What questions does the psychotherapist ask

If you decide to seek help from a psychotherapist or psychologist and this is your first experience, then you may be afraid that he will ask some indecent or unpleasant questions.  Someone is afraid to go to a psychotherapist because “he asks questions.”

Of course, the psychotherapist can ask questions, or he can simply listen to you carefully. It is difficult to list a complete list of questions, especially since it is not clear what questions they will ask you, because each case and situation is individual.

In any case, if there are topics or questions that you do not want to discuss, you can directly tell the psychotherapist about this during the initial conversation. The specialist will always respect your right not to answer questions and will not interrogate you.

When you are already thinking about going to a psychotherapist, the question arises: what will they ask me about? What should I be prepared for at a meeting with a psychotherapist (or psychologist).

Surely the answer to this question will help you reduce anxiety and worries about “how everything will go”, and better understand what interests the psychologist in the first place.

Of course, there are some people who want to “outplay” the psychotherapist, to prove to him that he won’t help anyway.

And of course, it is important to know these questions in order to use time at the meeting more rationally, so that it passes effectively, and not in long, thoughtful pauses. You can think about the most important questions that a psychotherapist or psychologist will probably ask you at home.

The most important question the psychotherapist will ask is: “What is your request?” Actually, clarifying the request - what you want to get as a result of consultations is the most important subject of conversation.  Therefore, the request must be more or less formalized even before meeting with the psychotherapist. Of course, as a rule, a clear request cannot be obtained before the meeting, but if you have at least a rough understanding of what you want, this greatly saves time in figuring it out, which means both your money and effort.

The psychotherapist’s task is to clarify with what expectations, fantasies and baggage the client came to therapy.

Below are typical questions you will hear at a meeting with a psychotherapist

1.. What did you come with?

Answer options that clients usually give

- I want to solve a situation that bothers me

- I want to cope with difficult feelings (loss of a loved one, fears, panic attacks, anxiety)

- I want to learn to behave differently (in relationships and at work)

2. Why did you decide to seek help now?

Answers I hear from clients:

- I’m fed up, I’m already desperate to solve the problem on my own.

- realized that the help of a psychotherapist is normal

- the situation has changed

- got advice from friends and relatives on this topic.

3. Why did you decide to contact me?

This question helps to understand the client's needs. What guided him when choosing a specialist.

This way the psychotherapist can understand how important the specialist’s age and gender are.

Carefully study the specialist’s website and the list of topics with which he works.  How important is the specialist’s fame, publications, reviews from other clients, or personality traits?

“It seemed to me that you were very understanding”, “I think you are very wise”, “I saw the photo and realized that you would help me”, “I liked your open look, I realized that I could trust you”,< /p>

“I like your sense of humor in your posts on Facebook, it seems that we will find a common language”, “my friend recommended you to me.”

This is how the psychotherapist understands the client’s projections (“for me, a psychotherapist should be like this”) and his needs for safety, comfort, and achievement.

4. How did you deal with this problem before contacting me?

It is very important for a psychotherapist to understand what the client’s experience was, what exactly worked or did not work in his attempts to solve the problem earlier.

Even the most experienced specialist will never be able to replace the client’s experience with his knowledge. Besides this, it shows

how ready the client is to fight and act to solve his problem.

It may turn out that the client was already close to solving his problem, but did not complete the solution. And if the experience of the previous request for help was unsuccessful, find out what exactly went wrong. Problem solving methods can provide insight into how the client builds relationships with others.  Does he devalue his experience, consider it the only correct one, look for new solutions, and so on.

When preparing to answer these questions, it is important to think about what I myself have done to solve the problem, what I am avoiding, and to reflect on my experience of previous visits to specialists (if any) or loved ones. What answers and insights about your situation have you already received, and what have you done in this regard?  What are your expectations from the work, what results would you like to get? What is significant in therapeutic work.

5. Autobiographical and other questions

In addition to the introductory questions that I have already listed. There may be questions about what sensations and feelings various events evoke in you, what kind of mood you usually have during the day. What physical sensations accompany these feelings (sadness, resentment, guilt, irritation). Do you have problems falling asleep, staying asleep, or appetite?

There may be a number of autobiographical questions that clarify heredity (mental illness in the family, suicidal behavior, addictions). What family were you born into? Who raised you? Did you go to kindergarten, what were your relationships like at school? Were there any friends? Falling in love? What happened at the institute, relationships during your student years? How did you adapt to teams at work?

There may be clarifying relationships about love and crushes throughout life: where it began, how the relationship ended. Questions about hobbies, interests and interests.

Questions help to understand you better; the more open you are, the more objective the specialist will gather a picture and develop a more accurate treatment strategy.

If any questions bother you, you can tell your therapist about it. Your response will be helpful in improving your understanding and your relationship with your therapist. And the quality of therapy and, in many respects, its success depend on these relationships.

Despite the fact that a lot depends on your openness, the speed with which you open up to a specialist depends on you. You control it and if you voiced that you are not yet ready for some topics or questions, the psychotherapist will always respect your pace of work and will not insist.

If you decide to contact me for help, I will be happy to help as a psychotherapist online or in person in Kyiv. To make an appointment with me, click the button below.

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