Personal blog: Why do I want to be a MFT?

     This week, I wasn't sure what to focus on. I decided to make this blog a little personal. So, why do I want to be a MFT? Well, you will find out today. I'll begin with my early years and make my way to present day. While reading this, I'll explain personal experiences and share things that gave me inspiration. Let's hope I try not to squeeze a lot of information on here. 

      To begin with, I always new that I was a chatter box, and I've been told. I really love to talk, but I love talking to people and just getting to know them. To hear what they have to say is amazing. I think that we as humans are really complex. I remember when I was about 8 years old, I went to a library that my aunt owned. I wanted to help her organize some of her books. So, she had me organize all these science and psychology related books. As I was putting them away, I saw a book that really caught my attention. It was called "Pyschology for Kids," and it was filled with quizzes that helped you learn about yourself. For example, you could find out if you were an extrovert or an introvert. I don't know why, but I enjoyed these types of quizzes. Then I remembered that my aunt let me keep it and would take it everywhere with me. Soon, I started spending most of my time at my aunts library reading those books.

       Growing up, I had lots of inspiration. There's a movie called "50 First Dates", and it's about a girl who had rare type of short-term memory. It doesn't really have to deal with therapy, but it really helped me learn about people. I watched a lot of movies about therapy and mental health too. Some are called: Anger Management, Cyberbully, The Notebook, October Baby, Dear John, The Fault in our Stars, and Ordinary People. These movies have always been my personal favorites. I also had family friends that were therapists. One that is special to me is my mom's friends, Mari. She's also a MFT and I'm always talking to her. Mari is probably one of my biggest inspirations. 

     Finally, I would like to talk about some experiences. The first experience was when I was 10 years old. I had a friend,who was also my neighbor, that was going through family problems, and I noticed that she wasn't acting the same. I decided to go over house twice a week to talk to her because I wanted her to get better. She started opening up to me and she would talk so much. I loved it because I got to listen about her problems. Then I would give feedback. In a matter of weeks, she was back to normal. I've talked to many people. I've helped people who have had depression, anxiety, LBTQ issues, and we're grieving. It makes me feel good when I am with people in need. I want to continue that. To conclude, helping people is my specialty. I've had many experiences and inspirations that support my future work. It's good that I continue this because maybe one day I'll be successful in this field. 

How does a therapist control their emotions while at work?

     Recently, I have been asked the question, "How will you control your own emotions?" This question is referring to when I will work with a client. I have been told that some therapists have to go to their own therapist because they get caught up in the problems of their clients. Necessarily, I do not think that is true. Yet, I have decided to look into it.

     To begin with, I have decided to look into Google for research. Then I came across a link that was titled, "Do therapist hide their emotions during therapy?" Of course, I thought it was similar to my topic. This article explained that therapists do not hide all emotions, but they tend to show the emotions that they believe to be more helpful for the progressing in therapy. This means that if I had a client that made progress with the things we talked about in therapy, then I would show that I was genuinely happy. Although, if the client did not work on making progress, I would not show my frustration that I might feel.

     Therapists are trained to limit "self-disclosure" about their personal thoughts and to manage their "counter-transference" (their emotional reactions to their clients). I have learned at the same time they are trained to be authentic, genuine, warm, and trustworthy. As a proffesional, the therapist does not want to hide or reveal any emotions that can negatively impact the client. If they need to, they will. The job is to not upset the rapport and confidence that sustains the therapist/patient relationship. It's beneficial to show emotions because it can be viewed as if the therapist is not being upfront and honest. For example, if the client is talking about being abused, the therapist may feel anger towards the abuser. If the client knows that the therapist is on his side, he'll feel the trust between the both of them. 

     As for my question, the display of genuine emotions from a therapist is part of the interaction. Yet, it all depends on the therapist. Some may choose to show emotion, and others won't.  In that case, I haven't properly answers my question. So, will I be able to control my emotions? Well, hopefully I'll be trained to limit most of them because I tend to be a very emotional person. At the same time, therapists are people too, and sometimes you'll have an emotional reaction that you simply can't control.

Sources:

“Why We Hide Emotional Pain.” Psychology Today. Web. 22 Oct. 2015. <https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evolution-the-self/201109/why-we-hide-emotional-pain>

“Do Psychotherapists Hide Their Emotions during Therapy?Frequently Asked In.” Do psychotherapists hide their emotions during therapy? Web. 22 Oct. 2015. <https://www.quora.com/do-psychotherapists-hide-their-emotions-during-therapy>