If you haven’t already mentioned issues like physical health, substance use, work history/satisfaction with work or significant relationships in your life, I will want to know a little bit about those areas. The reason for this is that I consider our first session an “evaluation”, meaning we get a 360 degree view of your life and your goals. I will ask about additional things that may or may not pertain to you. Some therapists have you fill paperwork out at your first session, but I prefer to have this all finished up front so we can delve into the important task of building our relationship. I will also ask you to elaborate on topics we discussed during our phone consultation (I always talk to potential clients by phone before scheduling a first appointment to make sure we might be a good fit). I will have looked at this information by the time you come in and will be able to ask more details about the things you have written there. The reason for that is that I’d rather use the time we have to fill in details rather than to share basics. My intake paperwork covers the major basic questions (demographics, history and what’s bringing you in, generally speaking). So I will make sure a new client has a comfortable seat, has found my office without too much stress, has a place to put their things and is able to settle in. Because it’s important to feel like you’re easing your way in to a conversation with a stranger about your “big things”. I usually start an initial session off by greeting a new client, asking about their day, just general nice person small talk. I will tell you what happens in my office when someone first comes in. Obviously I can’t speak for every therapist in the world, but I know lots of them and there are some common elements to first therapy sessions. What happens at a first counseling appointment So let’s identify some common elements of a first counseling session, talk about ways of engaging most effectively at your first therapy session and identify a few ways to calm yourself so that your session can be as open, clear and enjoyable (yes, therapy can be enjoyable!) as possible. It is anxiety provoking enough to think about facing your struggles and starting to openly talk about them with another human being. Although therapy is different from having a medical procedure done (in lots of important ways), there is no reason for the first session to be so mysterious. Think about it- if you were undergoing a blood draw for the first time and you had no idea what was going to happen, how nervous would you be? Your mind would make up all kinds of stories about what was coming to fill in the blanks. Similar to anticipating a medical procedure, just getting a mental picture of what’s to come can really increase confidence and bring the anxiety monster down to size. Over the years, I’ve learned that helping clients understand what is going to happen during their first appointment (often called the “intake session”) can be greatly helpful in putting them at ease and starting our relationship off on a warm and welcoming note. But now the date is approaching and you are wondering how it will be when you actually sit down with this professional to begin tackling your issues. You’ve already pressed through the knot in your stomach by finally making that call after days, weeks- or maybe months - wondering if a professional might be able to help you make more progress than you’ve been able to make on your own. You’ve contacted a therapist and your first appointment is on the calendar.
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