Why “write therapy down”? Many patients* keep a therapy journal (something I hope to  be blogging about shortly)—it can help you understand and become more aware of the therapy process, it can help focus your objectives, it is simply a good way to share feelings that otherwise might not come to the fore, and so on.

Therapists, too “write therapy down”—generally, for each and every patient they see. I want to share with you why they do.

Briefly, there are several reasons why your therapist writes everything down including evaluations, treatment plans and many notes about what goes on during your sessions together. Of course, they could merely memorize this information—though that would be quite difficult.   

But by writing notes, your therapist can really increase his or her awareness and knowledge and improve treatment. That is why your one-hour long may start on the quarter or half hour—your therapist is using time between sessions to write progress notes from the previous patient and is also using some of that time to review your previous session notes so he doesn’t forget important things about you or your situation. (Don’t be offended, your therapist may see between 20-30 patients a week–it’s hard to remember every detail).

By making a written evaluation your therapist will be able to review his or her notes throughout the treatment experience. He or she will be able to more clearly see improvements, inconsistencies, or even set backs, etc., and revise your treatment plan accordingly. In essence, every time your therapist meets with you, he or she is actually participating in a continuous, ongoing evaluation. If the “baseline” evaluation is written down t he or she can reference it.

If you are using health insurance to cover the costs of therapy, many insurance companies actually require a written evaluation (and written treatment plan) in order to reimburse payments and grant visits.

If your therapist is unable to meet with you, let’s say he or she is on vacation or has a bad cold, etc., a colleague can review the thorough and detailed notes and be able to jump in, at least somewhat, to help you.

If you have another professional involved in your care, such as a program, individual medical doctor, psychiatrist or other mental health provider you may be asked to sign a release for this written information to be passed along to them. It can help them coordinate your care better.

 If you decide to go to another therapist, your evaluation, treatment plan, and progress notes can be forwarded to the next provider at your request.

 Also, you are entitled to have written copies of your treatment records, including the evaluation, treatment plan, etc. for your own uses.

When you complete treatment your records can be sent to your after-care provider at your request.

There may be a few more reasons why it makes sense to write therapy down, but those are the basics.

 Cup of Soup - Mini Blog Entry

*Patient vs. Client: For A.N. who emailed me and asked why I use the term “patient”–these are my thoughts.

My choice of “patient” is a personal preference—I believe you and your therapist should use the term that is most comfortable for you. To me personally, the term “client” feels impersonal and more business-like—it just doesn’t connote the same level of responsibility, connection, and care. “Patient” just feels like it fits in a helping-profession type of relationship. Many people disagree with me and there is room for a wide range of opinions. We all know that what may be politically-correct can and will change over time—patients, consumers, clients, and back again. Again, you and your therapist should use whatever is comfortable for both of you. If being referred to as a client or consumer or patient is helpful to you, then you should state your preference. I believe this a personal and not political  decision that therapists and the people they care for must come to terms with.

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    Last reviewed: 19 Jan 2010