People come to me in streaks; that makes me feel good. I've seen several neighborhoods. I get a couple, then they refer their neighbor, then the kid across the street, then his uncle. It's good to know that someone thought I was worth the effort of driving across town, or even from twenty miles away, and much more, even.
What's great for me is to get different perspectives on the same stuff that happens. I have seen several sets of sisters, or cousins. A few times I've seen four, five or even six people from the same work place. I can never mention that I see the other people, even if they are the ones who made the referral. If someone brings up that they know their friend is coming to me, I just kind of nod. I really enjoy hearing about my patients from other patients and getting a different view of them then the one they bring in about themselves. I can't say that Suzy, in the next cubicle, thinks you're a slob, but it's helpful to know.
Once I had a woman who was having an affair with a married man. He was making all kinds of promises to her, and telling her that he was three weeks away from leaving his wife. About three weeks later a couple came to see me about their marriage. Sure enough, from the information that I had already it was clear enough to me that he was the man in question, although what he was telling his wife was quite different than what I had heard from his girlfriend. But, I really couldn't say anything, I just kind of let things play out. I did kind of warn the "other woman" that things were not going to break in her favor, but I probably would have done that anyway.
Over just the last month I seem to have tapped into another vein of patients --- other psychologists. I am not sure if they knew each other or if they came from very different sources, but I am seeing four other Ph.D. psychologists now.
Three of them make great patients. They come with notes and speculations about all of their thoughts, motivations, unconscious demons, and deeper underlying internal processes. They send me emails in the middle of the night. They are working at it.
From my vantage point they are way over-doing it. I'm not that kind of therapist. I don't try and uncover every last possible psychological nick and scratch that may have cause a psychic bruise at some time. I'm more of a kind of a "let's just get on with it and feel better" guy. But the intellectual churning can be fun for a while. And I am old(er) so they look to me for approval of their self examination. All I have to say is " Well, what do you think?"
The fourth one is just nuts. She's angry and screaming, and in a terrible, chaotic relationship, with a guy who has more issues than that pop-up box has tissues. But she has a full practice and she's probably good at it. She's right out there and very expressive. She certainly lets you know how she feels, and she reacts quickly and intensely.
I don't think I would want to be her client if I was a man, given what she expects in her own relationship. But, then again, that could be really good for some guys to hear about it.
This is an interesting profession. You never really know what's going to happen once the door closes.
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