Signs You’re Moving Too Fast or Slow with Therapy Clients

Signs You’re Moving Too Fast or Slow with Therapy Clients

Lisa Marie Bobby, PhD, LMFT, BCC

As a therapist, the last thing you want to do is hinder your client’s progress. But sometimes, we can inadvertently do this by moving too fast or too slow with our clients.  Let’s explore the signs that your pace isn’t quite right, so you can strike a balance that works for your clients’ unique needs. 

If you would prefer to listen to this one, I’ve also recorded a podcast episode on this topic. You can find it on this page (player below), or on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Signs You’re Moving Too Fast with Your Therapy Client

Being a therapist means creating a supportive environment that helps our clients to navigate through their struggles and find their path to healing and growth. However, sometimes our eagerness to help can lead us to rush the process, potentially doing more harm than good, and impeding our client’s unique journey. 

Here are the signs that you may be rushing a client: 

1. Feeling the Pressure: It’s natural to want to create change for our clients, but feeling pressured to do so can lead us to push them too quickly, hindering our progress on how to be a better therapist. If you feel under pressure, it may be a sign you need to slow down.

2. Anxiety About Performance: Doubting our own abilities as therapists can make us rush the process, as we anxiously seek to prove our value.

3. Caretaking Behaviors: Witnessing our clients in pain can trigger a desire to ‘fix’ things immediately. But remember, growth often comes from discomfort. Having healthy boundaries as a therapist not only benefits you, it allows your clients the space they need to grow.

4. Discomfort with Dark Emotions: Believe it or not, some therapists find it challenging to sit with dark emotions, including the dark emotions of others. Embracing these emotions is crucial for allowing space for genuine healing.

5. Lack of Follow-Through: If your client isn’t following through outside of sessions, that can be a sign that the pace of treatment isn’t resonating with them and it’s time to reassess. Other possible barriers may be competing goals, unresolved inner conflicts, or a lack of necessary skills. All of these barriers require time to work through before progress becomes possible.