If someone always shows their emotions can they work in a psyc field?

Question

my face alwasy shows my emotions- even when I try to hide it. my mother is the same way (stupid genes!). I wonder if I could ever work as a counselor, therapist, psychologist, or something similar since I can't keep a blank face. I know there is training on how to do this, but I don't know if I could ever be taught to not show my emotions when I don't even realize when I do it.

you are not suppose to show emotions while with a client/patient. or they will be influened. they can either get a rise out of you or will be quiet about things because you had a disgusted look on your face.

I know that you have to have a repore with a client. but you have to cover up your true feelings so if they try to upset you, they don't know they really did.

and if they do disgust you, they don't know it

could the people responding please list their career or experience with psychology?
it would help me out while reading th answers

Answer 1

if you want to be a therapist, go for it. it's a wonderfully rewarding profession.

you're right that it's important for a therapist to avoid showing too many emotions while interacting with clients. this is something which is definitely possible to learn. not only will your supervisors at your clinical placement alert you when you're showing emotions in a way which might be inappropriate, but you will also learn this as you work with patients independently.

i, too, tend to be emotionally expressive but after working as a therapist for a few years i have learned to control this. after a while, it really does become second nature.

Also, remember that the degree to which a therapist is supposed to remain emotionally neutral really depends on the type of therapy one is providing and the type of clients one works with. For example, if you're interested in pursuing psychodynamic therapy it is more important to remain more of a neutral figure whereas this is less important if you're providing cognitive behavior therapy. of course, you should never make a client feel like they're disgusting, but smiling, laughing, or expressing other positive emotions isn't necessarily bad. once you work with any given patient for a period of time, you will learn what makes them comfortable and will learn to adjust your approach to meet their particular needs. also, because you know this about yourself you may want to carefully choose the type of population you want to work with. For example, if you're easily upset and would show this on your face, you may not want to specialize in trauma issues because these do tend to be more upsetting than some other conditions (hearing about rape situations regularly just tends to be somewhat more difficult than dealing with ocd on a daily basis).

good luck, and don't let your facial expressions hold you back. it's a very common struggle that new therapists deal with (most people do have at least some tendency to show their emotions on their face), so don't be discouraged.

Answer 2

The short answer is yes, you can be a counselor. Carl Rogers wrote that one of the three aspects of effective therapy is to be genuine. Being genuine means that you are able to be yourself, a fully emotional and reactive human being, with the client. The client needs to experience you as a real person so that they can actually learn to relate better with others, who may have their own quirks, in the real world.

However, it seems like you might be referring to facial responses that may come across as being uncaring or rejecting to the other person. Perhaps you may show shock at someone sharing they have fantasies of violence or that they are having an affair. It would be inappropriate to respond with a look of surprise or disgust on your face. If you did then the person may think that you disapprove of them and may not trust you with their secrets.

To improve your facial reactions from being rejecting to being accepting means to appreciate where the client is coming from. Rather than thinking of their behavior as being in complete isolation from their situation, you need to learn that people are shaped by their past experiences and current situations. If you accept that the client already feels anxious about being with you, then you're natural facial reactions can be more accepting.

To sum up: facial reactions are not only inevitable but they are also useful for the client's growth. By keeping in mind the client's past and their anxieties, you will find that your reactions will be more appropriate. I encourage you to seek therapy yourself so that you learn what it is like to be a client and how scary it is to open up with others. Finally, don't judge yourself completely by the way you are with your friends because therapy is a unique environment and the therapist tends to behave differently while doing therapy.

Answer 3

It SHOULD be great and show complete empathy. But SHOULDS never work for me. Turn it around. Would you want to pour your heart out and then look over to see your therapist wiping or blowing her nose? No, because then you would feel guilty. And guilty is 3 doors down and to your left. Try something close, where your emotions won't get in the way, like Experimental Psychology? There are so many places for you in psy. without counseling clients one on one!! Good Luck!! @8=)

Answer 4

nothing is wrong with showing your emotions to pateints you should be able to relate as a psychologist. people need responsiveness when they talk to people about their problems. listen it depends on how good you are responding to others problems in ways that helps them. if youre really into helping others and can understand people,,,oh there are so many factors playing into this i can't even begin to tell you...
then it is the job for if you basically understand people.
and yes being a bland person to talk to can't help anyone. you cannot impose your emotions upon someone and if someone cries you must be able to support them but showing concern, relating to them, and being expressive is actually a must.

i know it gives me the greatest pleasure of all to help people and i have done it in subtle ways often in my life. i have alwasy never admitted it but these people have expressed their appreciation to me. and trust me the feeling you get inside when someone is touched by YOU is undescribable and beyond any kind of joy one can feel.

dont misunderstand me tho--showing your emoitons has the right timing and appropriateness is always required. im not saying the others are wrong in that you cant show your emotions. but at the same time you must HAVE emotion as i said one must relate and can't be blahhh about their patients problem.

Answer 5

There's no harm in showing one's emotions. Being demonstrative, means one is in touch with reality and with one self. However, for a good psychotherapist, to be overly emotional is not a positive thing . When you start falling apart. You become useless to the next person or client.

I'm a critical care nurse. I deal with life and death on a daily basis working in an acutely ill intensive care unit. I have to deal with the severely injured, critically ill, dying patient, or the grieving families. There are times, I get too emotionally involved in my interaction. Eventually, after taking a lot of courses, I adopted the policy to keep my emotions in check. Much like the doctors. You become impassioned or even callous. If you don't, you get that burn -out feeling and you quit your profession. You become dysfunctional and of no use to the next patient who most likely needed your expertise and clear presence of mind.


In my long years of working experience in an intensive care unit, there were several occasions that I'm exposed to the fact that I'm but just a human being with feelings. But I have to refrain from being overly too emotional. I have to set the example as a professional , for the strength and the morale fiber in a very sad situation. I have to regain my self composure.and control.

A caregiver such as a psychotherapist can not afford such emotional outbursts or she/he would be rendered useless for objectivity. to the client's or patient's problems or dilemna.

Answer 6

showing emotions is great because when giving therapy to someone you make it clear about the help given. however,you need to block out if your expression on your face if something is bothering you outside of your job(fight with friend,etc.)because some things you should not show to anyone because it is unprofessional;just focus on the person and doing the job. if you really want to work in the psyc field,you need to have the person's trust to talk about anything and understand psychology with good people skills. good people skills mean there is no problem connecting and getting along with the person to help them without arguing contineously.

Answer 7

Counselors need to learn to be honest. Nothing wrong with showing emotion and much wrong with just sitting there stone faced.

Answer 8

Yes. However you cannot act based upon your own emotions.

Answer 9

Empathic listening is an important quality. Go for it.