12/09/2025
“no pile is too large, no mess is too much” 🫶🏻
We therapists talk about the phrase, “meet people where they are” a lot, but it’s so easy to lose sight of its deep virtue, especially when you have clients with very acute needs or you’re dealing with tough insurance or agency standards. Sometimes you’re also swayed by your own biases or countertransference- you might assume YOU know exactly what the client needs.
But to meet people where they are is to offer them true attunement and respect. We don’t get to dictate timelines or outcomes- these variables are never within our control. What we do get to control is how steady and curious we remain. We control our capacity to hold the frame, maintain the container, AND offer a consistent presence as much as possible.
I always find Carl Rogers immensely grounding with his quote: “In my early professional years I was asking the question: How can I treat, or cure, or change this person? Now I would phrase the question in this way: How can I provide a relationship which this person may use for his own personal growth?”♥️
