Many clinicians share their own experiences with clients in the hopes of demystifying therapy and creating a collaborative treatment relationship. As well, in these times, therapeutic boundaries have loosened with virtual therapy, or in new locations outdoors; the pandemic, widespread recognition of social injustices, and imperatives to be open about racial and social identities. Some clients have found it important and easier to ask how their therapists are doing. New information about clients’ living situations, as well as therapists’, can show up on Zoom or emerge during phone sessions. Clients and clinicians are experiencing the pandemic and social and political upheaval together in real time. Disclosures have the potential to both heal and harm. In this experiential workshop, participants will learn under what circumstances therapist transparency is legitimate and useful and when it carries risks, including interrupting the flow and tone of therapy, crossing established boundaries, and triggering a client’s fear that the clinician isn’t “there” for her/them/him. Participants will come away with 10 guidelines for making self-disclosure a safe, clinically helpful part of the therapeutic process. With both small and large group activities and discussions, this workshop will be highly interactive.

Hosted by the Couple & Family Institute of New England (CFINE) online for 4 CEs. For more info, visit CFINE's website.