Psychotherapy is a private space between the therapist and the client. The person who comes to therapy wants to share with his therapist feelings, thoughts and situations that he has not shared with anyone before. However, it may not be easy to open up your inner world to a person you have never met before. He needs to feel trust in order to open up about his private life to the person he sees for the first time and with whom he only meets at certain times of the week. It may take time for this trust to develop.
This situation is quite normal. It can be seen in more people than expected. For this reason, it would be useful to explain how the therapist has responsibilities regarding the client's private information.
Everything discussed in therapy remains only between the therapist and the client. It is not possible to share it with any person, institution or platform outside. It may be necessary to notify competent authorities only if there is a possibility that the client may harm himself or someone else. However, in such a case, there is no such thing as confidential reporting from the client; The client must be informed beforehand. Having such an obligation does not prevent talking about issues that may cause harm to the client. Since everything starts with a thought, the probability of realization decreases considerably in the process leading up to action. Therefore, if the client has such thoughts, talking about them in therapy will be both comforting for the client and learns how to cope.
What happens if the therapist and the client meet in a social environment? Due to confidentiality, the therapist does not take steps to communicate directly with the client in social life. Because the client may not have shared with his close circle that he went to therapy. Therefore, if the therapist takes the first step, he or she will be violating privacy. However, if the client takes a step such as greeting or establishing a dialogue, the therapist can give appropriate feedback. This happens as soon as possible. Afterwards, it is not possible for the therapist to maintain a dialogue with the client, have a drink, spend time, or make friends, as in social life. All this is done to protect the confidentiality of the client.
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