The very first question in therapy is usually about the presenting problem or the chief complaint for which the client comes to therapy, often followed by an exploration of the client’s past experience with therapy, if any, and their expectations of future outcomes of therapy. It happens when you are ready to face the questions you have been avoiding your whole life. Carl Rogers (1961) used to say that the therapist must create an environment where everyone can be themselves.Ĭourage doesn’t happen when you have all the answers. Ideally, the first therapy session should be a form of positive inception so the practitioner can set the stage for future interactions. The outcomes of therapy are heavily dependent on the quality of this relationship (Lambert & Barley, 2001). The first therapy session must focus on relationship building and creating rapport, which are necessary to establish an effective foundation for a practitioner–client relationship, often referred to as the therapeutic alliance. 15 Therapeutic Questions for Group Therapy Discussionsħ Questions Designed for the First Therapy Session.20 Couples Therapy Questions Designed to Improve Relationships.15 Useful Therapy Questions to Ask Yourself.Therapy Intake Questions to Ask Patients.7 Questions Designed for the First Therapy Session. These science-based exercises will explore fundamental aspects of positive psychology including strengths, values, and self-compassion, and will give you the tools to enhance the wellbeing of your clients, students, or employees. For more common therapy questions, see our related post: Classic Therapy Questions Therapists Tend to Ask.īefore you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Positive Psychology Exercises for free. This article surveys different approaches to asking therapeutic questions meant for both practitioners and their clients and gives examples of how the quality of questions we ask can improve our lives. Most of what happens in talk therapy is accomplished through the skillful use of questions, but only second to a lot of active listening. The process also often requires the clinician’s willingness to work diligently to help clients understand what they want, the patience to help them learn to own all aspects of themselves, including contradictory feelings, and the ability to create a safe space to allow for transformation to occur. Progress in a therapeutic relationship cannot be made unless the client feels safe to speak their mind, and it is on the practitioner to create that climate of openness and transparency. I would rather have questions that can’t be answered than answers that can’t be questioned. The ultimate goal of talk therapy is to enable the process of psychological and emotional healing along the continuum from the problematic toward a sense of greater mental wellbeing.Īlthough we often come to therapy with a problem, we also come as people who want to be heard and understood, feel like we matter, wish to learn self-compassion, and want to find partnership in helping us heal and see ourselves and our life situation in a different light. Healing conversations are an art form in peril of being lost to our busy lives.
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