atom11:Weems no word count
What is intimacy?
[Intimacy] implies more closeness instead of superficiality; something closer to your core being; being familiar, being close. Intimacy in a relationship is facilitated by full disclosure between all parties. Intimacy is about digging deep and getting beyond the surface.
Televisions and various virtual devices have become the focus of our intimate lives. Do these technologies every encourage intimacy between two people?
Technology can encourage intimacy because you can see somebody’s face…because you can hear; you get a different sense of the words being used. You get tone, emotion, timing, flow, dialogue…you get a whole lot more information when you can visually talk.
How would you describe the relationship between a psychiatrist and a patient?
I like to know what the patient wants from the relationship though listening to them very carefully, with all my sense, to try and understand what brings them there, what are the things that are bothering them the most, bring that into myself to try to feel that, to understand what the problem is, and give them some feedback to see if it may help them to see things from my perspective or a little bit differently. .. I need to know that somebody trusts me and to know that we are working in the same direction,
Hypothetically speaking, if the patient could manipulate your office, and add some sort of territorial attachment to do, would there be a noticeable change in the reactions of the patients? How does the concept of ownership factor in intimacy?
If patients had an investment in the space and they changed it, the interaction between us would be better.
When I was a kid, I remember going into a room full of pillows in your office and being in some sort of wonderland. What was this room, and how is it used?
That room was a group room where you could structure your environment the way you wanted to…[Patients] could grab their pillows and decide how they wanted to arrange themselves in the room. The patients and the group leader really liked the flexibility of the room…In group rooms we don’t like to have tables, we like to be unobstructed for communication; the whole body is present.
You recently moved into a newly constructed wing of the building. Were you involved at all in the design process? Does the building suit your needs and the needs of your patients?
Yes, we are very happy with the new addition, and the patients are as well. During the design phase, the director of the building had a detailed role, including where the electrical outlets are located in each room and where the desks might be positioned. The idea behind that is a bit crazy because every professional is going to choose how to arrange their office.
From a psychological point of view, is the need for back protection based on natural fear of being attacked?
Yes, and it is certainly exaggerated with paranoia…if you can’t see, if something is behind you, then that leaves all sorts of imagination for what might be there. It’s reassuring to know that somebody has your back—that somebody is taking care of you—and that you don’t need to worry about it.
