ABSTRACT
When the framework has been established and the offer of regular
appointments accepted there then follows a period of settling into the
therapeutic work. With some clients a sense of engagement occurs quickly,
others take longer, and there are also those with whom uncertainty is ever
present. Whilst these different feelings can be understood in terms of
transference and countertransference, it is also important to examine
therapist interventions as a way of monitoring their impact on the client. It
is all too easy to forget how our words may be experienced and before we
speak it is useful to use Casement’s concept of trial identification
(Casement 1990). By putting ourselves in the place of the client and
imagining how our interpretation might be heard, we can be sensitive in
our choice of words. At times we all re-interpret or misinterpret what is said
to us, but if the therapist’s words spring from preconceived notions
unrelated to the individuals they are meant to address then they will have
little emotional meaning. We can never know with absolute certainty that
the client is engaged, and however solid the therapeutic alliance may seem
we can never be entirely sure that the client will return for the next session.
By keeping this possibility in mind, complacency can be avoided. When a
