The Factors Contributing to "Good" and "Bad"
Psychotherapy for Sex Addiction
In psychoanalysis, transference and counter-transference in Sessions, as Rated by Independent Observers transference reactions are ultimately dealt with in other forms of psychotherapy, interpretations of these processes might be less important than dealing with the pressing problems in the client's day-to-day life.
This does not mean that transference and counter-transference
do not occur or that the therapist doesn't think they are
important. It means that the therapist has decided to
give the highest priority to the problems that the client
feels are most crucial around the sex addiction.
In some cases psychotherapists that work with infidelity or sex addiction
wish that they could explore certain aspects of the
client's thinking but conclude that the client isn't ready
to engage in such exploration.
In the initial stages of psychotherapy, tentative answers
• Why did the client come to me?
• What are the pressing problems from the point of
View of me?
• What underlying problems is the client not aware on
• Will it be possible to help the client explore these underlying
problems?
Factors Contributing to "Poor" Sessions:
1. There were long silences.
2. The therapist used humor in discussing topics.
Factors Contributing to "Good" Sessions:
1. The patient was encouraged to express thoughts and
feelings.
2. The meaning of the patient's behavior was discussed.
3. The patient's avoidance of painful material was discussed.
4. The patients responsibility for what went on in the
session was discussed.
The answers to these questions help the therapist
set objectives and decide on tactics for later stages of
therapy. Clients often feel that as a result of their therapy
experience they are able to see themselves, their past
lives, and the people in their lives in a more objective
light. Identifying the subjective reactions of both clients
and therapists to what goes on in therapy sessions is an
important research task.
Illustrative of how this task can be approached is
the study of "good" and "poor" psychotherapy sessions,
sessions that either the therapist or the client or both
feel were particularly valuable. For example, Hoyt and
others had psychotherapists and independent
observers rate the quality of therapy sessions. The ratings
were then related to what had gone on in the sessions.
One finding was that therapists and independent
observers often disagreed about the relationship between
specific occurrences in the sessions and their degree
of "goodness" or "badness." Therapists seemed to
believe that a session was not particularly "good" if the
client seemed resistant or difficult to relate to. On the
other hand, outside observers often felt that a session
was productive if the client was difficult and the therapist
had to take a more active role as a result.
I listed factors that independent observers rated as
contributing to either "good" or "bad" sessions.
These must be sought to in a number of questions.
A sex addiction therapist should NEVER:
“Lock the doors or otherwise make your exit difficult;
See you at late or odd hours when no one is around;
Discourage a child patient’s/client’s parents from remaining
on the premises, take a child off the premises, or
invite or take a child to his/her house;
Tell you “you are more special” than other people/clients;
Shop, dine out, or run personal errands with you;
Ask for personal favors;
Push you to disclose or discuss anything before you are ready;
Touch you or your child in any way that is uncomfortable;
Conduct “therapy” in a bedroom;
Yell, or be insulting, angry, or impatient;
Claim to “have a knack” for doing therapy without training;
Contact your relatives or friends without your permission;
Threaten to tell family members or others that you are troubled
and a liar if you reveal what is taking place between you and the “therapist”;
Insist that your problem is because of a lack of faith;
Pressure you to remain in “therapy”;
Ask for gifts or loans of money and other objects;
Encourage you or your child to stop, or start, taking medication
without a full evaluation by a competent medical specialist;
Insist that you or your child come multiple times a week for many hours;
Charge above the maximum rate for someone with their
degree of education and experience;
Pressure you to remain in or return to a situation
in which you or your child(ren) are at risk of physical harm;
Do anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or
unsafe without a clear, therapeutic, and scientifically supported purpose.
When we seek medical care, we want the “top.”
We should be no less vigilant with mental health practitioners.
Do your research:
Ask straight and probing questions.
Reputable therapists should be willing to talk about their training,
supervision, and professional experience.
They should never insist that you trust them or follow them blindly.
If you are in a therapy that feels uncomfortable,
listen to your inner voice.
Stop immediately and seek consultation from a
specialist who has no direct relationship to your therapist.”
Ilana W. Rosen, MSW
For the Treatment I recommend click this link:
http://theliberatormethod.com
This does not mean that transference and counter-transference
do not occur or that the therapist doesn't think they are
important. It means that the therapist has decided to
give the highest priority to the problems that the client
feels are most crucial around the sex addiction.
In some cases psychotherapists that work with infidelity or sex addiction
wish that they could explore certain aspects of the
client's thinking but conclude that the client isn't ready
to engage in such exploration.
In the initial stages of psychotherapy, tentative answers
• Why did the client come to me?
• What are the pressing problems from the point of
View of me?
• What underlying problems is the client not aware on
• Will it be possible to help the client explore these underlying
problems?
Factors Contributing to "Poor" Sessions:
1. There were long silences.
2. The therapist used humor in discussing topics.
Factors Contributing to "Good" Sessions:
1. The patient was encouraged to express thoughts and
feelings.
2. The meaning of the patient's behavior was discussed.
3. The patient's avoidance of painful material was discussed.
4. The patients responsibility for what went on in the
session was discussed.
The answers to these questions help the therapist
set objectives and decide on tactics for later stages of
therapy. Clients often feel that as a result of their therapy
experience they are able to see themselves, their past
lives, and the people in their lives in a more objective
light. Identifying the subjective reactions of both clients
and therapists to what goes on in therapy sessions is an
important research task.
Illustrative of how this task can be approached is
the study of "good" and "poor" psychotherapy sessions,
sessions that either the therapist or the client or both
feel were particularly valuable. For example, Hoyt and
others had psychotherapists and independent
observers rate the quality of therapy sessions. The ratings
were then related to what had gone on in the sessions.
One finding was that therapists and independent
observers often disagreed about the relationship between
specific occurrences in the sessions and their degree
of "goodness" or "badness." Therapists seemed to
believe that a session was not particularly "good" if the
client seemed resistant or difficult to relate to. On the
other hand, outside observers often felt that a session
was productive if the client was difficult and the therapist
had to take a more active role as a result.
I listed factors that independent observers rated as
contributing to either "good" or "bad" sessions.
These must be sought to in a number of questions.
A sex addiction therapist should NEVER:
“Lock the doors or otherwise make your exit difficult;
See you at late or odd hours when no one is around;
Discourage a child patient’s/client’s parents from remaining
on the premises, take a child off the premises, or
invite or take a child to his/her house;
Tell you “you are more special” than other people/clients;
Shop, dine out, or run personal errands with you;
Ask for personal favors;
Push you to disclose or discuss anything before you are ready;
Touch you or your child in any way that is uncomfortable;
Conduct “therapy” in a bedroom;
Yell, or be insulting, angry, or impatient;
Claim to “have a knack” for doing therapy without training;
Contact your relatives or friends without your permission;
Threaten to tell family members or others that you are troubled
and a liar if you reveal what is taking place between you and the “therapist”;
Insist that your problem is because of a lack of faith;
Pressure you to remain in “therapy”;
Ask for gifts or loans of money and other objects;
Encourage you or your child to stop, or start, taking medication
without a full evaluation by a competent medical specialist;
Insist that you or your child come multiple times a week for many hours;
Charge above the maximum rate for someone with their
degree of education and experience;
Pressure you to remain in or return to a situation
in which you or your child(ren) are at risk of physical harm;
Do anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or
unsafe without a clear, therapeutic, and scientifically supported purpose.
When we seek medical care, we want the “top.”
We should be no less vigilant with mental health practitioners.
Do your research:
Ask straight and probing questions.
Reputable therapists should be willing to talk about their training,
supervision, and professional experience.
They should never insist that you trust them or follow them blindly.
If you are in a therapy that feels uncomfortable,
listen to your inner voice.
Stop immediately and seek consultation from a
specialist who has no direct relationship to your therapist.”
Ilana W. Rosen, MSW
For the Treatment I recommend click this link:
http://theliberatormethod.com