Therapy is not only for people who are struggling with a mental health problem. There can be many reasons to start therapy, and all of them are valid. Some clients come with pre-determined issues, whereas some to understand themselves better, to work on their limitations or to improve their to cope with adversity. It’s okay not to ‘have issues’ yet find oneself in therapy. It can be a great space to explore yourself in general and can be a good tool for self-development.

I don’t draw a line with clients when they express humour, I welcome it. When it’s authentic, I spontaneously laugh with the client. When it deflects and distracts from the issue in hand, I gently challenge my clients on it. For me, it’s intuitive, in the moment and relevant to the client’s process. I often initiate the use of humour to break tension in the moment of therapy, to relax the client after a difficult topic, or to help close off the session so that the client/patient can easily transition from the session to the real world. It’s a great tool, but it requires a delicate balance and careful consideration.

To me, everything begins with empathy, genuine concern, and respect for my clients’ experiences and feelings. It’s important for me to recognize and validate their cultural experiences, identities, backgrounds, beliefs, and values. I strive to maintain a non-judgmental attitude in therapy to ensure that my clients feel acknowledged and understood.

I believe that rapport formation is an ongoing process and cannot be established right away. However, I do feel that the first few sessions are important to establish one for a smoother therapeutic alliance. A few techniques I resonate with are breaking the ice with a small non-threatening conversation, using open-ended questions, engaging in active listening and using verbal and non-verbal cues that convey warmth, integrating humour and self-disclosure as when appropriate and being mindful in the sessions.

Many small ways. I eat well, exercise regularly and make sure I get an adequate amount of sleep. Every day I schedule a ‘me time’ slot to help me unwind in ways I wish to. I take regular breaks from work, spend time with my family and friends and take therapy to keep myself in check.

I recently read “Maybe You Should Talk To Someone” by Lori Gottlieb and found it to be a refreshing and enjoyable book. The author shares her journey and experiences as a therapist, highlighting the transformative power of therapy. She delves into the complexities of human motivation and readiness for change, emphasizing that the surface-level issue is often not the real problem to be tackled. Despite being non-fiction, the book reads like fiction, making it an easy and engaging read. While it has a few shortcomings, I would recommend it to anyone curious about therapy.

“What you resist, persists” by Carl Jung. The more you resist something in life, the more you attract it. When you resist, you focus strongly on it with emotions, and what you focus on with any emotion, you bring to yourself. Instead of resisting or ignoring challenging emotions or aspects of ourselves, Jung suggested that we should embrace them, explore them, and integrate them into our conscious awareness as part of the journey towards self-discovery and personal growth.