The Beginning Psychotherapist's Companion Second Edition

Filling in the gaps from students' lack of experience and confidence, The Beginning Psychotherapist's Companion, Second Edition is a supportive and empathetic guide, addressing real-world concerns and providing essential insights not taught in textbooks.

With a reassuring and clear writing style, Willer offers practical suggestions and clinical examples to address the professional development and emotional concerns of the beginning psychotherapist. She guides readers through structuring the first session, making clinical observations, and establishing a therapeutic alliance. Through the use of culturally diverse clinical vignettes, Willer discusses the foundations of ethical practice, including informed consent, confidentiality, documentation, and setting boundaries. The reader is guided on how and when to refer clients for medication and other health care. Crisis management principles are detailed, including suicide and violence risk assessment, child abuse, elder abuse, intimate partner violence, and rape. Willer also provides professional advice on contemporary concerns such as social networking, online searches of clients, the psychotherapist's internet presence, and other important emerging challenges. Comprehensive, practical, and thoroughly updated, The Beginning Psychotherapist's Companion, Second Edition is the ideal resource for students and early career psychotherapists.

Jan Willer, PhD, is an adjunct faculty member at DePaul University and a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice in Chicago. As a former psychology internship training director, she has lectured, taught, and published on mental health training.

Acknowledgments
Introduction

Section I The Psychotherapist's Self And Relationships
1 The Psychotherapist's Self
2 The Supervisor-Supervisee Relationship
3 The Therapeutic Frame
4 Boundaries
5 Psychotherapist-Client Differences and Coping with Prejudice
6 Professional Electronic Communications and Data Security

Section II Getting Started With Psychotherapy
7 Confidentiality and Informed Consent
8 Making Clinical Observations
9 Making a Diagnosis
10 Professional Phone Contacts and the Initial Phone Call
11 The First Session: Preparation, Tasks, and Structure
12 Progress Notes and the Chart
13 Starting Psychotherapy and Stabilizing the Client

Section III Referrals
14 Psychotropic Medication: Referrals and Adherence
15 Health-Related Referrals
16 Mental Health Referrals

Section IV Crisis Readiness
17 Managing Crises Step-by-Step
18 Assessing Suicide Risk and Warning Signs
19 Suicide Prevention, Risk Reduction, and Documentation
20 Violence Risk Management
21 Child and Elder Maltreatment, Intimate Partner Violence, and Rape Crises

Section V Caring for Yourself and Your Clients
22 Challenging Relationships and Emotions
23 Becoming a Psychotherapist: Challenges, Rewards, and Growth

Afterword
About the Author
References
Index