ABSTRACT
The therapist’s initial task is to create conditions in which the patient feels able to talk as freely as possible, while she herself stays in the background. Doctors taking their first steps in psychotherapy often find it difficult to abandon their traditional medical, problem-solving role. The fact that the patient is expected to take the lead in psychotherapeutic interviews has important psychological consequences. Some people may plunge into therapy with a monologue where the psychotherapist finds it hard to interrupt. Patients who are frightened are sometimes so extremely tense and anxious that they are unable to talk easily. It is sometimes helpful to comment on their posture and suggest that they will find it easier to talk if they sit back in the chair and try to relax. Occasionally, the psychotherapist may have been referred a patient who turns out to be psychotic.
