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Thoughts for clients that have stopped therapy.

One of the things they never teach you in grad school is how to be okay with clients who move on. At the time, I thought, it would be easy. That I have a job to do, and now that job is over. (I realized that might be a leftover from my prior corporate life.) But, it’s definitely not as cut and dry as it was then. Though that was never easy either, I just learned how to do it. I actually hope that never happens with this new path. I mentioned to a colleague the other night that it’s like a relationship has ended when our clients want to end their time with us. Clients imprint on us. We attach to them, even though “we’re not supposed to.” Every time a client moves on I find that I have to pick myself up on my own. And that is part of my job. And I’m okay with that. I wouldn’t have it any other way.        

To all my clients that have left me…This is what I know.

Know that I will still think of you and our time together.

Know that you affected me in so many ways and helped me grow as a new therapist.  

Know that I will miss you and continue to wonder what’s happening in your world.  And what finally happened with that “thing” that we talked about so often.

Know that I’m proud of you and all the work you did.

Know that I felt honored when you emailed me your art, thoughts, and musings about life.

Know that I will still chuckle as memories show up of times when we couldn’t stop laughing together.

Know that you inspired me to research and read as many books as I could to enrich our conversations. You did that. You made me want to do better.

Know that I got excited for you when things were going well.  

Know that I wanted to cry with you when they weren’t. And sometimes I couldn’t not stop a tear from welling up during session. Or I cried after the hour was over.    

Know that I worried I wasn’t asking the right questions. Or saying “the right thing.”

Know that I will wonder what is going to happen to you and for you, and it makes me sad that I won’t know nor get to celebrate with you.

Know that it brought me joy when you gifted me a small window to the wonderfulness that is you.  

Know that I’m grateful for you showing up and doing the work. Even when it was hard or didn’t feel like things were moving.

Know that I never approached our work together as a “job.”

Thank you for opening up your world to me in ways that not many others get to see. And for that I’m so grateful.

XO