Quizzing therapists

Hi all,

My best friend has found me details of a therapist who works in my area (ish) and doesn't specialise in DID but does work with it, which is amazing around here.

I was wondering if you could all just throw good questions at me to ask him on the telephone when he calls so that I can check him out and not end up with an experience like last week.

Thanks,

Bourbon

Here are just a few possibilities that could get you thinking.

What would you say your main theoretical orientation for psychological therapy is?
...what school of thought did he train in (if any)
How do you feel about DID as a disorder? How real is it?
What is your general theory about DID?
...if what do you mean, you could clarify: How does it happen? What is at the core of DID?
What do you think causes it?
How many patients have you worked with who had with DID?
What is your approach in therapy to help a person with DID?
What do you think the end game of DID therapy is?
...uncovers attitude toward integration

How would you approach therapy with a patient with DID as opposed to a depressed patient or a bipolar patient?
How much focus do you put on working with the host vs. working with parts?
...you may want to uncover a heavily host-centric, alter-disempowering thinking
What do you think child parts really are?
How do you feel about working with child parts?

What are your own personal rules for confidentiality?
Under what circumstances might you breach confidentiality?
...if s/he replies something about "danger" you could follow up with...
How you define danger, could you give me an example?
What general boundaries do you like to set up with clients?
What are your thoughts on hypnosis and EMDR?
...good to know

If you felt over your head with a patient, how do you handle it?
...the assumption being he has felt that way, which I would hope s/he would at some point
...if "I'd consult specialists", you could ask "what types of specialists do you regularly deal with?
Where on a scale of 0 to 10, 0 being passive, 10 being aggressive, would you say you are in terms of helping to guide a patient?
...no wrong answer but good to know
Where on the same scale would you say I as a patient should ideally be toward my own therapy?

Awesome! That's wonderful that you have a prospective therapist!

Since I am in the market for a new T myself, and have contacted several in my area and am awaiting calls back, coming up with questions helps me as well!

~How long have you been a practicing therapist?
~What treatment approaches do you primarily use in your work with clients? (ie psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, interpersonal, etc)
~What, if any, is your area of expertise?
~Do you have any special skills or training when it comes to helping people who've experienced major traumas in their lives (EMDR, sand play therapy, hypnosis, etc)?
~How familiar are you with dissociation, and how much experience do you have treating people with dissociative disorders?

[For you specifically:]

~Have you worked with clients with dissociative identity disorder in the past? What is your philosophy as to how to best manage/treat a client with DID?
~What are your thoughts on integrating dissociated aspects of one's personality? Do you feel it should be a necessary goal in the therapy process?

~Hope some/any of these are helpful~


**edit** I just read JJ's questions, and they are awesome! Much more focused and in depth than my own, but I'm still going to post these just in case any of them might be useful!

Johnny-Jack and Brandic gave some great suggestions. The only one I can think to add is a question or two about angry alters. In the similiar vein of Johnny-Jacks questions about children alters. Ask about angry alters.
-How does the therapist handle?
-Is a plan in place or can be made for destructive and angry alters?

A few more basic ones from me (I dont believe I woke up at 3 am thinking these!)

Is he prepared to accept Remy's diagnosis and report?

What would be his recommended number of sessions per week, and is that available to you?

In the event of you being in crisis, is he contactable by phone? Out of hours? Weekend support?

I know from talking to you that 'interactive engagement' is mentioned. This presumably applies to your family, but how so? If Alice wants to play for example (I do like this PICT model of therapy Ive been reading about) is there facility for that?

Likewise, were Alice to want physical reassurance like a hug, how would that be handled?

As we've no experience of private care, if he decides that medication x would be of benefit, how do we go about acquiring it?

How does he prefer to be paid?

Is there anything you can do to reduce your personal costs for this?

You've done good with this. The guy does look promising, I'm really positive about it. Best thing to come out of whats been a nightmareish few days for you. Lets see how we get on Lady

EXCELLENT!

I shall go into the appointment with a list longer than he's ever seen.... (picturing me with a whole roll of paper to unravel).

p.s. update: my initial consultation with him is this thursday!

Once again, I am SO HAPPY for you that you are moving away from the NHS and moving towards being able to make your own decisions about your treatment! As kids we couldn't make our own decisions for our well-being, so we definitely should be allowed to now. Go you!