Psychotherapy Offices

“The Elephant in the Room Is the Room”

That’s what a successful New York psychotherapist said to me after we did a psychological analysis of her office.  She had no idea how much was being communicated by her therapy office - both to her and to her clients. Working with Dr. Morris, she discovered that much of her room had things that were either from her husband or related to her husband, including a picture which was a duplicate of the one in HIS analyst’s office. There was little of her in her office, and what was there was not easily seen. She had eclipsed herself with her husband in her office. What were the implications of this? Was this something she needed to look at psychologically? What was the effect on her patients?

Her recollections regarding the furnishings centered on them being second-hand, found at thrift shops, or yard sales. This was a contrast to the well-decorated home the office was situated in within an upper middle class neighborhood. What did this say about her practice? Her attitude toward it?

In addition to collecting the therapist’s shared material about their office space, I would always note my experience in the space. I would try to wear two hats: one as a researcher and the other as an imagined patient. The separation of the two roles was not always clear cut. I would note my experience in getting to the office for the first time, paying to attention the literal process of finding the place, or getting to the location. Was it complicated? Was I delayed or rushed by unexpected events? Did I forget to bring something I needed?

Though I didn’t know it initially, I found a pattern emerged: the nature of the practitioner and the office was being ‘communicated’ to me somehow before I ever laid eyes on either one of them. En route to the office described above, I encountered a detour. When I arrived at the driveway I was told to enter, it split going to two different houses. I went to the wrong one initially. [This was not the norm for me - I don't usually have trouble finding places.] When I found my way to the right house, I had to walk around to the back of the house under low-hanging trees on an unpaved grass path. There were no signs indicating where to go. I was following the therapist’s instructions. I imagined trying to use this path in the rain or at night and felt uneasy and annoyed. I walked up the small steps and entered a tiny ante-room. Inside the office I sat on the couch in the spot most patients sat, according to the therapist. This was directly across from an uncovered window in which the sun shone right in my face, making me very uncomfortable. I asked about this and she said she had no shade on the window. Nothing more. As an imagined patient, I felt disturbed by this.

“The Exercise Ball”

Before I’d known that therapists and their offices sent a kind of ‘advance man’ in the form of odd connecting information, I stood in front of my closet, struggling with what to wear to see a psychiatrist’s office I’d be seeing for the first time. This too was odd for me; I usually wore a professional weather-appropriate outfit and that was it. Today was different. I could not make up my mind. I wanted to wear exercise clothes. What! Was I out of my mind?! How unprofessional, I thought. The battle continued but the clock forced a decision and I quickly grabbed a professional outfit and off I went.

The first thing that caught my eye was the exercise ball. As the psychiatrist told me about his office and the content of his drawers, he noted that he kept his exercise clothes in one drawer so he could exercise each day. Being physically fit was important to him.

As I drove home, it sunk in: I WAS getting information about the office/practitioner before I arrived. It continues to happen to this day. I don’t know what the information beforehand; I have to show up to find out.

Notice what comes to you as you head someplace, especially if you’ve never been there before, or you’ve not met the person you are meeting before.

“Before and After”

As part of the process, I will sit in the therapist’s seat and the therapist sits in the patient’s seat. This was done in the above instance and the therapist was shocked and dismayed to ’see’ what the patient was looking at throughout the session. Her view (pictured below) was quite different. She found it pleasing, relaxing. The patient instead looked at a desk - work - with lots of visual cues to remind them of time and things to do. It was not at all relaxing. The therapist immediately changed her desk so patients had a more relaxing view. As a bonus, she said she felt much more relaxed working at her desk.

The therapist looked at patients seated on the sofa and so saw something quite different than a busy desk scene.

“The Traditional View of Therapy Offices”

The primary focus of most mental health training is on the patient and the relationship of the therapist to the patient. The research points to the change agent in therapy being the relationship between the therapist and the patient.  The professional literature offers scant material on the office - the office decor, design, furniture, inspirational quality, counter-transference, comfort, color, size, shape… What my research shows, is that the traditional point of view leaves out volumes of crucially important information. The traditional view is ironically pretty unconscious.

Things to Know about your office:

1. There is no “blank screen” of an office. The appearance, layout, and things you put in your office affect the patient.
2. Your office communicates your own unconscious material to your patients.
3. Clients have reactions to and opinions about your office, but rarely mention them.

Dr. Morris’s psychological analysis protocol for psychotherapy offices enables practitioners to work more effectively with existing clients and attract and retain new clients.

Contact Dr. Morris to arrange a consulting session.

Select the package that best meets your needs:

1. Jump Start Package = I assess what you need + give you recommendations = $120.

2. Keep the Momentum Package = I assess + recommend + remove + sort = $180.

3. New Beginnings Package = all of the above + customized systems - starts at $360.

Consultations can be done virtually or in person within a 5 mile radius of Chevy Chase, MD.