Aftermath

[pl515p1]

Just some questions.

What happens to those who provide care and support, afterwards?
Are they given adequate support and care themselves?

How long would it take for a counsellor or psychologist to, in a way, forget a patient they have treated frequently over several months? Do you think they still think about patients even after they stop treating them for awhile?

Surely they would maintain a professional distance, no matter how invested they are, do you think they can be emotionally attached to their patient even though it should not be the case? and in a way that they may be irrevocably altered should something happen?

I think they may feel a sense of failure, or guilt over what they may have missed, or may have done wrong, I suppose as anyone who knew the person would, even if they were told that it was not their fault.

[Hanna3]

Hi p1515p1

Speaking as someone who has worked alongside psychologists and psychiatrists for a long time - they are trained how to cope with what they call transference/countertransference (the feelings for the client to the counsellor and the counsellor's feelings for the client) and know if they feel they are getting too emotionally involved with a client to seek advice from another fellow counsellor/psychologist/psychiatrist.

They are human and I have seen a psychiatrist cry over a particularly sad case. However they are trained to be extremely careful about getting over-involved with a client. Of course this doesn't mean they don't care or think about the person they are counselling/treating.

They have to be extremely careful to keep within proper boundaries or they are faced with negligence/abuse claims.

I don't know if this addresses your concerns? Yes they do have feelings - sometimes they move a client they can't get on with to another counsellor - but they are highly trained to monitor their reactions to the people they counsel.

Cheers.