ABSTRACT
Leaving may be a time to acknowledge a couple's cultural background: a goodbye in their language, a recognition of their upcoming religious holiday, i.e. something low-key and appropriate. Sometimes partners want to engage the therapist personally at the end. The therapist needs to assess the intent of the partner in addressing the therapist on a personal level. Couples therapists have all experienced awkward leavings. One partner is still upset. One storms out. The couples therapist needs to do his/her best to smooth out the leaving if it is not going well. The session is over, so the smoothing needs to be careful and not re-engaging. Therapists know the expression, 'doorknob therapy'. This refers to the clients bringing up a loaded issue right as they are leaving. Leaving seems easy enough. There are different types of leavings, such as reluctant leavings, abrupt leavings, and awkward leavings. A session is not completely over until the couple has gone.
