Posted by Dinah on March 2, 2005, at 21:45:31
In reply to Re: I am officially a difficult client » Dinah, posted by Toph on March 2, 2005, at 21:30:54
Hmmm... You've got something there. I congratulate you on seeing beyond the surface. I mean, I'm not afraid that he'll quit on me, but...
While I'm outwardly incredibly compliant, I think he lets me get away with a lot. I suspect he knows it, too. He expresses it as frustration that I don't like him to "challenge" me. But I wonder. Maybe he is giving up in a way, and accepting the level of therapy he thinks I can handle. Lowered expectations. Or maybe he's got some big plan that involves letting me set the pace, or have a corrective emotional experience, or something. I don't know for sure.
Our relationship has definitely settled into a sometimes teasing, but very comfortable routine. Like an old married couple. It definitely works in getting me to do what he wants. But maybe not for the right reasons. Has he waved the white flag?
And do I care? I like old shoes. I like comfort, and I sorely miss teasing since Daddy died. I like making someone I care about happy. I *like* our relationship. I *like* being dependent.
I confided in him today that I think of therapy (metaphorically of course) as coming and curling up at his feet with my head leaning on his knee. And told him that that's a big step up from how I used to think of it - with me as the blind puppy seeking the warmth of a milky mother. It's still a dependent picture, but not *as* dependent. So does that mean that his overall plan is working? Or are we both just comfortable with maintaining the status quo?
poster:Dinah
thread:465666
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20050225/msgs/465748.html