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What are some signs that a therapist may have poor boundaries with their clients?

08.06.2025 11:35

What are some signs that a therapist may have poor boundaries with their clients?

General Introduction to Boundaries from Panahi Counseling:

These items can happen fleetingly, briefly, in any therapy, but if they’re frequent, it’s definitely time for the therapist to get some good, solid supervision/consultation.

Serious disappointment when the client cancels a session.

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Off the top of my ancient head:

Eager anticipation (or anxious anticipation) of the next session in ways that distract.

Routinely going over the time limit with certain patients, compromising the time for the next client.

Two of my family members have recently converted to Islam and have brought shame on my family. How do I get them back into the fold of Hinduism?

Obsessing about clients outside of work hours.

Frequent phoning or texting of clients to “check up on them and make sure they’re OK.”

Struggling with fantasies of deeper connections with clients, whether sexual or parental or other intense or intimate relationships beyond psychotherapy.

Why does a lot of the YouTube community support the MGTOW movement?

Failing to mention the client in supervision/consultation, out of fear the supervisor/consultant will advise return to ordinary healthy boundaries.

Disclosing feelings, fantasies, and experiences to the client in ways not related to the work the client is engaged in.

Sense of competition with persons who are important in the client’s life.

My parents force me (15yo atheist) to go to church, and there’s this thing called Small Sundays where we discuss the Bible in groups, there are questions asked about the Bible. What am I supposed to do when they ask?

Session-expressed curiosities about client details not relevant to the therapy.