Filing a therapist complaint - what to expect, how to cope

July 6, 2017 2:14 PM

I filed a complaint against a previous therapist. What can I expect ahead, and how can I cope and take care of myself?

It has taken a couple of years to get the courage to file. I tried to stick with facts in the complaint and referred to a couple of supportive therapists who could act as "witnesses" to the situation. I also have a lot of old email documentation. I'm not sure what's ahead now that the complaint is filed, and I'm feeling apprehensive and a little embarrassed. To me, the situation doesn't seem straightforward. I'm hoping I don't have to actually talk to people on the licensing board or hear what he thinks about everything, but it is very possible that is what is ahead. There is definitely some grief and guilt mixed in with the relief of filing. What can I expect now, and how can I take care of myself through all of this?

posted by anonymous to Human Relations (3 answers total)

From an anonymous commenter:

I have done this before. The licensing board should have very clear step-by-step descriptions of what happens next, but here’s mine:

I submitted the complaint. They forwarded the complaint to the therapist for a response; the therapist hired an attorney who specializes in this work. The attorney wrote a response to my complaint, which was also sent to me, and so yes, I did have to hear what they thought about everything, and it was both nasty and not especially accurate given what they’d said to me while treating me. (All they had to say was “client has Borderline Personality Disorder,” which I don’t and therapist had acknowledged I don’t, but it was a quick way of making me unreliable!) I wrote another response and could have gone through the cycle again, but I decided I wasn’t interested in reading some cruel pseudo-professional stuff about me. Of course you can give the letter to someone else, but yes, they will probably send it to you. All of this took several months. This therapist will probably hire an attorney, and if the documentation is at all unclear, it probably won’t do you a whole lot of good. I would also expect the “witnesses” to be very careful about what they’re willing to say in a professional context. Yes, they may have told you that you were mistreated in a way that was clearly wrong, and they mean it! But they likely won’t express it that firmly, for reasons of liability. In one case, a consulting therapist was only willing to say "I can tell you that I was shocked by some of the things you describe."

As far as I can tell, unless this involves drugs, money, or sex, there’s very, very little chance that your old therapist will be sanctioned in any way, though of course the investigation will jam them up for a bit. If they ARE sanctioned, it will probably be very mild. I would suggest looking through the adjudicated cases the licensing board has probably posted on their website—they’ll give you a sense of what flies. Am I glad I did it? Sure. Telling someone did help me, and knowing that they had to listen to what I had to say helped me. But therapy is particularly hard in terms of ethics discipline—what “malpractice” looks like can cover an enormous spectrum and you only really see firm action on bright-line stuff.

posted by restless_nomad at 5:50 PM on July 6, 2017 [4 favorites]

Hi - if you can ask a mod to tell us what area you're in, that would help us give more targeted information. I'm not a therapist, but have a ton of therapists in my family (MFTs and PhDs galore!). If you're in the US, the licensing board should be very easy to communicate with. Anon's experience posted by r_n is not the standard, and my family members are very encouraging about how impactful it might be to report your experience.

Their advice: it matters, and licensing boards take reports very seriously, and once you report you will never have to see, speak to, or hear from this therapist again.

Good luck, sorry this happened to you.
posted by arnicae at 7:49 PM on July 6, 2017

Mod note: From the OP:

I'm in NC, USA. I don't want to state the contents of the complaint for privacy reasons. In addition to support coping with and understanding this experience, I could also really use legal aid or some kind of coaching related to this, because I potentially want to amend or withdraw my statements. I have little to no money to put towards this and no current employment, though may have some soon. Thanks for your responses. They have been informative.

posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 9:29 PM on July 9, 2017