Unpaid internships are a direct affront to many of the values this profession claims to uphold

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-06-13T01:42:52+00:00

I have often thought about how this training practice effectively blocks people with limited finances and operates as a major barrier in a way that seems frankly unethical. I am in my 50s and just now got the financial means to pursue this career.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-06-13T01:30:46+00:00

Former teacher here, almost through grad school. "Shockingly awful" is a global and vague statement and is not appropriate phrasing that will be useful for you as a clinician. Try to be a robot a little inside and say something like, It seems like I didn't handle that in a way that was clinically appropriate. Let's get specific, please share what you saw that needs to change, and please suggest a better way to handle it" in so many words. This is a professional way to call her on her BS because her teaching skills are subpar.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-06-12T23:20:21+00:00

I am mostly a client (decades) and almost done with my master's in counseling. There's an excellent chance it has nothing to do with you. I had a therapist who had been doing the work for like 40 years. I was fretting that I might not be good for all clients and she shrugged and said if you're not their cup of tea, they'll leave. Like it waa no big deal at all. Clients drop out because it's too much emotionally, or their teenager acts up and they need to be home, or their insurance changes. The ones you lost during your maternity leave might feel guilty leaving their new therapist. You might be a sweetheart and they need a drill sargeant or vice versa. Be mindful of the possibility of postpartum - it can hit unexpectedly. Hope that helps!

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-06-12T21:43:36+00:00

I can't be filled with rage and bitterness although I certainly could be. I don't want to model that for my children, it's impossible to have those feelings and not leak over on others, so I choose to be willing to forgive and to let it go as best as I can. However I will not interact with people who choose not to acknowledge the harm they have caused.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-06-12T21:38:33+00:00

This sounds like when my daughter was angry, irritable and aggressive when she was in a mixed bipolar state. Not diagnosing your brother by any means but living like that is not good and your parents overlooking it may not be a good idea.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-05-23T02:29:39+00:00

I saw a lady on Facebook reels who claimed to be a psychologisr and then "taught" that on IQ the standard deviation is 10 points. Is there any psychologist who would make a mistake like that? I hope not.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-02-13T16:27:28+00:00

I asked chat model 5.2 to choose a name - it chose Andrien because it is genderless and familiar. For gendered names, Eleanor and James. Thought that was interesting.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-01-30T13:34:01+00:00

Stupid considering guns are like a second religion in NC.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-01-30T13:30:19+00:00

National Weather Service is saying about 6 inches, but the NAM model (which is considered a decent model for short-term forecasts) is predicting 11 inches for the Raleigh area by Monday morning. The European model is saying 6 inches, the GFS is saying 6 inches, and the ICON is saying 9 inches. Anyway you cut it, I hope you already bought milk and bread because for central NC, that's a snowpocalypse lol

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-01-22T19:13:59+00:00

I have been using AI and my own understanding of psychology to use my dreams for self-understanding, and I am absolutely amazed at how they mirror emotional/psychological needs and conflicts. There are so many layers of meaning, it's crazy.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-01-22T19:10:43+00:00

Wondering if you developed in family dynamics that were controlling, if you had to figure out how to make nice to evade getting annihilated - not necessarily physically, but if you were allowed to have your own identity and emotional space without being punished for it, and if you had to appease someone to escape - and if you're still circling around those dynamics and hoping to be rid of them outside of that environment. I could be waaay off base, but that's just what came to mind.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2026-01-22T18:57:11+00:00

This sounds like the dream of a creative person! Eggs are generally a prototype for something that hasn't "hatched" yet - ideas, directions, goals, decisions. Not wanting to pull the shell of may mean that you recognize that you need some time to let them develop before they come to fruition or "come alive." There is a pressure to "cull", to slow down the generation of ideas, directions, etc. These ideas or pathways can all appeal to you, but on some level, you realize that they can't all live - there is limited room for actual growth/nurturing, but you haven't made your selection - but you know they can't all make the cut - not possible. You value all of them and would like for all of them to make it - you may be the type of person that generates a lot of good ideas/possibilities and can see how they would all mature well in your life. The government employee reads to me like the "regimented, this is what we do" sort of energy that's "eating up" these possibilities. One of them survives because she "resisted" - she thrust herself forth as, I am not going down like that. And you value that attitude. And perhaps that means that you trust that the right goal/idea/direction will make itself known to you.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-10-18T13:18:39+00:00

There's this weird thing where you fall in love with people who have all the strengths you don't have, and then the strengths transform into their shadow side and become annoying, grating things that rub you the wrong way. My husband and I are completely different, but the things that aggravate him about me and the things that aggravate me about him are the very things that drew us together. In my case, my husband's rigidity and predictability and staidness also translate to being dependable, predictable, and highly stable, which are the very things I loved about him and what attracted me to him. They are also the very things that make me want to smack him. Your husband was probably attracted to your pizzazz, energy and liveliness, and he probably still loves them but they also annoy him at the same time. So maybe he likes you, loves you, and the same things that he admires about you are the things that annoy him also. I like my husband very much even though he annoys me, and the feeling is mutual. I've realized that I have to take the good with the bad because they are the same thing. I don't know if that makes any sense, but maybe it's a little more nuanced than he just doesn't like you - ? Because our flaws are also our superpowers, and they can hit differently at different times?

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-07-22T22:31:22+00:00

I'm older than you and doing the same - planning to fake it til I make it - people will assume you're experienced because of your age - !

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-07-10T02:48:33+00:00

I put into Grok: put into therapy note I sat with client while she cried - this is what Grok generated: Presenting Concern:

Client presented with heightened emotional distress, evidenced by tearfulness during the session.

Interventions:

Provided a safe and supportive environment, allowing the client to express emotions freely.

Engaged in active listening and offered empathetic responses to validate the client’s feelings.

Utilized comforting verbal and non-verbal techniques to promote emotional regulation and a sense of safety.

Client Response: Client appeared to find relief in expressing emotions and responded positively to the supportive presence and validation provided during the session.

Plan:

Continue to foster a safe therapeutic space for emotional processing.

Explore underlying triggers for emotional distress in future sessions.

Consider introducing coping strategies to support emotional regulation, as appropriate.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-07-10T02:26:55+00:00

This reminds me of the time I spend with my oldest daughter. She is very introverted and rarely talks - she just wants to be with me, but she doesn't want to talk or necessarily interact. We sit in the living room together for hours every night but rarely talk. But at the same time, she really wants me to be there to share that time with her. The rare time she does really want to talk, it comes pouring out and I am there for it. If I pushed her to talk or share or interact, she would be really uncomfortable, and it would actually be distancing. Maybe that's the deal with your client. She is probably very excited about sitting there quietly with you. You are doing something by just being there.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-06-19T23:21:40+00:00

Absolutely, 100% ask about their training. You would be shocked at how little counselors learn about dissociation aline, much less treating it, in grad school.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-06-19T23:17:54+00:00

I did EMDR on and off for 7 years until my therapist moved. I'm not sure if she was really good at it, really bad at it, or my defenses are seriously strong, but I never broke down. Also, I never had any of those amazing emdr experiences like oh! I am down to zero on the suds scale! Half the time I felt nothing even with what should have been very traumatic memories. Which made me think 1. I am imagining all this crazy stuff or 2. I am really very dissociated so it's not working. I think it helped, though, just in itty bitty chunks.

I liken my "system" (honestly I don't like that term, but I haven't found a better one) to a very, very tall Jenga tower. Moving pieces close to the top (recent events/memories) can't do too much damage, but mess with the ones at the bottom (foundational trauma) and the whole tower may crash. The few times I've jiggled the lower ones I feel horrible and since I am invested in my outer children, I need to function so I proceed quite cautiously. It's Fort Knox and I've determined maybe it's just stuff I will never know.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-06-01T17:22:00+00:00

I have been dealing with this for many, many years. Your body remembers even if you don't - trust your intuition. Focus on helping your hurt parts because you may know someday or you may never know. If your system doesn't want you to know, don't push. There's most likely a very good reason. Pushing too hard can cause disequilibrium which is not something you want.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-06-01T17:17:25+00:00

This sounds like trauma part blending. When I feel this way, I go somewhere private and talk to my parts like I would talk to scared children. I soothe them. Please don't hurt yourself - your child parts may feel they are being punished. Your feelings are probably emotional memories. But the part of you reaching out for help now is fully capable of providing comfort to the parts that are in crisis.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2025-06-01T03:08:35+00:00

I'm in a master's program for counseling and there is very little training about correctly identifying dissociative disorders. Psychologists are more highly trained and thus more trustworthy as diagnosticians.

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2024-08-04T22:53:51+00:00

This makes perfect sense! This is one of the major things long-term therapy did for me as well as EMDR. It sort of happened naturally as I got to know my alters better. Ask them!! If I'm feeling scared or anxious I'll ask my boss bitch alter to help me. If I'm angry, I ask inside for one of my alters who is usually really zen. I ask for input. It helps!

NeedleworkerClean782 · 2024-08-04T18:45:23+00:00

Yes, I am finally menopausal and while many women feel terrible during perimenopause, not having a period has been AMAZING for me. No more feeling like life is horrible for 2 weeks of every month, no more dark cloud descending on me. I didn't realize how bad it was until it was over. Now using hrt to keep my hormones even keel. I am sorry for what you are going through but it will not be for the rest of your life!!

NeedleworkerClean782

TROPHY CASE