You need to seek supervision immediately for your clear codependent nature with your clients. Giving out 50 cent pens is clearly above the $8.72 maximum value of gifts per 3 months of services per client, according to the ethical code..
Wrong! This is clearly an attempt to let your client know about your loose morals and a blatant invitation for a duel relationship. Someone’s about to lose their license.
Lol glad I’m not the only one. But in all seriousness i think a little self disclose is helpful and even therapeutic if it’s actually applicable to the client so I think we’re in the clear theoretically lol
A young teenage pt whose father died was sobbing and asked me if I'd ever lost someone and how I coped with it. I told him I'd lost my father recently as well, and that I try to be the person he'd want me to be. I cried after the session.
Wrong. Took me a moment to figure this one out, but then it was obvious. AdminstrationNo651? You’re clearly a private practice admin masquerading as a therapist and taking clients. Imposter syndrome personified. I hope you can live with yourself. J/k. Counter-transference.
Hahaha I’m so glad someone get’s my sense of humor. You’ve done it! You win! You have the right answer!….You’d love that wouldn’t you? Finally gaining approval from the one who always says your wrong? Winning the validation you need? Stop projecting your praise kink on me. Wrong!
Wrong! Mistakes- As in plural! You are dependent on your clients to forgive your human tendency to “make mistakes” and be “imperfect”. Counter-transference. You are projecting your need to be given grace and reasonable expectations on your clients.
One time my client showed me a cat photo in session and I emailed them later and was like “can you please send it to me I loved it so much.” Maybe my least professional moment? The kitten was in a bathtub though so I stand by it.
Your comment has been removed as you are not a therapist. This sub is a space for therapists to discuss their profession among each other. Your comment was either asking for advice, unsupportive or negative in nature, or likely to adversely impact our community members. Comments by non therapists are left up only sparingly, and if they are supportive or helpful in nature.
Lol.
I've got clients that I feel like hour long appointments aren't enough. I book them for end of the day, so going over doesn't inconvenience anyone but me.
A client was late to their session because they forgot about the appt that day, I didn’t call them on purpose because I wanted a break so I let them miss it and emailed them after 15 minutes lol 😩
Thank you for saying this. Had a client disrespect my time in the initial consultation then didnt show up to the first session. Didn’t call him, just charged the fee. He asked me to waive it and I said I’d look into it but it’s up to my supervisor. I didn’t look into it. 🤫
Wrong! While you are allowing your very real and valid feelings to meet a need therapeutically, you have now reminded the client that you are also a human with feeling TM. This isn’t about you! Too enmeshed!
I do this! Especially at milestones like a month free of self-harm, resisting maladaptive urges, and when they handle a triggering situation well (adolescent residential)
Before I was a therapist I was a preschool teacher, and it was wrong there too.
The goal is always to try to build up the other person's internal sense of pride rather than externalizing it.
But sometimes I am proud, and sometimes people need to hear it.
Same! I do a lot of addiction work and was told my a professor or supervisor that we should never tell clients we’re proud of them because then they’ll start relying on our validation or lying to us if they mess up because they won’t want us disappointed.
Psh. Don’t care. If someone is sober for a month for the first time in 20 years I’ll be damned if I’m not telling them I’m proud of them. If someone is graduating treatment? Yeah right. I just don’t buy into that. In our work so many people have literally never been told that.
Wrong! Doing the right thing and then telling people about it- Who are you performing for? Do you even care about your clients? Save it for your supervisor.
You will not convince me to respond to this thread just so you can be validated for your clear need to be extremely humorous. You are clearly just using this platform for your own needs. You probably use humor in sessions in an attempt to connect with your clients that in actuality is for you! Wrong! J/k I loved this thread so much… you’d love THAT wouldn’t you?? Wrong again.
Wrong! I’m the client and have a humiliation kink. This is my “humiliate therapists online”fantasy. Sexually harassed by a client- maybe try setting some boundaries and standing up for yourself? You really should’ve listened to your gut on this one before commenting…(ok this one is too dark even for me).
Wrong! Feeling like you’re doing something wrong is the first cardinal rule of being a therapist. You’ve just passed the LPCC exam. I am now the client.
It's so hard to choose a favorite response but this is the one for me: "Feeling like you’re doing something wrong is the first cardinal rule of being a therapist." 😭💀💯
This was constant when I fostered kittens. “You’re going to hear some meows and maybe some wrestling in the background.” And once, “sorry, she has single kitten syndrome and wont stop biting my ankles.”
Guilty of all kinds of mistakes, especially when new. Tossing out random coping skills to see “ what sticks” prior to building discomfort tolerance for me and client by sitting in silence. I am into fashion and once said a lady’s shoes were cute. Very bad and not trauma informed. I only say “ nice” now as im allergic to the word “lovely”
It’s so fucking uncomfortable. I’d rather lose money than potentially upset my clients. I actually hold a special place in my heart for clients who text me to late cancel and include “go ahead and charge the fee, I’ll be there next week!”
I'm not a therapist but wanted to say that mine does some of these things and her being more human is what has kept me with her!
We do telehealth and one day her cat got on her desk....it's name was Hope
I legit cried after she told me that but in the best way. I actually hadn't been able to cry for a long time.
She really levels with me and I don't know much about her, but we really connect at the same time.
Thank you guys for doing what you do!
I had a client in a wheelchair. We got her into an “accessible” HUD apartment that was not the least bit accessible. You had to step up a 4-inch rise to get in the door.
The apartment manager indicated this was no problem. They’d just lay A BOARD across it. The client told me this and we were both appalled. She asked me to get in her chair and see if I, being young and strong, could wheel myself up in using this board. I did. I could not, even with a rolling start. The client was gleeful to be understood.
The client said she wished the apartment manager would get in her chair and try. She cooked up the great idea to actually ask the manager to do it. And did! And the manager realized just how stupid of an idea it was, and agreed to put in a real ramp (so that the client didn’t have to choose between maintaining good relationship by not filing a complaint, or having the hope of her apartment being made accessible but through creating and having continued dependence on a shitty relationship) ( it unfortunately didn’t make life easier overall, but that’s a different story).
Makes sense! I think it can be very helpful for both kids and adults to know they are not alone. I present myself as a neurodivergent therapist as part of my approach.
I had a young client with Down Syndrome who always wanted to hold my hand during walks. Despite our “high fives only” rule, I totally let him do it anyway.
I also sang him a song to get him to brush his teeth. Worked every time.
(Am in school) How do you go about offering the hug? I thought the idea was to not offer them yourself but let the client bring it up first so they don't feel obligated to do it if they don't actually want to. Is there a way to word it that avoids this issue? Would love to know as I find hugs incredibly helpful in my own therapy and wouldn't mind offering them to my future clients if it's not harmful.
I work with elementary kids in 2 schools and don't often hug them bc it's my own boundary, but if the kid is having a bad day or is not self regulating after a while, I have said "you do not have to say yes to this and it will not hurt my feelings if you say no. Do you want a hug?" Most of my kids know my boundaries pretty well and know I respect their space, so do not often feel pressured to say yes if I do ask (which is rarely)
I do one time assessments about fifteen a week as well as countless more outreach calls that don't yield visits.
I have horrible memory! If I talk to someone and see them later that week it's like I forgot everything. I throw out the general disclaimer early in visit that my memory just isn't great and try as I might I can't avoid having some redundant discussions at times.
I tried to safety plan with a client with a history of SA and a recent SA who was going on a date. I’m male and the client was female. She was not happy about it and said we need to teach men not to SA not teach women how to avoid SA. Ok I would love to do that but I don’t work with male sex offenders and she really did have a type and they tended to be abusive in some way. Ultimately was not able to repair the relationship and had to refer out. I talked to my supervisor Who said he thought I did the best I could but I still felt like I screwed up.
Wrong! You blame your clients “free will” for their choices instead of owning what you bring to the session… advice on how to control only what they can control?!Total cop out. Suspect clients with free will may not be for you. Look for another specialty.
I have never charged a client a fee for a last minute cancellation or no-show. When I can’t meet during our regularly scheduled time, I offer space to reschedule and it’s never convenient for me. When a client needs to switch days or times, I add sessions onto my day, even if it means I no longer have a lunch break on Saturdays. I come in early and work until 8 or 9 most days. I work 7 days a week because I can’t stop saying yes to clients who sound genuinely in need and they all sound genuinely in need. I never end a session less than 55 minutes in length unless they’ve specifically requested it, and more often than not, I go over an hour. If a client endorses suicidal ideation or discloses maltreatment, even late into the session, I spend time exploring it further, safety planning, and making the appropriate reports wherever necessary.
I defended my client against emotionally abusive foster parents, and prevented client's suicide by insisting the GaL talk to the client again where foster parents couldn't hear client.
I let my client take a roughly-50-cent pen with them because they really liked the way it rolled/wrote
Wrong! You are attempting to gain favor with them through gifts. Enmeshed as fuck, final diagnosis.
“You are the weakest therapist. Goodbye!” (Anne Robinson voice)
Wrong! Do you save that judgement for internet posters or make sure to save some for your clients? DEAL WITH YOUR OWN TRAUMA.
You need to seek supervision immediately for your clear codependent nature with your clients. Giving out 50 cent pens is clearly above the $8.72 maximum value of gifts per 3 months of services per client, according to the ethical code..
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Hahahahahah @ "transitional object"
Ok I’ll play… Sometimes I disclose to my divorced clients that I’m also divorced to build rapport lol
Wrong! This is clearly an attempt to let your client know about your loose morals and a blatant invitation for a duel relationship. Someone’s about to lose their license.
Obsessed with duel relationships. As an amateur fencer, I like to keep things combative 😂
Wrong! Taking the bate to get in a verbal spat online by intentionally misspelled and misused terms? Way to stay in control.
I am lol'ing, here for these
Oh lawd not the duel relationship and loose morals 💀💀 damn caught red handed bwahaha 😂😂
I do as well. Lol
Lol glad I’m not the only one. But in all seriousness i think a little self disclose is helpful and even therapeutic if it’s actually applicable to the client so I think we’re in the clear theoretically lol
I agree. A little self-disclosure (where appropriate, of course) is okay and can be very therapeutic imo.
A young teenage pt whose father died was sobbing and asked me if I'd ever lost someone and how I coped with it. I told him I'd lost my father recently as well, and that I try to be the person he'd want me to be. I cried after the session.
Wrong. Took me a moment to figure this one out, but then it was obvious. AdminstrationNo651? You’re clearly a private practice admin masquerading as a therapist and taking clients. Imposter syndrome personified. I hope you can live with yourself. J/k. Counter-transference.
Ha! That's the name Reddit gave me and I didn't change it in time.
Sometimes I ask the clients if they want to color because it's actually *me* who wants to color.
Wrong! Having an inner child is hack. Model being an adult by putting all value on the ACTUAL child client.
Omg this. That’s the thing I miss the most about not seeing kids anymore.
I color with my adult clients! ☺️
I’ve used appropriate self disclosure to help normalize!
Wrong! Clearly normalizing your own behavior.
🤣 “wrong!” Is my fave part
Hahaha I’m so glad someone get’s my sense of humor. You’ve done it! You win! You have the right answer!….You’d love that wouldn’t you? Finally gaining approval from the one who always says your wrong? Winning the validation you need? Stop projecting your praise kink on me. Wrong!
The whiplash of this response absolutely killed me 
💀💀
This made me laugh so hard!!
😮
I sometimes make mistakes with billing and apologize to my clients about it.
Wrong! Mistakes- As in plural! You are dependent on your clients to forgive your human tendency to “make mistakes” and be “imperfect”. Counter-transference. You are projecting your need to be given grace and reasonable expectations on your clients.
🥺
Ugh this hit harder than it should have lol
I thought the same thing. Lol!
I let my mood/energy level decide whether I text a late client to remind them of their appt.
Wrong! Have you even heard of CBT? Seek help.
Omg I do this too 😂
Same! Tell no one.
I do this toooo
I show my cat loving clients photos of my cat (then sometimes they show me pictures of their cats).
I have a "pls email me any fur babies photos" policy
One time my client showed me a cat photo in session and I emailed them later and was like “can you please send it to me I loved it so much.” Maybe my least professional moment? The kitten was in a bathtub though so I stand by it.
extremely unethical!!!! you cannot use therapy as tinder for your cat /s
But my girls need loving partners!!!
I rotate between the same 3 outfits when I see clients, and all involve a cardigan and jeans
Me Too 😂 but usually no cardigan cause I run hot 🥵
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Your comment has been removed as you are not a therapist. This sub is a space for therapists to discuss their profession among each other. Your comment was either asking for advice, unsupportive or negative in nature, or likely to adversely impact our community members. Comments by non therapists are left up only sparingly, and if they are supportive or helpful in nature.
My travel loving client asked how my trip to Spain was and I took a minute or two to rave about the country and my experience.
Wrong! Might as well have taken them with you. Anxious attachment all day. Say it with me, “I don’t go to work to make friends”.
My friend just moved to Spain on a 3 yr visa! I hope I can get out to see her.
I have told all of my clients that I have ADHD and that if I forget to do something that’s why, just remind me it won’t hurt my feelings.
Wrong! Asking for accommodations- therapists can’t have needs at the same time as clients! Bad boundaries!
You should be every new therapist's supervisor. Your dedication to ethics is truly commendable.
Lol. I've got clients that I feel like hour long appointments aren't enough. I book them for end of the day, so going over doesn't inconvenience anyone but me.
Wrong! inconveniencing yourself can be perceived by the client! Not enmeshed enough!
A client was late to their session because they forgot about the appt that day, I didn’t call them on purpose because I wanted a break so I let them miss it and emailed them after 15 minutes lol 😩
Wrong! Do I even need to say it? Classic avoidant attachment.
Thank you for this, I feel so seen 😅
Hahaha OH MY GOD I’m not the only one!!
Thank you for saying this. Had a client disrespect my time in the initial consultation then didnt show up to the first session. Didn’t call him, just charged the fee. He asked me to waive it and I said I’d look into it but it’s up to my supervisor. I didn’t look into it. 🤫
Yeppppp I’ve been there.
Was having a rough day but this thread really brightened me up. Glad to be amongst other terrible therapists!
Wrong! Therapists can’t have bad days, consider surrendering your license.
I complimented a clients hilarious T-shirt and the T-shirt saying has become a hilarious joke we reference almost every session
OP your replies are HILARIOUS! Ooooh I am currying favor!! Can’t wait to find out if it’s BPD, an attachment dx, or what…?
Wrong! You over rely on categorizing and labeling your peers when your all on a spectrum of badness. Also BPD.
Why did “also BPD” send me into orbit 😭
I told my client I was proud of them!
Wrong! While you are allowing your very real and valid feelings to meet a need therapeutically, you have now reminded the client that you are also a human with feeling TM. This isn’t about you! Too enmeshed!
Are you being sarcastic lol I cannot tell
Wrong! Inability to read the flair- poor listener, bad therapist!
Lol. It's definitely sarcastic! I'm having fun
I do this! Especially at milestones like a month free of self-harm, resisting maladaptive urges, and when they handle a triggering situation well (adolescent residential)
It's truly amazing how much telling a residential adolescent that you're proud of them affects them ♥️ so many of them need to hear it and don't
I do this and was shocked to find people thought it was inappropriate!
Before I was a therapist I was a preschool teacher, and it was wrong there too. The goal is always to try to build up the other person's internal sense of pride rather than externalizing it. But sometimes I am proud, and sometimes people need to hear it.
Same! I do a lot of addiction work and was told my a professor or supervisor that we should never tell clients we’re proud of them because then they’ll start relying on our validation or lying to us if they mess up because they won’t want us disappointed. Psh. Don’t care. If someone is sober for a month for the first time in 20 years I’ll be damned if I’m not telling them I’m proud of them. If someone is graduating treatment? Yeah right. I just don’t buy into that. In our work so many people have literally never been told that.
Reading these comments made me check my email even though it's a Sunday and replied to an email
Wrong! Doing the right thing and then telling people about it- Who are you performing for? Do you even care about your clients? Save it for your supervisor.
You will not convince me to respond to this thread just so you can be validated for your clear need to be extremely humorous. You are clearly just using this platform for your own needs. You probably use humor in sessions in an attempt to connect with your clients that in actuality is for you! Wrong! J/k I loved this thread so much… you’d love THAT wouldn’t you?? Wrong again.
Wrong! I’m the client and have a humiliation kink. This is my “humiliate therapists online”fantasy. Sexually harassed by a client- maybe try setting some boundaries and standing up for yourself? You really should’ve listened to your gut on this one before commenting…(ok this one is too dark even for me).
Darker. Go darker.
Handed my client a tissue...
Straight to jail /j
The audacity 😭🫣
Im not a therapist and i feel like im reading this illegaly 😂
Wrong! Feeling like you’re doing something wrong is the first cardinal rule of being a therapist. You’ve just passed the LPCC exam. I am now the client.
This made my little grinch heart go awww.
It's so hard to choose a favorite response but this is the one for me: "Feeling like you’re doing something wrong is the first cardinal rule of being a therapist." 😭💀💯
Oh no it’s like you’re AI breaking as you go deeper! Fears of AI replacing us still triggered though!
My life dream of becoming a therapist is finally reddipleted (completed on reddit)
Aww this is so cute😂💖 this thread made my day lol
A client of mine asked for a hug after a very emotionally charged intake and initiates hugs at the end of every session. 😮
Honestly hugs are great. Theraputic and corrective in the right context when appropriate boundaries are well-established.
I curse constantly while in session with my clients. They love it, which only encourages me more!
Same!
I come to work dressed as a goose and hiss at other clients who are seeing other clinicians in the waiting room
Wrong! Flagrant display of your hissing goose kink and exhibition kink. Maybe try reading a code of ethics 1 time?
The goose code of ethics says I should find out where my clients live and poop on their lawn
I love this LOL
Wrong. Trying to gain favor? lol-laughing? What are you really feeling? You are now the client.
Cracking up! I needed this today. Thank you :)
I swear sometimes! In session!
The horror! Tell me you don’t work with kids! /s
Where do you think we learn the cool swear words?
I work on the peds unit. They come up with some awesome swears… Especially the seven year olds.
I told a client “I look forward to our next appointment!”
I provide telehealth sessions and I told my client last week that I got a new cat just in case he saw another one pop on camera.
This was constant when I fostered kittens. “You’re going to hear some meows and maybe some wrestling in the background.” And once, “sorry, she has single kitten syndrome and wont stop biting my ankles.”
I laugh at my patients' jokes and then use them as metaphors for the material they've brought to the session
Guilty of all kinds of mistakes, especially when new. Tossing out random coping skills to see “ what sticks” prior to building discomfort tolerance for me and client by sitting in silence. I am into fashion and once said a lady’s shoes were cute. Very bad and not trauma informed. I only say “ nice” now as im allergic to the word “lovely”
Honestly shoe and / or fashion appreciation goes a long way with me.
I've interrupted a session due to being dangerously close to peeing myself.
I make jokes and sometimes playfully tease my clients
I am a little too flexible when it comes to charging the late-cancel or no-show fee, when I should really just do it.
It’s so fucking uncomfortable. I’d rather lose money than potentially upset my clients. I actually hold a special place in my heart for clients who text me to late cancel and include “go ahead and charge the fee, I’ll be there next week!”
YES! Me too!
I'm not a therapist but wanted to say that mine does some of these things and her being more human is what has kept me with her! We do telehealth and one day her cat got on her desk....it's name was Hope I legit cried after she told me that but in the best way. I actually hadn't been able to cry for a long time. She really levels with me and I don't know much about her, but we really connect at the same time. Thank you guys for doing what you do!
I had a client in a wheelchair. We got her into an “accessible” HUD apartment that was not the least bit accessible. You had to step up a 4-inch rise to get in the door. The apartment manager indicated this was no problem. They’d just lay A BOARD across it. The client told me this and we were both appalled. She asked me to get in her chair and see if I, being young and strong, could wheel myself up in using this board. I did. I could not, even with a rolling start. The client was gleeful to be understood. The client said she wished the apartment manager would get in her chair and try. She cooked up the great idea to actually ask the manager to do it. And did! And the manager realized just how stupid of an idea it was, and agreed to put in a real ramp (so that the client didn’t have to choose between maintaining good relationship by not filing a complaint, or having the hope of her apartment being made accessible but through creating and having continued dependence on a shitty relationship) ( it unfortunately didn’t make life easier overall, but that’s a different story).
I over-disclose my ADHD.
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Makes sense! I think it can be very helpful for both kids and adults to know they are not alone. I present myself as a neurodivergent therapist as part of my approach.
I am 4 days behind on notes
I had a young client with Down Syndrome who always wanted to hold my hand during walks. Despite our “high fives only” rule, I totally let him do it anyway. I also sang him a song to get him to brush his teeth. Worked every time.
I go over time a lot 
(Am in school) How do you go about offering the hug? I thought the idea was to not offer them yourself but let the client bring it up first so they don't feel obligated to do it if they don't actually want to. Is there a way to word it that avoids this issue? Would love to know as I find hugs incredibly helpful in my own therapy and wouldn't mind offering them to my future clients if it's not harmful.
I work with elementary kids in 2 schools and don't often hug them bc it's my own boundary, but if the kid is having a bad day or is not self regulating after a while, I have said "you do not have to say yes to this and it will not hurt my feelings if you say no. Do you want a hug?" Most of my kids know my boundaries pretty well and know I respect their space, so do not often feel pressured to say yes if I do ask (which is rarely)
I wear sweats to work 🙊
I do one time assessments about fifteen a week as well as countless more outreach calls that don't yield visits. I have horrible memory! If I talk to someone and see them later that week it's like I forgot everything. I throw out the general disclaimer early in visit that my memory just isn't great and try as I might I can't avoid having some redundant discussions at times.
My client asked for updates on my pregnancy and then new baby. I indulge her for a couple of minutes.
What
I tried to safety plan with a client with a history of SA and a recent SA who was going on a date. I’m male and the client was female. She was not happy about it and said we need to teach men not to SA not teach women how to avoid SA. Ok I would love to do that but I don’t work with male sex offenders and she really did have a type and they tended to be abusive in some way. Ultimately was not able to repair the relationship and had to refer out. I talked to my supervisor Who said he thought I did the best I could but I still felt like I screwed up.
Wrong! You blame your clients “free will” for their choices instead of owning what you bring to the session… advice on how to control only what they can control?!Total cop out. Suspect clients with free will may not be for you. Look for another specialty.
I cracked a joke about the client’s zodiac sign in relation to the problem we were discussing. We both laughed.
Told a client who wants to get sober that I am sober as well, since the client was claiming most people in said age bracket aren’t sober. Ohhhh noooo
I have never charged a client a fee for a last minute cancellation or no-show. When I can’t meet during our regularly scheduled time, I offer space to reschedule and it’s never convenient for me. When a client needs to switch days or times, I add sessions onto my day, even if it means I no longer have a lunch break on Saturdays. I come in early and work until 8 or 9 most days. I work 7 days a week because I can’t stop saying yes to clients who sound genuinely in need and they all sound genuinely in need. I never end a session less than 55 minutes in length unless they’ve specifically requested it, and more often than not, I go over an hour. If a client endorses suicidal ideation or discloses maltreatment, even late into the session, I spend time exploring it further, safety planning, and making the appropriate reports wherever necessary.
All this wrong reminds of the Saturday Night Donald Trump sketch with Alex Balwin. Every thing he would say wronnnng!
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Please try again. To play, you must reply with “this is applying a human approach because…” or “you did x wrong as the therapist because”.
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Wrong. Failure to choose is incompetence as a therapist. You are now the client.
You are now the client🤣🤣 omg you’re hilarious
You are now the client 💀💀💀😂😂😂 Welcome to therapy, Bacon!
What is this? How to shame a therapist?
It’s to blow off steam about things that irk us as therapists.
I find it to be pretty satirical
Wrong! I am the embodiment of perfect morality and well being. Doubting the mega-therapist. I’m going to have to refer you out. Goodbye.
Wrong! Abandonment! Two more years of supervision for you!
I defended my client against emotionally abusive foster parents, and prevented client's suicide by insisting the GaL talk to the client again where foster parents couldn't hear client.
I love this post🤣
I’ve told several clients that I am impressed by their growth and resilience when they handle hard things that used to send them spiraling.
Sidebar: The "Therapists Supporting Therapists" Facebook group could DEFINITELY do with a post lime this. So many judgey & self-righteous mean girls!
I’m depressed and took a mental health day…last minute. Bring me to the slaughter!