When you are not having a good time or suffer from a psychological problem, the first thing your loved ones or friends tell you is to go to the psychologist. And you always ask if anyone knows someone who lives nearby and who is good. You never stop to think about the possibility of the psychologist coming to your house. It’s normal, you will think that he is very expensive and that he is going to judge you for your mess.
Nor is it very common for the doctor, psychologist or masseuse to come to your home. The normal thing, or what we have always done, is to go to the center, hospital or consultation.
The psychologist at home or in the office?
The key question would be, is it more effective for the psychologist to come to the home, or is it just a matter of comfort?
If we discount all the patients who cannot travel, affected by physical or psychological pathologies, and also those who do not directly want to go to a consultation or hospital, the first thing we can affirm without a doubt is that it is more comfortable.
Think wisely. The last thing you want is to leave the house, go by car or public transport, and have to pretend to everyone you see that you are fine.
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Comfort is important, but so is privacy
Many times we don’t want others to see us how we are. And we don’t want them to have the wrong idea about us either. The last thing we want is to have to wait in the living room with other patients who you may know or may not even want to meet.
Going to the consultation is the beginning of taking control of your life and wanting to find a solution to the problems. But opening the door for a stranger to enter your home is an even more significant effort. An effort that reflects a strong commitment to improving a situation.
The commitment is greater
When the psychologist comes to your house you cannot hide, falsify or deceive, at least for a long time, that the exercises have not been done, the token economies have not been completed, or the people mentioned have not shown up for the session.
They are facts that are not told, they are confirmed, they are seen, they are directly observed, and they are confronted. You can’t hide, you can’t run away from the problem. And that, when you are fighting to improve a situation, is an advantage.
The usefulness of psychology depends 85% on the patient
Psychology in general is not a magic pill. Its usefulness depends 5% on the therapist, 10% on the therapy and 85% on the patient. How can we ensure that that 85% is really effective?
From my point of view, as a psychologist who is an expert in home psychology, I can affirm that when the therapy is done at home, the involvement is much greater.
But not only that. Evaluation time and the number of questions are also reduced. The data obtained by direct observation of the environment, the distribution of space, photographs, colors, electronic devices, bookcases or rooms is increased.
And of course, the dynamics that happen, how it is spoken, how it is watched, how it is played or how it is discussed. If you are not prepared to tell your problems or you do not know how, your daily life and your movements reveal them in a very natural way.
The greatest challenge of the psychologist at home
The greatest challenge that the psychologist faces is being the external and objective figure of the patient and his environment. In ordering prioritizing all the information that he obtains in order to be able to draw up a plan of short, medium and long-term objectives.
The greatest challenge that the patient faces is being oneself and maintaining the degree of commitment that is required to overcome a problem.
Article previously provided by the author for publication in .