As a seasoned clinician, I am well aware that insight is the gateway to change. I tell my patients that discovering fresh insights into our problems and ourselves is akin to opening a window that has previously been shuttered or stuck. However, in order to discover those insights, we must open that window to risk new behaviors and experiences that may feel out of reach or simply too intimating to contemplate. I was communicating electronically with an adult twin woman […]
Tag Archives: therapy
A Day in the Life of a Twin Therapist
I try to make myself available as often as I can to those who seek me out for advice, guidance, and suggestions. When I recounted to a colleague how I spent my day yesterday, even I was surprised by the time and effort that I happily devote to helping others solve their twin dilemmas. The first call of the morning was to a mother of twelve-year-old twins, who had written me a beautifully detailed account about how and why her […]
I Need to Be Right
I have been doing conjoint therapy sessions with various pairs of twins and have been intrigued by the dynamic whereby one twin is hyperfocused on needing to be “right.” One twin in particular demonstrates a persistent urge to feel superior. In fact, one young woman became very upset with me when I responded with understanding and validation to her sister’s perception about an incident. She explained how my supporting her sister’s subjectivity implied that I believed she was wrong or […]
The Wonders of Therapy
I met a former patient of mine the other day for coffee. We had not seen one another since she graduated from college a few months ago. Like many college graduates, Shelley, who is a twin, is looking for a job and feeling quite frustrated. She is fortunate to be able to live with her family while she is job hunting and making some money by waiting tables. The issues that Shelley and I worked on about three years ago […]