Send a Response to Touchy Subject:
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Dear Touchy Subject,
To start with that fact that the word "touchy" was even brought in shows me something.....you are probably an excellent therapist with a desire to protect yourself as well as your clients......that is honorable.
The "touchy" though lets me feel that you are not setting healthy boundaries for yourself. Analogy - I have a hernia, actually two from when I carried my twin daughters. I consider a wonderful job but would have to lift some heavy things on occasion. Guess what..........no way.
Prequalify - figure out what you can and can't do. Decide what triggers are out there - and then, that is your client list. There are no ifs ands or buts. If it even remotely smells like "touchy" it is off limits for you as well as your clients.
I am not a therapist but this to me is something for everyone and having experience for years now with various therapists I have learned that I ask my therapist what SHE does to ground herself. I don't ever again want a therapist who needs to have a piece of candy or a banana in the middle of a session as she is losing it......yes, I did have an incredibly wonderful therapist who would drift off. I had another therapist who had control issues .... I guess what I am saying here, you sound like you are just fine and need to take care of your needs in turn. You will be an even better person for it.
marin
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Touchy Subject:
And that it is. I'm not a professional in the field, and that only means that I don't get paid for what I have done. I have helped a lot of people who I have met and those who are also my friends and dissociate also. The only way I am able to protect myself is by building a very strong boundary line and being honest with my friends when I'm not able to be there for them.
The key word is being honest because as dissociative personalities go, we are able to switch most of the time to the personality that is needed. Sometimes though I'm dealing with my own stuff which needs to be taken care of first.
I think that if I was a paid professional that would be hard to do. I'd have to cancel all my appointments for that day. I would think though that if I was to a point where I was in a private practice where I could limit my case load and remained flexible it could work. I've many times thought about that, if I could ever get past the degree (which is required by law) that I would love to be in the field helping others with the process.
And then there's the other parts who scream out like now and say "No way, Jose, we'd fix that real quick if you keeping thinking about that. What are you, nuts?" They let me come to play here and on pages like this. I can do that when I'm able. Guess they couldn't take it in a normal 9 to 5 setting. Thanks for asking it has let me share, and that's what works best for us.
Lady J