Ever have those sessions where a resistant client really doesn’t want to be there? Or perhaps believe they are having difficulties or even that therapy could be helpful, but they are reluctant to engage. So many of us have had this experience. Perhaps it is happening for you now with one or multiple clients right now!
There are often instances in which clients are pressured or forced to come to therapy. They may have received a court order or pressure from family or a spouse has them reluctantly agreeing to attend. And in these cases, many of our usual tools for aligning with clients (e.g., supportive questioning) can fall flat.
When clients experience reluctance or do not come on their own accord, it can make therapy very difficult and even confusing for therapists only wanting to help. Fortunately, there’s a good on-demand continuing education course that provides training for this exact situation!
Pros: This training helps for resistant client interactions that can be difficult for both client and clinician. Even if you have not seen court-ordered clients, skills outlined in this continuing education course appear to be helpful in many situations in which resistance is encountered. The presenter is also has a lot of experience working with resistant clients. And this training is pretty dang cheap for 5 CE hours!
Limits: No continuing education training guarantees perfect outcomes with any client, so this one is no different. Additionally, evidence-base for individual therapeutic techniques with specific populations may be difficult to discern. However, many techniques outlined do have an evidence base for general resistance to change. This is an on-demand training, so can’t go toward live CE allotment.
We all run into reluctant or resistant clients at some point. And this can be confusing when we just want to help. Fortunately, there are methods we can learn to approach these instances!
