Hi there, first time poster here. I have a wife who is about to begin some therapy for the first time. Without getting into detail (for the time being) this therapy is going to be quite importent to her as well as the outcome of our marrage.
I really want her to get the most out of the sessions and was wondering if the use of voice recorders during sessions was acceptable or not. The technology on them these days allow for quite a bit time of recording as well as the ability to transfer the recordings onto the computer and saved to CD's for future reference.
Any feedback will be greatly appreciated. Thank you
There is no rule about recorders, but there are lots of feelings about them. I would guess many clients and probably many therapists would be uncomfortable with having sessions recorded. They can be very useful, though, if everyone is comfortable with it.
Therapists can use it to get a more accurate consultation opinion from another therapist who advise them on how to proceed with the client. Clients can remember important moments and go back to them in future sessions. Clients can also take inventory over time, see progress, see recurring issues, see lack of progress.
I have a client who records every session, and it has been useful in many ways. One great benefit is when she hears me say something that hurt her feelings, and we talk about it, and find we have a different memory of the interaction, she can go back and find exactly what was said. Then she can learn how she filters information in a way that distorts it. This has helped her see that people's insults to her are often not meant to be so, but misinterpreted by her to match her own self-attack.
Probably your wife won't want to record sessions if it would compromise her privacy. She will need to be able to talk about her feelings about you and the relationship without any concern that you or anyone else will ever know what she said.
For you, having your wife go to therapy and not know what is said there, knowing your marriage hangs on what is said must be very anxiety-provoking for you. This could be a reason for you to get your own therapist, to help you deal with whatever happens. You can't know or control what your wife talks about, though, as much as anyone in your position may want to.
