Monday, 17 October 2011

On spilling my guts.

If you've ever been to a psychologist (and if that psychologist was any good), you would've experienced this very unique relationship where you are expected to spill your guts out, whilst the shrink sits there, giving you encouraging nods and the occasional "unh unh".

You may get the odd bit of information out of them, but mostly (again if they are any good) it's pretty much a one way verbal vomit from you (or not if you are being difficult :)).

I know, because I'm a psychologist. There are a whole heap of very good reasons why we do that, and some day I might go into it. But that's not why we're here.

We are here because I've decided to turn the tables around. Here, I spill my guts. All of it. About what us psychologists REALLY think about you, about what we don't want you to know, about what we want you to think, about what works and what doesn't, and about what we are really thinking when we say "you're doing so well!".

I should put a disclaimer here about the fact that I cannot talk for all the psychologists out there and no doubt some of them will have something to say about my thoughts but i can pretty much guarantee that some (read most) of my colleagues will be quietly nodding and even giving me the occasional "unh unh".

Why am i doing this you ask? Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to sit across from you, listening to your stories and not be able to say "I know!! My husband drives me nuts too!!" or "you did what????". Instead, we sit there, nodding and unh unhing.

Well no more!! And if no one wants to read what I have to say, that's quite alright. I'll feel so much better anyway for having spilt my guts.