English with a minor in Secondary Education. Eventually, I think I may go on for a Master's in Counseling or pursue a writing career.