Psychotherapy is a profession I love. I would not be motivated to write about it were it not for my deep respect for the theories, philosophies, practitioners and clients. As I write about harm in therapy and its impact on clients I am conscious of the potential for my position to be misinterpreted as anti-therapy, or anti-therapist. I think this would be a terrible shame.
My desire to become part of a debate around harm in therapy is motivated entirely by my love for the therapeutic process. I want this profession to be the best it can be, and ultimately I want clients to get the best from their therapy.
So when I think about clients who have had difficulties in previous therapy, I am seeing a gap in training; I am seeing a gap in the conversation and that’s where my interest lies.
Yes, conversations around avoiding harm are important, and I’ll continue to be part of that debate, but I also want to pay attention to how we work with clients who experience harm, and how we meet their needs, so they do not feel abandoned by therapy; I feel like that’s our collective responsibility. This isn’t about choosing a camp or polarising a debate, it’s about looking at client needs and working towards developing our profession. That’s what I really want to be a part of.
A Client First 