It is also very important as it gathers all information required to allow the therapist to give the correct treatment as follows:
Physical
The therapist needs to be aware if the client has any contra-indication or special care conditions. The therapist is there to provide complimentary therapy and not endanger the client by aggravating existing conditions. This could also cover the client having difficulties in getting on the bed and needing assistance e.g. steps.
Social
Can the client afford lengthy treatments or do they simply want a short course of therapy to ‘lift them’ up. Do they have other social contrainsts eg childcare or working hours. Can you as a therapist offer them flexible times for treatment?
Psychological
The client may for example have a problem with meeting new people and may therefore mind it difficult to open up to the therapist until they are more comfortable. Another may be body image the client may feel selfconscious being undressed under a blanket. Therapists should be aware that not only overweight clients may feel this way.
There are many skills that a therapist can employ to make a client feel more at ease to allow a productive relationship to form e.g.
Silence
A client may find it difficult to discuss a certain medical condition. If there are silences it may be the client’s way of formulating how they are going to say something. It is important to recognise this and not try to fill the spaces.
Congruence (Genuineness)
A client will need to feel that they can trust a therapist for a relationship to build. They will soon realise that the therapist is false if they try to be something they are not. For example it will be important to the relationship that the therapist does not attempt to make up answers to question they are asked. The client will respect them more if they tell the truth.
Empathy
Empathy is not sympathy and it is not thinking about how you would feel if the same thing(s) had happened to you. It is the ability to listen to what is and isn’t being said and respond to emotion and feelings in a way that shows the client they are being understood. The client is not there to support you as a therapist and therefore does not want or need to know that your husband also died last year.
Unconditional Positive Regard
Unconditional positive regard is accepting the person but not the behaviour or attitude. By that I mean that although the client may not behave in a way that you the therapist would deem acceptable for yourself to behave you still accept the client as a human being worthy of warmth, care and respect. You are therefore valuing that person as a human being who as a human being will be prone to make mistakes. By continuing to accept the client it would be possible to build up a trusting relationship which in turn would make them feel valued and safe.
