Private practice of a psychologist. Myths and reality. How to start?

In my practice of promoting psychological services, I constantly conduct some kind of research, run “experiments” on test sites and try to look at psychological practice through the eyes of people who turn to my psychologist clients for help. To be honest, the latter is difficult to achieve due to my direct involvement in this topic, because for this you need to completely cut off your professional baggage. Therefore, I turn to website statistics, and also convert broad knowledge about promotion in other areas to my area of specialization.

Often for psychologists, the process of attracting clients looks rather one-dimensional: posted information, received a call, the person made an appointment or promised to call back later, the client came to the first meeting, the client remained in therapy or “broke out.” Externally, everything looks exactly like this. But few people think (and if they do, few people understand well) what a person goes through before turning to a specific psychologist. How does he decide about counseling? What is his choice of psychologist based on? How long does it take him? What determines whether a client comes for one meeting or a full course?

When in 2009 Vladislav Andryushin described to me his theory about the sales cycle of psychological services, I, of course, agreed, but I did not have clear criteria and feedback from my clients to be completely sure of this. We were talking about a two-year period of “maturation” for a person to contact a psychologist. According to Vlad, this period can vary from 9 months to 2 years (we used this data in 2010 in our report at the Summit “Successful Psychologists: Sharing Experience.” I also had questions: what does a person spend this time on, how does this develop? process?

In the absence of the opportunity to find out otherwise, except by interviewing colleagues on occasion, I found confirmation. Yulia Bogacheva, for example, in her interview (it was a very cozy place and intimate conversation) spoke about 3-6 months based on her observations in her practice and the experience of her colleagues.

Now that I have quite a long experience in promoting psychological services and psychologists’ websites, I can rely on real statistics. And this is what I can see from here.

This period today ranges from 3 to 9 months. This is noticeable not only from the practice of colleagues, but also from data on a person’s first and last visit to a psychologist’s website and on his behavior on the site.

It is typical for most real clients that when they first come to the site, they view the number of pages on it no more than the average visitor, but after 3-6 months they return again to view a significantly larger number of pages - read articles, answers from a psychologist answer questions, study reviews and diplomas. My client-colleagues tell me that the client directly points out the importance of reading the articles of this specialist for his appointment with a specialist (the person compares the psychologist’s views with his own).

Of course, for some clients this period is much shorter, but I have a hypothesis that in some cases this inversely correlates with the duration of the course in terms of its early completion due to the artificiality of motivation (most approaches have an idea of the average duration of the course of sessions required for changes – that’s exactly what we’re talking about).

What are you “eating”?

There is an expression: “to seize.” “What are you eating?” - this is a question of what condition a person is trying to change with the help of food.

For example, a person is used to living by restraining his emotions. In the evening he is exhausted because during the day he had to suppress so much in himself. Due to accumulated discomfort, he begins to eat high-calorie foods. He quickly feels better. Then it’s true that heaviness in the stomach may appear, but these are minimal consequences.

Long-term consequences come later. This could be weight gain, obesity, loss of beauty. But at the very first moment a person feels quite pleasant from eating food. It changes its state from minus to plus. In this way, a person “eats” the feeling of discomfort associated with constant suppression of feelings.

Then the person tries to lose weight, and when he doesn’t succeed, he can come to a psychologist. At this moment of meeting with a psychologist, it does not matter to a person what state he was initially stuck in. For him, the answer to the question “how to get rid of food addiction?” associated with getting rid of the consequences that occurred due to use. A person will complain more about how bad he feels, how he doesn’t control himself, how he tries to stop, goes to a bunch of trainings, and nothing works, he still breaks down, how he experiences his failure in trying to regulate his weight.

Stages of development of food addiction

Let's try to break this process down into stages.

Stage 1 - A person has a primary unsatisfied need and reasons why he cannot satisfy it.

Stage 2 - He accumulates tension and deficit.

Stage 3 - A person relieves stress with food, gets relief and pleasure.

Stage 4 - The consequences of overeating appear and the person wants to change them.

Stage 5 - The person tried to do something about the consequences of overeating and failed.

Stage 6 - After the fiasco, he feels like a failure, a weakling, scolds himself for not being able to control himself and his urges to eat. The person despairs, holds on for a while, and then, in a semi-conscious state, begins to eat again.

You can pay attention to the fact that a person comes to a psychologist at stage 4-5-6. However, in order to help him cope with food addiction, the psychologist must work with stages 1 and 2. The difficulty is that people are motivated to change the consequences of their addiction, not its causes. However, if you work with the psychological component of food addiction, with the primary unsatisfied need, then subsequently it becomes much easier to refrain from overeating.

Code of Ethics for Psychologist in Russia

CODE OF ETHICS FOR PSYCHOLOGISTS

Preamble

The ethical code of a psychologist of the Russian Psychological Society was drawn up in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, Federal Law of the Russian Federation No. 152-FZ of July 27, 2006 “On Personal Data”, the Charter of the Russian Psychological Society, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association “Ethical principles of conducting medical research involving people as research subjects", the international Universal Declaration of Ethical Principles for Psychologists, the Ethical Metacode of the European Federation of Psychological Associations.
The advisory and regulatory body of the Russian Psychological Society on issues of professional ethics of psychologists is the Ethics Committee of the Russian Psychological Society.
In this Code of Ethics, the term “Psychologist” refers to a person who has a higher education in psychology.
In this Code of Ethics, the term “Client” refers to a person, group of persons or organization who has agreed to be the subject of psychological research for personal, scientific, industrial or social interests or has personally approached the Psychologist for psychological help.
This Code of Ethics applies to all types of activities of psychologists defined by this Code of Ethics. This Code of Ethics applies to all forms of work of a Psychologist, including those carried out remotely or via the Internet.
The professional activity of a psychologist is characterized by his special responsibility to clients, society and psychological science, and is based on the trust of society, which can only be achieved by observing the ethical principles of professional activity and behavior contained in this Code of Ethics.
The Code of Ethics for Psychologists serves: for internal regulation of the activities of the community of psychologists; to regulate relations between psychologists and society; the basis for applying sanctions in case of violation of ethical principles of professional activity.

I. Ethical principles of a psychologist

The work ethics of a psychologist are based on universal moral and moral values. The ideals of free and comprehensive development of the individual and his respect, bringing people together, creating a fair, humane, prosperous society are decisive for the work of a psychologist. The ethical principles and rules of work of a psychologist formulate the conditions under which his professionalism, the humanity of his actions, the respect of the people with whom he works are preserved and strengthened, and under which the efforts of the psychologist bring real benefits.

Principle of respect
The psychologist proceeds from respect for personal dignity, human rights and freedoms, proclaimed and guaranteed by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and international documents on human rights.
The principle of respect includes:
Respect for dignity, rights and freedoms of the individual
A psychologist treats people with equal respect regardless of their age, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, membership in a particular culture, ethnic group and race, religion, language, socio-economic status, physical capabilities and other grounds.
The impartiality of the Psychologist does not allow a biased attitude towards the Client. All actions of the Psychologist regarding the Client must be based on data obtained by scientific methods. The subjective impression that the Psychologist receives when communicating with the Client, as well as the Client’s social status, should not have any influence on the Psychologist’s conclusions and actions.
The Psychologist avoids activities that could lead to discrimination against the Client on any grounds.
The psychologist should organize his work in such a way that neither its process nor its results cause harm to the health and social status of the Client and persons associated with him.
Confidentiality
Information obtained by the Psychologist in the process of working with the Client on the basis of a trusting relationship is not subject to intentional or accidental disclosure outside the agreed conditions.
The results of the study must be presented in such a way that they cannot compromise the Client, the Psychologist or psychological science.
Psychodiagnostic data of students obtained during their studies must be treated confidentially. Information about Clients must also be treated confidentially.
By demonstrating specific cases of his work, the Psychologist must ensure that the dignity and well-being of the Client are protected.
The Psychologist should not look for information about the Client that goes beyond the scope of the Psychologist’s professional tasks.
The Client has the right to consult a Psychologist or work with him without the presence of third parties.
Uncontrolled storage of data obtained during research can harm the Client, the Psychologist and society as a whole. The procedure for handling data obtained in research and the procedure for storing it must be strictly regulated.
Awareness and voluntary consent of the Client
The client must be informed of the purpose of the work, the methods used and how to use the information received. Work with the Client is permitted only after the Client has given informed consent to participate in it. If the Client is not able to make a decision on his participation in the work, such a decision must be made by his legal representatives.
The Psychologist must inform the Client of all major steps or treatment actions. In the case of inpatient treatment, the Psychologist must inform the Client about possible risks and alternative treatment methods, including non-psychological ones.
The Psychologist can make video or audio recordings of consultation or treatment only after receiving consent from the Client. This provision also applies to telephone conversations. The Psychologist may allow third parties to view video and audio recordings of consultations and telephone conversations only after obtaining consent from the Client.
Participation in psychological experiments and research must be voluntary. The client must be informed in a form that is understandable to him about the goals, features of the study and possible risks, discomfort or undesirable consequences, so that he can independently make a decision about cooperation with the Psychologist. The psychologist is obliged to first make sure that the Client’s dignity and personality will not be harmed. The Psychologist must take all necessary precautions to ensure the safety and well-being of the Client and to minimize the possibility of unexpected risks.
In cases where prior comprehensive disclosure would conflict with the objectives of the research being conducted, the Psychologist must take special precautions to ensure the well-being of the subjects. Where possible, and provided that the information communicated will not cause harm to the Client, all clarifications must be made after the end of the experiment.
Client self-determination
The Psychologist recognizes the Client's right to maintain maximum autonomy and self-determination, including the general right to enter into and terminate a professional relationship with the Psychologist.
Any person can be a client if he has undoubted legal capacity due to age, state of health, mental development, and physical independence. In case of insufficient legal capacity of a person, the decision on his cooperation with the Psychologist is made by the person representing the interests of this person according to the law.
The psychologist should not interfere with the Client’s desire to involve another psychologist for consultation (in cases where there are no legal contraindications to this).
Principle of competence
The psychologist must strive to establish and maintain a high level of competence in his work and recognize the limits of his competence and his experience. A psychologist should provide only those services and use only those methods in which he has been trained and experienced.
The principle of competence includes:
Knowledge of professional ethics
A psychologist must have comprehensive knowledge in the field of professional ethics and must know the provisions of this Code of Ethics. In his work, a Psychologist must be guided by ethical principles.
If staff or students act as experimenters in psychodiagnostic procedures, the Psychologist must ensure, regardless of their own responsibility, that the actions they perform comply with professional requirements.
The psychologist is responsible for ensuring that the professional level of the personnel he supervises meets the requirements of the work performed and this Code of Ethics.
In his working contacts with representatives of other professions, the Psychologist must show loyalty, tolerance and willingness to help.
Limitations of professional competence
A psychologist is obliged to carry out practical activities within the framework of his own competence, based on the education and experience received.
Only the Psychologist carries out direct (questioning, interviewing, testing, electrophysiological research, psychotherapy, training, etc.) or indirect (biographical method, observation method, studying the products of the Client’s activity, etc.) work with the Client.
The Psychologist must master the methods of psychodiagnostic conversation, observation, and psychological and pedagogical influence at a level sufficient to maintain the Client’s feeling of sympathy, trust and satisfaction from communicating with the Psychologist.
If the Client is sick, then working with him is permissible only with the permission of the doctor or the consent of other persons representing the interests of the Client.
Limitations of the means used
A psychologist can use methods that are adequate to the goals of the study, age, gender, education, condition of the Client, and experimental conditions. Psychodiagnostic techniques, in addition, must be standardized, normalized, reliable, valid and adapted to the population of subjects.
The psychologist must use methods of processing and interpreting data that have received scientific recognition. The choice of methods should not be determined by the Psychologist’s scientific predilections, his social hobbies, or personal sympathies for Clients of a certain type, social status or professional activity.
A psychologist is prohibited from presenting deliberately distorted primary data, knowingly false and incorrect information in the results of the study. If a Psychologist discovers a significant error in his research after the study has been published, he must take all reasonable steps to correct the error and subsequently publish corrections.
Professional Development
A psychologist must constantly increase the level of his professional competence and his awareness in the field of ethics of psychological work (research).
Impossibility of professional activity in certain conditions
If any circumstances force the Psychologist to prematurely stop working with the Client and this may adversely affect the Client’s condition, the Psychologist must ensure continuation of work with the Client.
A psychologist should not carry out his professional activities when his abilities or judgment are adversely affected.
Principle of responsibility
A psychologist must remember his professional and scientific obligations to his clients, to the professional community and to society as a whole. The psychologist must strive to avoid causing harm, must take responsibility for his actions, and must ensure, to the extent possible, that his services do not constitute abuse.
The principle of responsibility includes:
Primary Responsibility
A Psychologist's decision to undertake a research project or intervention involves his responsibility for possible scientific and social consequences, including the impact on individuals, groups and organizations involved in the research or intervention, as well as indirect effects, such as the impact of scientific psychology on public opinion and development ideas about social values.
The psychologist must be aware of the specifics of interaction with the Client and the resulting responsibility. Liability is particularly high if the subjects or clients are drug-dependent or disabled, or if the research or intervention program intentionally limits the Client's capacity.
If the Psychologist concludes that his actions will not lead to improvement in the Client's condition or pose a risk to the Client, he must cease the intervention.
No Harm
The psychologist uses only such research or intervention techniques that are not dangerous to the Client’s health or condition, do not present the Client in the research results in a false, distorted light, and do not provide information about those psychological properties and characteristics of the Client that are not related to specific and agreed upon objectives of psychological research.
Solving Ethical Dilemmas
The psychologist must be aware of the possibility of ethical dilemmas arising and bear his personal responsibility for solving them. Psychologists consult with their colleagues and significant others on these issues and inform them of the principles reflected in the Code of Ethics.
If a Psychologist has ethical questions in connection with his work, he must contact the Ethics Committee of the Russian Psychological Society for advice.
Honesty principle
The psychologist should strive to promote openness in the science, teaching, and practice of psychology. In this activity, the psychologist must be honest, fair and respectful of his colleagues. A psychologist must clearly understand his professional tasks and the functions corresponding to these tasks.
The principle of honesty includes:
Awareness of the boundaries of personal and professional capabilities
A psychologist must be aware of the limitations of both his own capabilities and the capabilities of his profession. This is a condition for establishing dialogue between professionals of various specialties.
Honesty
The Psychologist and the Client (or the party initiating and paying for psychological services for the Client) before concluding an agreement, negotiate remuneration issues and other essential working conditions, such as the distribution of rights and responsibilities between the Psychologist and the Client (or the party paying for psychological services) or the storage and application procedure research results.
The psychologist must notify the Client or employer that his activities are primarily subject to professional rather than commercial principles.
When hiring a Psychologist, he must inform his employer that:
– within the limits of his competence he will act independently;
– he is obliged to observe the principle of confidentiality: this is required by law;
– professional supervision of his work can only be carried out by a psychologist;
– it is impossible for him to fulfill unprofessional requirements or requirements that violate this Code of Ethics.
When hiring a Psychologist, the employer must receive the text of this Code of Ethics.
Public dissemination of information about the services provided by the Psychologist serves the purpose of making an informed decision by potential Clients about entering into a professional relationship with the Psychologist. Such advertising is acceptable only if it does not contain false or distorted information, reflects objective information about the services provided and meets the rules of decency.
A psychologist is prohibited from advertising himself or any particular method of intervention or treatment. Advertising for competitive purposes must under no circumstances deceive potential Clients. A psychologist should not exaggerate the effectiveness of his services, make statements about the superiority of his professional skills and applied methods, and also give guarantees of the effectiveness of the services provided.
The Psychologist is not permitted to offer a discount or reward for referring Clients to them or enter into agreements with third parties for this purpose.
Directness and openness
A psychologist must be responsible for the information he provides and avoid distorting it in research and practical work.
The psychologist formulates the results of the study in terms and concepts accepted in psychological science, confirming his conclusions by presenting primary research materials, their mathematical and statistical processing and the positive conclusion of competent colleagues. When solving any psychological problems, research is carried out, always based on a preliminary analysis of literary data on the issue at hand.
In case of distortion of information, the psychologist must inform the participants of the interaction about this and re-establish the degree of trust.
Avoiding Conflicts of Interest
The psychologist must be aware of the problems that may arise as a result of dual relationships. The psychologist should try to avoid relationships that lead to conflicts of interest or exploitation of the relationship with the Client for personal interests.
A psychologist should not use professional relationships for personal, religious, political or ideological interests.
The Psychologist must be aware that a conflict of interest may arise after the formal termination of the Psychologist's relationship with the Client. The psychologist in this case also bears professional responsibility.
A psychologist should not enter into any personal relationships with his Clients.
Responsibility and openness to the professional community
The results of psychological research should be available to the scientific community. The possibility of misinterpretation must be prevented by correct, complete and unambiguous presentation. Data about experiment participants must be anonymous. Discussion and criticism in scientific circles serve the development of science and should not be hindered.
A psychologist is obliged to respect his colleagues and should not criticize their professional actions in a biased manner.
A psychologist should not, through his actions, contribute to ousting a colleague from his field of activity or depriving him of his job.
If the Psychologist believes that his colleague is acting unprofessionally, he must point this out to him in confidence.

II. Violation of the Psychologist's Code of Ethics

Violation of the Psychologist's Code of Ethics includes ignoring the provisions set forth therein, misinterpreting them, or deliberately violating them. Violations of the Code of Ethics may be the subject of a complaint.
A complaint about a violation of the Psychologist’s Code of Ethics can be submitted to the Ethics Committee of the Russian Psychological Society in writing by any individual or legal entity. Consideration of complaints and making decisions on them is carried out in accordance with the established procedure by the Ethics Committee of the Russian Psychological Society.
Sanctions applied to a Psychologist who has violated the Code of Ethics may include: a warning on behalf of the Russian Psychological Society (public censure), suspension of membership in the Russian Psychological Society, accompanied by widespread information to the public and potential clients about the exclusion of this specialist from the current register of RPO psychologists. Information about the sanctions applied is publicly available and transmitted to professional psychological associations in other countries.
In case of serious violations of the Code of Ethics, the Russian Psychological Society may petition to bring the Psychologist to trial.

This Code of Ethics for Psychologist was adopted on February 14, 2012 by the V Congress of the Russian Psychological Society.

How to get rid of food addiction

To understand that a person is eating, it is necessary that the person at least slightly begin to refrain from impulsive actions. It is important to maintain your desire in order to have time to notice what feeling a person changes with the help of food. In most cases, a person moves so quickly to binge eating that he does not have time to understand what exactly he is bingeing on. You can start keeping a diary of feelings. Immediately write down what is happening inside, in the sphere of internal sensations, when the desire to eat appears.

Thus, a person begins to pay more attention to his feelings, determines what need was not satisfied, how his deficiency and discomfort are created.

After realizing his unmet needs, it seems that when a person has learned and understood everything about himself, now everything will be easy, he will be able to transform and change.

Indeed, after working with awareness of one’s feelings, needs, and working with a nutritionist, a person can refrain from overeating and can lose 10-15 kg. However, further breakdowns and rollbacks begin. It is important to pay attention to these disruptions. They signal that old habits (not only food habits, but also habits of satisfying or postponing their needs) are too strong.

It turns out that changes in life do not happen from awareness alone. The person noticed how he did not satisfy a certain need, noticed his habit of acting in a certain way. However, the habit does not disappear from this. A person tries to change habits and realizes that they are very strong. People often ask: “How to get rid of food addiction? I understand everything, but I can’t do anything.”

It turns out that you need to act contrary to your usual impulse. And this is not only scary, but also unusual, it turns out very ineptly, clumsily. Nobody likes to feel awkward.

The environment may react to any new behavior with hostility. Usually the environment does not respond well to new changes. Changing habits is not the most pleasant thing.

Often in such situations a person becomes uncomfortable for others. People can begin to exert strong pressure so that the person becomes the same, fits into their usual framework, is understandable and predictable to them, as before.

It is important to acquire a skill, to learn to do something that you have not done before. If you didn’t know how to express feelings before, learn to express them; if you didn’t know how to ask, learn to ask; if you didn’t know how to make acquaintances, learn to make acquaintances.

If you realize your difficulties and experience the feelings associated with it, old habits begin to transform. Usually a person begins to better notice himself and his real needs. He begins to understand what he is afraid of and takes steps towards satisfying the need.

Along with the movement towards satisfying real needs, a person receives more positive emotions. Energy and inspiration appear. A person learns to track his criticizing and attacking part, learns to support himself. Then, as a rule, the craving for overeating that was there before is greatly reduced. A person learns intuitive eating and remains in a body that is comfortable for him.

He restores his self-regulation, determines what it means for him to live a comfortable life, what his own components for a good life are for him. This can be generally about a quality life, not always just about a healthy lifestyle. A person explores and realizes for himself his own criteria of beauty. He begins to notice what beauty means to him.

This is how you get out of food addiction.

From a lecture by Alexander Eremeev.

If you can’t figure out how to get rid of food addiction on your own, contact me, psychologist Lola Makarova, a specialist in food addiction.

How to get clients to come to you VIA THE INTERNET

We are also working on your personal strategy, the result is a work plan for developing a private practice via the Internet to the desired result - as many clients as you can and are ready to manage.

3 hours - 3000 rub. (2500 if you come together or if you go to two seminars of this cycle, 2000 if you come to all three seminars or together you attend any two seminars of this cycle)

Positioning and promoting yourself. How to work for your own name, self-branding.
How to finally make YOUR “list of problems that I work with”
How to stop lying to yourself (embellishing your credentials) and how not to get angry at colleagues who do it
Where is it important to shine (list of paid/free resources) - pros and cons of different Internet sites
Social networks in promoting yourself. How, what and why? My image: two main approaches. Positioning features. What is good and what is harmful!?
Present yourself through the website. Resources and errors.
Why do more than 90% of websites created do not bring benefits to their owners?

Working with your case, at the end of the lesson you have a ready-made step-by-step plan: what to do and how to do it.

+ Answers to all your questions (during the event, and if you send it in advance, I’ll include it in the program)

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"How to get rid of food addiction"

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"How to get rid of food addiction"

Duration of psychological counseling

First of all, it should be noted that regardless of the areas of psychology that exist today, it is important to separate psychological counseling and long-term work with the client.

If a client, signing up for a psychological session, states as a request the possibility of receiving quick help in resolving a situation in his life, experiencing something or, conversely, not having to deal with something, then we are talking about counseling here.

Clients themselves are not always able to adequately estimate the number of sessions to resolve the situation. Sometimes it is necessary to relieve tension, orient a person in his situation, look at it from a different focus, cope with stress, and survive trauma. Such work with a psychologist can take from 2–3 sessions to 8–10.