Therapistquest, continued

Barb has potential.

There are no toys, puzzles, dolls, or sandboxes in her office. She remembered my name. She didn't pull any binders off the shelf and say, "I think this method will help you." She asked how she could help.

Barb has experience working with patients who are navigating all of the emotional minefields related to chronic illness and the challenges inherent to being neuro-abnormal.I have reason to believe that Barb has quite a bit of personal experience with chronic illness, and that certainly could add a higher level of empathy and understanding to our sessions.

I told Barb that under no circumstances will I utter any affirmations. She was OK with that.

I gave Barb some reading material. It's a three-page timeline detailing my mental state and life events leading up to my BP diagnosis. She said she'll read it, and I hope she does. It will cut down on a lot of expository chit-chat.

Since I didn't know if Barb would find any value in three pages of bullet points, I also made a photo collage for her. The photo essay shows what I was but am not now. I told her that people feel loss in very personal and individual ways. Mine can be summed up by those pictures that almost made Frank cry.

I told Barb that after having adjusted how I live my life in the wake of my bipolar diagnosis, I was not in the mood to do that once again with the central nervous system and chronic pain issues. I said that if I kept downsizing my life, I was going to end up with nothing left to do except sit by myself and watch TV.

Barb said we have a lot to talk about.