Challenging Cases & Treatment Populations

A covert narcissist’s eagerness to share their suffering can make them feel like ideal clients. And that’s what’s so vexing for clinicians. Read more

For therapists who shy away from confrontation, harnessing their reactions to an antagonistic client in clinically useful ways may require learning new skills... Read more

A therapist must abandon his treatment plan to provide mental health services to the homeless population. Read more

"One of my clients takes prescription medication for anxiety and often complains about the negative side effects. I can’t help but feel it’s getting in the... Read more

Sure, your clients may find therapy helpful. But do they find it memorable? How can we get clients to retain all the wonderful information they learn in... Read more

With an estimated 6.2 million Americans in need of mental health support tailored to the challenges of dementia, why are so few therapists working with them? Read more

With plenty of misconceptions about treating traumatized children, one clinician shares why it's a chance to help them share their stories and a personal... Read more

Whether it's vanity, a failure to take constructive criticism, mistreating family and friends, or lacking empathy for others, clients with narcissistic traits... Read more

Before talking to your own clients about domestic and intimate partner violence, here are three myths you should know about. Read more

A therapist who also provides psychological first aid after critical incidents opens up about his work and shares why it's been the most challenging—and... Read more

Ron Taffel talks with Angela Diaz, Director of the Mount Sinai Adolescent Center, on how we can tailor our interventions to meet the unique needs of our young... Read more

Many grief specialists talk about helping clients finding meaning after loss. But often, loss feels meaningless. One therapist working with grieving clients... Read more

Therapy is hard work. But what are therapy’s biggest challenges, and how do therapists overcome them? Here, five therapists share the clinical challenge that... Read more

There’s magic in therapy—all types—the most astonishing of which only happens when you stop trying to put on a flawless show. Read more

Networker Content Editor Meaghan Winter sat down for a live conversation with Judge Ginger Lerner-Wren, pioneer of America's first mental health court and... Read more

The debate around surrogate partner therapy. Read more

Nan LittleWalker never formally signed up to be one of my teachers. In fact, I first met her as one of my colleague’s patients. Several years ago, during my... Read more

I’m inspired by the courage of the therapists featured in this issue, who are stretching beyond their customary professional roles to apply their clinical... Read more

How do you work with a client who intentionally tries to break every rule of therapy, spoken and implicit? Read more

Mark has anger issues, and his therapist finds herself getting extremely reactive when he loses his temper in therapy. Recently, he called her “a joke” and... Read more

During my internship after graduate school, I worked as therapist at an intensive out-patient eating disorder (ED) clinic. One of the patients, Amber, was a... Read more

My young client, Brian, can reduce even confident mid-life adults to an infantile puddle, one provocative comment at a time. He's a therapist's nightmare... Read more

A client sees his perfectionism as an advantage, even though it ramps up his anxiety, exacerbates his sense of shame, and keeps him living a very rigid life... Read more

Let's say your client lets a microaggression slip during a session. Do you bring it up? Therapist and author Anatasia Kim shares her eight-step process for... Read more

When working with teens, a therapist must become comfortable with the idea of dealing with power tactics rather than communication skills. Here are four common... Read more

Of all the meaningful sessions that take place in a therapist’s career, what makes certain ones stand out? Sometimes, it’s taking creative leaps in... Read more

Although it’s not usually acknowledged, change in the consulting room goes both ways. Even as they help clients wrestle with their issues, it’s the rare... Read more

A therapist recommends exercises like journaling prompts and guided mediations that she feels would benefit her clients between sessions. Although they seem... Read more

Back in 1979, I was a young dance therapy intern at St. Elizabeth’s, the country’s first federally operated psychiatric hospital, which opened in 1855. St... Read more

We’ve all seen it happen. Maybe some of us are even guilty of it ourselves. When you get an email from that pesky neighbor, a text message from the boring... Read more