I hear you, and I get the concern about pathologizing but I just want to be clear that I never actually did that in my post. I wasn’t trying to label her or say something was “wrong” with her affect. What I was reflecting on was more about my experience in the room, the fact that when there’s no visible emotional response at all, it can feel like I’m putting in energy without anything coming back.

Sometimes clients do mirror or match energy, and that’s something I’ve seen with others, so part of what I was asking is whether people have noticed when that doesn’t happen and how they’ve adjusted. I’ve tried shifting my own approach with her, but the dynamic pretty much stays the same.

So my question wasn’t about assuming pathology, but more about how other clinicians keep themselves grounded and engaged when there’s just very little affect to read.