ABSTRACT
Another type of beginning moment in the interaction between patient and therapist, perhaps in a clinic or hospital, might be one where the therapist has the option of walking down to a waiting area where patients wait to be escorted by the therapist back to the office. The therapist who walks down the hall, greets a patient in the waiting room, and accompanies the patient back is being far more gratifying. Gratification and deprivation have to be balanced, and should be weighed and provided as needed throughout the course of treatment. One of the problems of gratification is that too much gratification can turn out to be a seduction and a lie, causing patients to feel disappointed, let down, and lied to. On the other hand, therapists can't simply be depriving and not gratifying at all. A therapist needs to find the delicate balance between gratification and deprivation.
