Hi there - don't know if this is the right place to post this but thought I'd give it a whirl.
A friend of mine is going through some counselling at the moment which I am very supportive of. She is doing it with someone who is training and it is someone she sees in "real life" too in a non-related work capacity. Having been through psychotherapy myself I was a bit thrown by the idea of seeing my therapist outside of the sessions (my own sessions took place in an anonymous consulting room, some distance away from home and I NEVER saw the therapist out and about). But I thought that it was better than nothing.
My friend's husband has many issues - he is partly a contributing factor to her own depression with his explosive anger,obsessive behaviour, negativity and jealousy. He has been promising to "see someone" for years now but never has until now - and he's decided to go to the same trainee therapist.
I instantly felt uncomfortable when she told me this - at first I just expressed my relief that he was finally doing something about his problems - but the more I think about it the more I think it can't be healthy.
If i knew my partner was seeing the same therapist as me I would probably unconsciously censor myself and I would constantly be second guessing the information that my therapist had about me from my partner. I also think it is possibly a way for my friend's husband to muscle in on her "space" - almost like a control thing.
Of course I could be just being incredibly judgemental. Maybe other people think this is great, healthy even - I personally have misgivings and wondered what others might say. I'd be particularly interested to know whether it is professionally ethical to do this - would the therapist be best advised to tell the other half to get a different therapist? Or at the very least instigate some sort of couple therapy with them?
Any thoughts welcome.