Time

Working as a therapist means that I often set a timeline for the therapuetic goals to be achieved. Whether they be goals the client brings to counseling, or goals that I think will assist the client in healing, I have an idea of ABOUT how long it will take.

But

In real life - in the true experience of being human beings - things are not perfectly linear. As I learn and spend time with my clients, we will sometimes detour from our initial plan and “open doors” that maybe even the client did not realize they needed to do until the very moment it comes up in a session.

I am learning, and sharing that learning with clients, that TIME is a part of the healing process. It takes time to recognize and accept the current life we live, what we have lost, and what we can and cannot control in it. It takes time to make sense of a complicated relationship or to identify how to move through life transitions, or navigate grief.

In a world full of quick-fixes and “ready in 10 days” programs, I have found over the years in my counseling work that I can both envision and create a structure for the healing work with clients while holding the timeline loosely - because we don’t know what life brings and maybe, just maybe, that’s something we can learn to accept.