Counter Transference Paper

Introduction
In the following paper, I will explore the topic of counter transference. The material that I feel is most relevant is the reading by Goldstein Transference and Countertransference . I feel that deconstructing some of our beliefs, values, past and attachment mechanisms will benefit the client. I achieve this by self-reflecting and consulting my baggage and identities, I bring to the client-therapist dyad (Goldstein, 2009). This is important since as a future social worker as I need to have the knowledge of my background, and what strengths I bring to the table. This will be in the areas of my emotional, mental and physical feelings and responses. That way I can separate my emotions from the client’s emotions. This may happen when clients are protectively identifying on me, that way I can decipher the feelings. It is also important to be knowledgeable about the history, the systematic oppression and the challenges that target (oppressed) groups, like my clients face due to my agent (oppression) groups. As stated before, having a good
understanding of myself helps with the therapeutic relationship, and helps foster the therapist- client dyad and help attune to each other. One part of countertransference is relational theory. Relational theory is addressing any of the transference and counter transferences that may come up in the treatment relationship and understand ing how these play a significant role in bringing about client change (Goldstein, 2009) . One goal of therapy would be to help clients be aware of the maladaptive cycle and help replace the behaviors (Levenson, 2010) (Teyber 2010). This is helpful to have clients focusing on themselves inward instead of blaming external factors (Teyber, 2010). We would present a positive exploration of feelings, patterns and beliefs, then provide opportunities that can give these new dynamics in a new relationship (client-therapist ) (Levenson, 2010). These are important steps to help understand "to meet the client where they are at” (Teyber 2010).
One time I was transferring was when clients would arrive late which has always been an issue. I like to be on time however I need to understand there are many reasons clients arrive late maybe due to time being more relational or cyclical and less rigid than Western culture . Another reason clients could be late is due to socio-economic reasons like a lack of transportation. The thing is as explained in TLDR and in Teyber, rapport is about rebuilding and not every breaking rapport. This is an important concept due to being able to explore this dynamic in therapy(Teyber 2010). Additionally, how the culture views time could be a factor. I would consistently have to remind myself of clients having different reasons or factors for running late and not having judgments or conclusions and not transferring anger onto my client. It is also important not having a viewpoint that is an ethnocentric perspective (white, male) and transferring it onto my clients’. However, it would be important in a psychodynamic setting to address the obstacles and patterns to help encourage the client’s feelings of the therapist dynamics (Levenson, 2010). This would be dynamics of why there are obstacles like explaining why they arrive late and making clinets aware of uncoscious biases, and addressing them in the theraputic setting.
Lastly, understand the concept of resistance and what they may or may not look. I will discuss in the Karen excerpt about how due to a cultural miscommunication that the clients appear to be using resistance when in fact, the therapist has their own biases preventing him from being with his patient. This leads to how to be an effective social worker by understanding: my coping skills, communication styles, and background. This will help grow the relationship focus of TLDP strategies (Levenson, 2010).
When trying to understand my client’s identity and the systems that they encounter including: oppression, marginalization and systemic, I try to tackle this from a client's perspective and I do best from a micro-to-macro. This helps me understand that if my client has a different background and understanding what may be misunderstood as resistance when it is in fact a miscommunication. An example of this was displayed in the Karen vignette, with her using a self-defense mechanism and displaying this as “resistance”. Her feeling hurt and alone in her formative years might have affected her to subconsciously feel that she could only count on herself. No matter who the audience making self-reflecting is, important in all levels include: the micro, mezzo, and macro. Some totalistic therapists see countertransference as an accepting tool to help foster therapeutic insight. This is where clients and therapist can understand motivations, intentions and dynamics in the session. Countertransference reactions are also sometimes the only way that clients create in therapist to help explain some of their most difficult affects, thoughts, and conflicts, when the client cannot convey through language alone (Goldstein, 2009). Some therapists view disruptions in a patient therapist dyad as valuable due to it giving the therapist a chance to be emotionally honest, and helps them be more in tuned with the client. Countertransference has come to be a valuable tool for the practitioner to gain empathic access into the world of the client (Goldstein, 2009). Even though these concerns and complaints may include overreactions or strong transference distortions, these may seem like truths from the clients point of view (Teyber, 2010). This is due to experiencing the disruption together and helping you learn about the client's perceptions. It’s important to acknowledge disruption, but not to engage with the client into repeating past repetitive pathological patterns. Countertransference
Countertransference is when both patients and psychotherapists have strong transference of emotional reactions towards each other in a therapeutic dyad. This will be in the areas of my emotional, mental and physical feelings and responses. That way I can separate my emotions from the client’s emotions. This may happen when clients are protectively identifying on me, that way I can decipher the feelings. This gives the opportunity for an exploration of feelings, patterns and beliefs, and gives clients focusing on themselves inward instead of blaming external factors and then provide opportunities that can give these new dynamics in a new relationship (client-therapist) (Levenson, 2010) (Teyber 2010). This will help grow the relationship focus of TLDP strategies (Levenson, 2010).
Countertransference phenomena are relationship reactions based on meta-communication. This would include reactions that would come up for a therapist due to what a client is transferring. This can distract or impede instead of being with a client in a therapeutic setting with their struggles or helps foster the therapist- client dyad and help attune to each other.
Whenever a client transfers a strong reaction or feeling a therapist needs to separate from their feelings, recognize it and compare the present perception with memories and experiences from their past. These can include things like attachment, projection, defense mechanism and memories, which can be triggered by something in the present which evokes the past and the therapist will react in a similar way as they did in their past or act as a figure in the client’s past will act. An example of this is the parent/child relationship.
Clients do this regularly in therapy and transfer (superimpose) a maladaptive pattern from their past onto the therapist. Countertransference has come to be a valuable tool for the practitioner to gain empathic access into the world of the client (Goldstein, 2009). In a session, there can be signs of this including a sudden change in the patient’s verbal or nonverbal behavior. This would be sudden change in expression, speech, gaze, tangential moving from topic to topic, sometimes resistance, pausing in statements, defensive or offensive posturing etc. These reactions open windows into the patient’s past and actual relations outside the therapy.

These critical points in the development of transference and countertransference and their interaction, the therapist’s recognition of and capacity to deal with countertransference issues become crucial to the treatment progression. Countertransference reactions are neutral and can have positive effects; these transferences are also sometimes the only way that clients can speak about things like trauma or maladaptive patterns. (Goldstein, 2009).
Countertransference can also use projected identification and creating a fantasy version of what is going on with the therapist versus being with the client’s pain, as described in the above paragraphs. Counter transference can have broader risks including applying it to multiple clients and running the risk of generalizing entanglement into other client’s trauma narratives, instead of being with them in a therapeutic setting with their struggles. This could be a broad projected identification with multiple systems.
When understanding countertransference and the negative “entanglements” looking at the competencies and being able to engage in ambivalence while, also in my Dialectical Behavior Training (DBT) that there are many truths and not just one objective truth. I may be helping and applying my personal and social work competencies correctly in knowing that there are many truths and not just one objective truth. Being empathetic we are bound to see pieces of ourselves in clients, that help us self-identify with our clients. However, this is also a problematic observation of over identifying with the client, and sometimes can be counter-productive. These reactions are only problematic when they cause the practitioners’ decision making to be based on their feelings rather than their clients’ goals (Teyber 2010). This can create and obstacle in therapy and prevent the client from realizing their potential. The role-plays help to crystallize the experiences of therapy and help us discover who we are.
Cultural Attachment and Social Work Competency #4
I think the competency of engaging in diversity in practice as social workers is important so we can understand how diversity characterizes and shapes the human experience.
This is critical to the client and therapist in the formation of identity. We, as social workers, try to reduce harm to our clients in the mezzo and macro sense. This is like forms and types of attachment theory because of parental stressors like marginalization, immigration, xenophobia (Genhardt, 2006). One concept that came up for me is the intersection of the Social Work Competency of “Engaging in Diversity” and cultural transferring. Cultural transferring is taking broad based assumptions based upon a clients backgrounds. Making these assumptions of my client’s worldview is a cyclical maladaptive patter (CMP). This can do harm on the client therapist dyad or can make broad assumptions about a community or group i.e. white savior
complex.