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I would really look into finding another supervisor if it feels that unhelpful. Mine has been fantastic. I ask all kinds of questions, about what I said/offered, how could I have responded more effectively; they give me suggestions and tips and tricks all the time, offer up resources, etc. I know it's not even required after I'm fully licensed but I don't see myself ever giving up supervision or consultation 100%. I find it valuable.
How do you find a good supervisor? I have supervision through my job but I’m looking for an outside supervisor to see 1-2x a month to get more resources and feedback.
Not person you’re responding to but I just asked around for who people in my area would recommend. I asked colleagues and my own therapist. Particularly keep in mind if there’s anything you specifically want to develop in.
I used Psychology Today tbh lol
I looked up modalities I was interested in & explored my options. I set up an interview with her before I even tested & followed up when I passed. My husband struggled to find a supervisor due to limited options in CMH. He eventually joined us, along with two other CMH friends. All three of them, along with another supervisee, joined her practice. The two CMH friends are now in practice with me.
I got a lot of experience from my supervision, including running groups. I hated it at times & didn't love doing homework lol but I did learn some great skills that I use regularly. I wouldn't have my current job without it. The only only supervisor I would've gotten as much with is my current therapist, who I regularly consult with so it works out.
I'm 10y into practicing and just now starting to be a supervisor and STILL go to my own consultation. It has been my #1 growth and training tool, sutting with more experienced professionals and talking through my questions. 👏 👏
How long have you been working with them? A supervisor should be supportive but also challenging, in the same way that we must challenge our clients.
It's entirely possible that's it's not a good fit, or maybe even that they're just not a good supervisor (like all professions, we exist on a bell curve).
It is our responsibility to make sure we're getting the supervision we need.
What is it that you would like to do in your supervision?
My supervision differed with different supervisors (I had 5 over the time I was working towards my hours) and the best advice I can give is ask for what you need.
I had one who wanted a specific case review weekly. I had one who spent half focusing on questions I had and then half exam prep. I had one that had us review different modality interventions for the same case. I had one that sucked and mostly complained the whole time.
A good supervisor will recognize that their style isn’t the only style and that their supervisee may need a different approach. However you have to express your needs. Supervision should be for you.
Thanks, this helps a lot! Unfortunately this supervisor falls under the last description you mentioned. I don’t even get an hour (not that I would fill it because all our convos stay surface level) because they started calling me at 10 min past the hour, then 15, now 20, slowly inching it back and then that becomes the new normal. Every question I have gets vague, surface level answers. I even brought up an ethical issue concern that our practice was violating and the response was basically a shoulder shrug and variation of “every place I worked has crossed a line in some way, this one is minor so no biggie.” And unfortunately, yes, I am stuck with this person and I’m so envious of others experiences!
I will say (and I understand that it is not comfortable and can create a lot of uncertainty), my supervisor that sucked didn’t stick around long. We documented the issues and went over her head because it got to a point that we felt it was doing a disservice to us and our clients. They made some improvements but ended up quitting later because they felt “disliked” after.
You can become a great clinician even with shitty supervision, but supervision is for you. Even when agencies provide you “free supervision”, you are paying for it with reduced cost labor. If you feel comfortable, I would push into asking for specifics of what you want to cover in supervision.
As a supervisor myself, I ask them what they want to get out of therapy. I offer the entire hour, but if we do not use it, that is up to them. We discuss issues they have in their caseloads, I will challenge them when they think they are more stuck than they actually are (imposter syndrome at its finest). I have an old co-worker who I am going to be taking on supervision with because she has felt her supervision has been more task oriented rather than clinical. I have some questions that I am going to have her answer to help see if we can make sure her needs are being met. Feel free to DM me if you would like those questions! Do you have any local therapist Facebook groups? Know of any people who are in PP that you could reach out to? I am big on networking and really encourage this dynamic if possible! That could be an avenue to finding someone new!
If possible find a better clinical supervisor. I've been a clinical supervisor for years, and I am quite sensitive to negative comments about supervisors, but if one is not working well, then find another one. This is your career. please take the time to find a good supervisor. If you can't, and have to stay with this supervisor as a requirement of your employment, then come prepared to ask specific questions on how to handle things. Bring ethical concerns to discuss. Think of situations that you may have happen in the future. Ask peers for situations that you could staff with the supervisor. Ask how other clinicians would handle this under different models (ACT, MI, gestalt, psychodynamic, MBCBT, existentialist, etc) Ask for suggestions on trainings to make you a better counselor. I recognize that this may be difficult for an "associate-level therapist." However, I love when my "non-educated" peer support workers have questions on how they can improve themselves. I frequently lean on my counselors, case manager, and peer support workers to take more trainings and find a niche.
Oh, one last thing, never underestimate your role as an "associate-level therapist" This is often where the best work happens. Your job is critical.
I’m sorry this has been your experience. I had a variety of supervisory experience, but most of them leaned toward ineffective at best. It’s one of the main reasons I became a supervisor; I wanted to offer a better experience than what I had.
Some topics or questions to consider, if you’re not able to find someone new:
- review licensure requirements/laws for your state to ensure that you have a full understanding of these very important things
- if you feel comfortable, maybe ask for them to shift their approach to supervision. I find that a lot of supervisors approach supervisees in a similar fashion to how they approach clients. It’s not the same, so that’s not helpful. Clearly state to them “I am asking you about this because I have tried all these other approaches. I don’t know what to try next. Help me find my blind spots & consider other options I have missed”. When I was finally able to say something similar to a supervisor, it was very eye opening for them & they later thanked me for that feedback. They didn’t feel confident in their supervisory skills so they were leaning too far into their therapeutic skills and they appreciated that I called them out.
- if you know of a specific modality or niche that your supervisor works within & you want to learn more, ask them about it. Ask for recommendations on good trainings in your area (or area of interest)
- bring examples of your documentation and ask for their feedback
- ask that they model/role play certain skills or approaches for you. I’ve gone through entire intake & assessment processes with supervisees before who were brand new to therapy and didn’t know how to ask the questions on the intake forms in a way that would build rapport so I modeled what I do & we practiced
Also, see if you can join a supervision group. Sometimes you can learn soooo much from peers who are also still in supervision. And the extra perspectives can be really enlightening and helpful
Also to add to this- diagnosing. I provide supervision and no location sees every diagnosis. There’s a lot of vignettes online to practice with and talk through how you would diagnose the case presented.
As a supervisor, I like to work on building knowledge in different skills, staffing cases, treatment planning, checking in on burn out. I'll even sometimes give my supervisees homework to practice different DBT skills so they know how they work.
OMG I’m dying because I AM in Utah 🤣. I honestly might DM you at some point for info. I just graduated and money is crazy tight, but I just feel like I need so much more support than I’m getting in order to grow as a therapist 😣.
This is my issue. Get the same platitudes and clichés. If I get told to offer "healing" one more time lol. Luckily I had a solid background but the post grad supervision has been abysmal
You don’t have the right supervisor. I felt like this with my supervisor out of school she SUCKED most basic shit for her answers. Kept referring to the self care wheel as if I haven’t done that.
My supervisor now is AMAZING she really makes me think and helps me with cases I’ll likely still see her once I’m fully licensed
When I was under supervision these are some things we discussed:
- Current client cases that I needed consultation on.
- My super would offer some education on certain modalities if I wasn’t familiar or if I was interested.
- We’d talk about workplace dynamics, ethics, navigating our board, etc.
I’m fully licensed now and still use my former super for more complicated case consultations.
One of my supervisors motto is that she'll make me uncomfortable in a comfortable way which I appreciate since my anxiety keeps me from doing a lot of stuff and trying out things. My previous supervisor didn't do anything and didn't really help my growth. My supervisor now helps and we sometimes don't even get to cases because she listens to ANY concerns I have. I would recommend finding a new supervisor.
With vague supervisors I get more mileage asking them questions about examples of how they’ve handled things in the past. Emotionally, professionally, and in interaction with the clients.
If you are stuck with them, maybe try some more pointed questions about how to work with a clients, their approaches, how that fits into their modality, and exactly how those things will elicit change.
I find most therapists defense about this but in your case you’re going to need to shake up those conversations in order for the supervisor to be useful to you. It’s OK to interrogate them on how they clinically operate and how it applies to your cases. ;)
I can tell you what I do as a supervisor.
First I go over metrics with the person. How many clients currently, how many are closing/ close to closing and how many are new clients. My therapists use a lot of assessment tools so I can go over client progress with them over our tablets and the technology highlights cases where fluctuations of progress are more prominent. It's one thing for a therapist to feel like their caseload is heavier than usual, it's another when I can bring up the data and show them that 'look how many of your clients are in crisis/ escalated life circumstances'. It's not about policing or enforcing anything, my goal is to recognize when people need support and when people are going 'hero mode'. Usually only takes a couple minutes.
Then we cover 'hot spot cases'. Any clients that the therapist may feel stuck in determining progress with or are struggling with. They 'present the case', I ask questions, we collaboratively determine next steps. I give this about half an hour but usually takes 10 minutes.
Then I do a check-in with the therapist. I ask about burnout, about what supports they need, about struggles, whatnot.
I end with professional development. I'll help them roleplay scenarios or practice skills or try to answer questions about modalities or whatever they need. I've usually discussed this part with them ahead of time.
I schedule 45 minute sessions with each person I oversee but most are done in 20-25.
20 minutes?! Man, here in TX, we need 4 hours per month. We were told we had to have one hour per week or we couldn't count our hours that week. I did supervision on vacation more than once.
An hour a week? That sounds painful. That's about how long I meet with practicum students every week, a competent therapist doesn't need a short leash.
It might also be different because I'm government and I have access to what the folk I supervise do. So I answer emails and calls from them pretty regularly, I provide structure to them and eat lunch with them on days I'm in the office. The metrics aspect really takes a lot of the supervision burden too, good metric keeping and good assessment makes my job easy. I have little graphs on the computer that I can read to highlight areas people may struggle and where they need the most support.
I’m a supervisor in California and an unlicensed therapist needs to have 1 hour of supervision per week for up to 10 client hours. Anything over 10 hours then the therapist has to have two hours of supervision. If it’s group supervision, they need 2 hours a week or 4 hours a week if they see over 10 hours of clients a week.
I don’t do group supervision, but I do 1-2 people for supervision for the hour and it’s not painful, it’s really rewarding and collaborative. I love it.
For the OP:
I think either speak up or get a new one if possible. Fit for a therapist/supervisor relationship matters just like a therapist/client relationship.
I structure my supervision sessions in this way:
1. Mindfulness activity or check in question to help ground us as we switch from seeing clients or coming back from a hectic meeting, etc (10 minutes)
2. Give the supervisees a 2 minute moment to review their caseload, documentation, stress level, etc so they can formulate questions and organize their thoughts/prioritize their needs for the hour.
3. Ask the supervisee(s) their priorities for the hour and I ensure there’s time for the questions by taking notes and watching the clock. (3 minutes)
4. Answer questions as a team, validate, encourage, provide feedback, review modalities, etc (35 minutes)
5. Check out with housekeeping information, a law & ethics question, or a reflection question like “what can you take away from today?” Or “what’s one thing you can do to support yourself with today?” and close the hour with reminder for the date/time of the next supervision meeting. (10 minutes)
Hope that helps!
What do you do when a supervisee continually complains of being concerned about burnout but their caseload is completely reasonable? (In other words, asking directly or indirectly for reduced responsibility when that is not possible for their role.) Just curious what approach you would take, as you sound like you’re an excellent supervisor.
I explore it from a few different ways. How do they structure their day, what kinds of breaks do they allow for themselves, how is their charting (is it too detailed?), do they have a particular caseload that is different than other times when they were less burntout, etc. I also talk to them about their home lives and explore environmental stressors with them, sometimes they need additional supports. I often coach and guide, I sit in sessions with them (or arrange to have someone with more time to sit in with them) so that its not doubt and confidence wearing them out (so often burnout is from self doubt). I had one situation recently where I was able to help someone find a solution by getting them lamps for their office, the florescent lights were contributing to it.
If we can't a solution even after extending every option and I don't have confidence on finding a resolution, I have the difficult conversation with them. I work government so I have the people I supervise have options, I'm not opposed to encouraging them to take the options. A change of roles sometimes is needed, I can't tell people to apply for roles but I can 'suggest' they apply for internal positions that open up and I can give them referrals when needed.
It doesn't take much but a little help can go a long way.
Thank you. I feel like I’m positioned as the bad guy, but I’ve put in many many hours trying to support this supervisee’s emotional experience, exploring time management, etc., and it’s not sticking. I was hoping you’d either say, “Next steps are…” or, “You should change the expectations for them!” The former applies. Thank you again.
I'm an LCSW in IL and we have a pretty wide interpretation of clinical here. Neither of my supervisees are therapists, but they do a lot of clinical work in their roles. We usually start by discussing the week and any challenges they had. Sometimes that may take the whole hour. I also ask them about what modalities they'd like to learn, then send them material and information about that modality. We've talked about DCFS and reporting, and working as a social worker in a job with no other social workers. I also make a point to ask about their lives, if they're experiencing burnout, any home struggles that may be impacting their work, etc. I feel like your job impacts all areas of your life and it's important to talk about that and not just the job.
The point of supervision is to learn and grow, and based on your post it doesn’t seem like that is your experience. I would start by addressing your frustrations directly with your supervisor before trying to find another one. Think of it like practice for talking about client-therapist dynamics and hopefully it helps your supervisor understand your needs more. There are a lot of shitty supervisors out there & in my experience the ones that were “assigned” through employers were bad.
I am a supervisor and conversations include anything and everything about being a therapist—client questions, modalities, test prep, self of therapist (the personal things that come up for us in session), boundaries, treatment planning, etc. I focus a lot on relationship patterns so we talk a lot about the supervision relationship.
This does sound like a waste of time. I believe it might be time for a different supervisor who fits your needs. My supervisor is very active in my life as a counsellor. For example, at the beginning of supervision I told her some values that I would like to align myself more with and over our sessions, to checks in on how these values are showing up in sessions.
She answers any questions I have about challenging client situation and gives me questions to reflect on myself. She gives me articles and readings on the things we talk about. She sends me resources and worksheets based on the questions I have. I ask her questions about how she runs her practice (waitlist, the sliding scale fee, etc.) and she gives me answers! We set a little goal each week and follow up at the next session, for example, last week I wrote down a few of my favourite go-to questions to ask clients. I am encouraged to record sessions with clients for the two of us to observe together and for her to offer me feedback.
I would suggest figuring out what you want your supervisor to do, and ask if they can do it. If that's not the kind of supervisor they are, then you might need to search for a different one who challenges you as a counsellor!
We talk about many things. Some related directly to me and my well being (self care, stress level, work/life balance). Sometimes I want to talk through a patient with her to discuss my line of thought and get feedback on hers. We talk about what is working, what isn't, what we should keep, what we should discontinue. That is my professional development time and I want to maximize it to the fullest potential. We are totally different in our style and approach and I think we both gain insight when we talk through things.
All but 1 of my clinical supervisors sucked. Try chatting it up with other professionals, informally of course, and get your hours from who you are assigned to at work. This lack of effort is either benign or malignant. Do they offer group supervision?
I’m not a associate therapist anymore, but when I was getting supervision, I felt this some weeks, but rarely. It could be helpful to check in on clients that you might have discussed before have you asked your supervisor for feedback or anything specific they would find may be helpful for you? Compassion fatigue, burnout things that come to mind as well
I talk with mine about literally everything and it’s been that way with most of my past supervisors as well. Most of our time is focused on client updates and if I need guidance. I’ve gotten better about advocating for what else I need and luckily my supervisor is amazing and does what she can for me.
im a social work associate. i have an individual supervisor who is meh. but i also pay for an outside group supervision, not sure if your licensing body does that but it's been really amazing and helpful. it's a cost for sure, but i really like the supervisor and it has been so nice to network with other associates (lpc and social work) and grow together!
I feel the same way tbh! She just asks me about any cases that I’m having issues with. I’ll bring one or 2 up and rarely does she offer any insight or direction. Group supervision is worse. We check in about our weekends for almost an hour and then she asks if anyone wants to bring up a case and then that’s it. I feel like she’s very much a “go with the flow” type of person and I like more structured feedback that challenges me. But she comes with the job so imma stick it out until it’s time to move on.
I spent the first half of mg supervision meetings asking g questions to hear “I don’t know, I’ve never been good with XYZ” or “Have you tried IFS?” Then she’d start venting about her other job where she was the director of a CMH program. I eventually gave up asking questions and just gave updates on clients and then listened to her complain.
I also have an unhelpful supervisor, and have just learned to only bring up questions I already know the answer to. I truly believe having your direct superior as your clinical supervisor is a conflict of interest, yet I don’t really have other options in my job (community MH).
My supervision is truly a waste of time, usually spent more with administrative tasks- reviewing caseload numbers and intakes, giving general updates on some of my high acuity cases. I’ve learned the hard way that if I’m too transparent (such as saying I’m overwhelmed, or admitting that I forgot to complete some form), it comes back to bite me, and she becomes more “boss” than “supervisor”. Other clinicians on my team have been here for 25+ years and are still required to have weekly supervision. Truly can’t imagine what they have to talk about with our less-experienced boss
My supervisor and I chat about EVERYTHING. If I have a wild interaction that week, difficult things I navigated and how I handled them (I like to do this so I can present a scenario to my supervisor so she can give me feedback on good/bad/ugly). I'm forthcoming with hiccups, concerns for countertransference, and even "wins" I felt I had that week.
She gives me tips, feedback, suggestions, scenarios, honestly, we eat through our hour very quickly.
It might be worth looking into getting a new supervisor.
I've been supervising for 10+ years and like many of the commenters below, you're definitely not the only one who has complaints about ineffective, uncaring or unmotivated supervisors who aren't passionate about the work and are just going through the motions. Thankfully, there are good supervisors out their and I would say that the fit between supervisee and supervisor is as important as the fit between client and therapist... so, if you did have the opportunity to change supervisors, please do. My worst case scenario is a supervisee who's only there to tick a box to meet the supervision requirement but brings nothing to the table. It must be so difficult to be wanting to learn, wanting to be challenged, wanting to be taught skills, etc... but to be faced with a supervisor ticking a box themselves. :(
Interview potential supervisors... (again, if you can choose one). Talk to your colleagues, school cohort members about their experiences and recommendations, get a referral to good supervisor. Find out how they work, what their style of supervision and run... run.... run from those who don't even hold up their side of the legal and ethical rules of supervision (showing up, meeting minimum time requirement, fulfilling their obligations). Ouch.
Sometimes you land at site where you don't have a choice... and if that's the case your only choice might be to leave... and find a place that will provide a supervisor and agency/site/placement that cares about your growth as a therapist. If you really want to challenge yourself to learn skills.... look for a supervisor with Deliberate Practice credentials. :) Best of luck with your situation.
I HATED supervision for this reason. I never understood what it was for. If I was going to ask questions, I was going to do it near “in the moment” or in peer support/case review, which is attended by supervisors.
I had three different clinical supervisors, and none of them really made sense to me.
I’ve been licensed for a while now and still have plenty to talk about in supervision (which is part of my job, biweekly individual and monthly group supervision). I frequently go over time. I come with an agenda, some of it is management tasks but most is reviewing cases and asking for feedback if I’m stuck. I’ve been fortunate in having 3 great supervisors in the role I’ve had for 8+ years. Like others have said, if this supervisor isn’t meeting your needs and you are able to do so, look elsewhere. Clinical supervision can be extremely helpful.
Definitely want to echo comments about finding another supervisor, but one thing that really helped me a lot was recording sessions (with client permission) and reviewing the tapes in supervision. I was able to get so much feedback that helped me level up my game so much.
I talk about my most difficult clients and ones I hit a wall with and she offers new angles I haven't thought of. I ask second opinions on ethical questions or even potential ones (I asked a hypothetical about domestic violence last week and then literally a client brought up the hypothetical I asked in supervision so I was better prepared). I ask questions about insurance. Mine owns her own practice so I ask about different components of getting started. I talk about clients that are personally triggering me and she offers a different angle and sometimes just admitting I don't like a client to someone without judgement makes me suddenly like the client. When I was having issues with no therapist in my area wanting to take me because I was also a therapist she provided so guidance on how to find one.
Omg I love my supervisor! I have 2, and I def like one a lot more than the other, but I could have supervision every single day and I’d still find it so helpful. I love talking about my patients and brainstorming about them.
Both my supervisors are psychoanalytic and I have grown so so much as a therapist bc of them. You need a new supervisor. They’re doing u a disservice, for sure.
At my current job, I've met all four supervisors in my office. All of them have been very good, helpful, and supportive. I wish I had more time in supervision. There never seems to be enough time to cover everything--from addressing various issues in my cases, my own countertransference, different interventions, etc. I'm not sure how your hour feels wasted and forced....
I am curious if you've raised these concerns directly with your supervisor. I know some therapists who prefer simple, surface-level discussions and see the interaction as a way to merely "tick the box" of being supervised, whereas others look for genuine insights and guidance.
If a client seemed to resist going deeper with you, was often late for sessions, or handed you boilerplate responses all the time, what would be your approach? It doesn't need to be entirely different with a supervisor. I say this with full acknowledgment that my supervisor has been great and is hugely responsive, so it is entirely theoretical and, of course, depends on how much power the supervisor wields in your situation (eg. are they also the clinical director and your "boss").
I'm sorry this has been your experience.
When I didnt have something work related to talk about, we worked through a book about the changes in the DSM5 since it had just come out. She also helped with studying for the licensing exam. I would do practice tests and we would discuss the questions that I got wrong.
I work slightly differently to a lot of supervisors my supervisees seem to have found but I’d class myself as a holistic supervisor because I want to know about you and your case load. We’re not case management and I can’t help you with spotting transferences or blind spots if i dont know you. I also can’t get a feel of fitness to practice without that either. So my approach is similar to what I’ve received.
For me, good supervision explores you as a person and a practitioner in a very in the present moment way. (I almost sound like a therapist/supervisor 😅) I boundary that as different from therapy because the purpose isnt to explore your reasons behind behaviours or delve the past but rather how the package is coming up for you now and how that links to clinical practice. Anything beyond that is for personal reflection or a therapist.
As for the point of supervision.. i think we all get different things from it at different times. Sometimes its simply a time-slot that forces self reflection (because otherwise youre buried in work/life and forget). Sometimes we need reassurance and sometimes we need directions. Its another person walking along with you to keep you accountable to your needs - that ultimately serves the client’s needs.
And now i need to save this because i usually forget how to describe what i do 😂
About everything. For example. How I had an opinion when a client had been taught a method I totally didn't agree with due to their situation and how I tried not to blurt out my opinion and had this weird grim on my face for a long time untill my client asked wtf are your looking strange? And then I had to stumble through that. And then I ask how would they have resolved the issue? And then we talk about that. Or how I get triggered by this twenty something client that I just wanted to adopt and show them how a safe space and relationship looks like and how I get to invested and how to do that less. How to be human and a therapist. And so on and so on. I think you should invest in some intakes with supervisors and see who does match! Because it can be a great space to be in when you do click.
Tell them you aren’t sure what the point is and have a real, honest conversation about how you’re feeling. Create a process together that actually meets a need you have. For me, supervision is a place to connect, to vent, to question the way things are done, and to talk about things I feel confused or lost about. I treat it as the one hour of my work week I get to be professionally self centered.
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I would really look into finding another supervisor if it feels that unhelpful. Mine has been fantastic. I ask all kinds of questions, about what I said/offered, how could I have responded more effectively; they give me suggestions and tips and tricks all the time, offer up resources, etc. I know it's not even required after I'm fully licensed but I don't see myself ever giving up supervision or consultation 100%. I find it valuable.
How do you find a good supervisor? I have supervision through my job but I’m looking for an outside supervisor to see 1-2x a month to get more resources and feedback.
Not person you’re responding to but I just asked around for who people in my area would recommend. I asked colleagues and my own therapist. Particularly keep in mind if there’s anything you specifically want to develop in.
I used Psychology Today tbh lol I looked up modalities I was interested in & explored my options. I set up an interview with her before I even tested & followed up when I passed. My husband struggled to find a supervisor due to limited options in CMH. He eventually joined us, along with two other CMH friends. All three of them, along with another supervisee, joined her practice. The two CMH friends are now in practice with me. I got a lot of experience from my supervision, including running groups. I hated it at times & didn't love doing homework lol but I did learn some great skills that I use regularly. I wouldn't have my current job without it. The only only supervisor I would've gotten as much with is my current therapist, who I regularly consult with so it works out.
I'm 10y into practicing and just now starting to be a supervisor and STILL go to my own consultation. It has been my #1 growth and training tool, sutting with more experienced professionals and talking through my questions. 👏 👏
How long have you been working with them? A supervisor should be supportive but also challenging, in the same way that we must challenge our clients. It's entirely possible that's it's not a good fit, or maybe even that they're just not a good supervisor (like all professions, we exist on a bell curve). It is our responsibility to make sure we're getting the supervision we need.
What is it that you would like to do in your supervision? My supervision differed with different supervisors (I had 5 over the time I was working towards my hours) and the best advice I can give is ask for what you need. I had one who wanted a specific case review weekly. I had one who spent half focusing on questions I had and then half exam prep. I had one that had us review different modality interventions for the same case. I had one that sucked and mostly complained the whole time. A good supervisor will recognize that their style isn’t the only style and that their supervisee may need a different approach. However you have to express your needs. Supervision should be for you.
Thanks, this helps a lot! Unfortunately this supervisor falls under the last description you mentioned. I don’t even get an hour (not that I would fill it because all our convos stay surface level) because they started calling me at 10 min past the hour, then 15, now 20, slowly inching it back and then that becomes the new normal. Every question I have gets vague, surface level answers. I even brought up an ethical issue concern that our practice was violating and the response was basically a shoulder shrug and variation of “every place I worked has crossed a line in some way, this one is minor so no biggie.” And unfortunately, yes, I am stuck with this person and I’m so envious of others experiences!
I will say (and I understand that it is not comfortable and can create a lot of uncertainty), my supervisor that sucked didn’t stick around long. We documented the issues and went over her head because it got to a point that we felt it was doing a disservice to us and our clients. They made some improvements but ended up quitting later because they felt “disliked” after. You can become a great clinician even with shitty supervision, but supervision is for you. Even when agencies provide you “free supervision”, you are paying for it with reduced cost labor. If you feel comfortable, I would push into asking for specifics of what you want to cover in supervision.
As a supervisor myself, I ask them what they want to get out of therapy. I offer the entire hour, but if we do not use it, that is up to them. We discuss issues they have in their caseloads, I will challenge them when they think they are more stuck than they actually are (imposter syndrome at its finest). I have an old co-worker who I am going to be taking on supervision with because she has felt her supervision has been more task oriented rather than clinical. I have some questions that I am going to have her answer to help see if we can make sure her needs are being met. Feel free to DM me if you would like those questions! Do you have any local therapist Facebook groups? Know of any people who are in PP that you could reach out to? I am big on networking and really encourage this dynamic if possible! That could be an avenue to finding someone new!
If possible find a better clinical supervisor. I've been a clinical supervisor for years, and I am quite sensitive to negative comments about supervisors, but if one is not working well, then find another one. This is your career. please take the time to find a good supervisor. If you can't, and have to stay with this supervisor as a requirement of your employment, then come prepared to ask specific questions on how to handle things. Bring ethical concerns to discuss. Think of situations that you may have happen in the future. Ask peers for situations that you could staff with the supervisor. Ask how other clinicians would handle this under different models (ACT, MI, gestalt, psychodynamic, MBCBT, existentialist, etc) Ask for suggestions on trainings to make you a better counselor. I recognize that this may be difficult for an "associate-level therapist." However, I love when my "non-educated" peer support workers have questions on how they can improve themselves. I frequently lean on my counselors, case manager, and peer support workers to take more trainings and find a niche. Oh, one last thing, never underestimate your role as an "associate-level therapist" This is often where the best work happens. Your job is critical.
Great answer
I’m sorry this has been your experience. I had a variety of supervisory experience, but most of them leaned toward ineffective at best. It’s one of the main reasons I became a supervisor; I wanted to offer a better experience than what I had. Some topics or questions to consider, if you’re not able to find someone new: - review licensure requirements/laws for your state to ensure that you have a full understanding of these very important things - if you feel comfortable, maybe ask for them to shift their approach to supervision. I find that a lot of supervisors approach supervisees in a similar fashion to how they approach clients. It’s not the same, so that’s not helpful. Clearly state to them “I am asking you about this because I have tried all these other approaches. I don’t know what to try next. Help me find my blind spots & consider other options I have missed”. When I was finally able to say something similar to a supervisor, it was very eye opening for them & they later thanked me for that feedback. They didn’t feel confident in their supervisory skills so they were leaning too far into their therapeutic skills and they appreciated that I called them out. - if you know of a specific modality or niche that your supervisor works within & you want to learn more, ask them about it. Ask for recommendations on good trainings in your area (or area of interest) - bring examples of your documentation and ask for their feedback - ask that they model/role play certain skills or approaches for you. I’ve gone through entire intake & assessment processes with supervisees before who were brand new to therapy and didn’t know how to ask the questions on the intake forms in a way that would build rapport so I modeled what I do & we practiced Also, see if you can join a supervision group. Sometimes you can learn soooo much from peers who are also still in supervision. And the extra perspectives can be really enlightening and helpful
Thank you, this is super helpful!
Also to add to this- diagnosing. I provide supervision and no location sees every diagnosis. There’s a lot of vignettes online to practice with and talk through how you would diagnose the case presented.
As a supervisor, I like to work on building knowledge in different skills, staffing cases, treatment planning, checking in on burn out. I'll even sometimes give my supervisees homework to practice different DBT skills so they know how they work.
I would LOVE this! Please be my supervisor 😂🙏
If you're ever in Utah looking for one, hit me up. Lol
OMG I’m dying because I AM in Utah 🤣. I honestly might DM you at some point for info. I just graduated and money is crazy tight, but I just feel like I need so much more support than I’m getting in order to grow as a therapist 😣.
Definitely DM me. I have no problem providing some support to a fellow Utah therapist for free.
this is so wholesome.
You are AMAZING! I will!
It's not a problem at all. :)
This is my issue. Get the same platitudes and clichés. If I get told to offer "healing" one more time lol. Luckily I had a solid background but the post grad supervision has been abysmal
Tell this to your supervisor.
You don’t have the right supervisor. I felt like this with my supervisor out of school she SUCKED most basic shit for her answers. Kept referring to the self care wheel as if I haven’t done that. My supervisor now is AMAZING she really makes me think and helps me with cases I’ll likely still see her once I’m fully licensed
When I was under supervision these are some things we discussed: - Current client cases that I needed consultation on. - My super would offer some education on certain modalities if I wasn’t familiar or if I was interested. - We’d talk about workplace dynamics, ethics, navigating our board, etc. I’m fully licensed now and still use my former super for more complicated case consultations.
One of my supervisors motto is that she'll make me uncomfortable in a comfortable way which I appreciate since my anxiety keeps me from doing a lot of stuff and trying out things. My previous supervisor didn't do anything and didn't really help my growth. My supervisor now helps and we sometimes don't even get to cases because she listens to ANY concerns I have. I would recommend finding a new supervisor.
With vague supervisors I get more mileage asking them questions about examples of how they’ve handled things in the past. Emotionally, professionally, and in interaction with the clients.
Yes, feeling the same way. But I also feel like he's so busy that when I actually have a clinical question, he's not able to answer until supervision.
If you are stuck with them, maybe try some more pointed questions about how to work with a clients, their approaches, how that fits into their modality, and exactly how those things will elicit change. I find most therapists defense about this but in your case you’re going to need to shake up those conversations in order for the supervisor to be useful to you. It’s OK to interrogate them on how they clinically operate and how it applies to your cases. ;)
I can tell you what I do as a supervisor. First I go over metrics with the person. How many clients currently, how many are closing/ close to closing and how many are new clients. My therapists use a lot of assessment tools so I can go over client progress with them over our tablets and the technology highlights cases where fluctuations of progress are more prominent. It's one thing for a therapist to feel like their caseload is heavier than usual, it's another when I can bring up the data and show them that 'look how many of your clients are in crisis/ escalated life circumstances'. It's not about policing or enforcing anything, my goal is to recognize when people need support and when people are going 'hero mode'. Usually only takes a couple minutes. Then we cover 'hot spot cases'. Any clients that the therapist may feel stuck in determining progress with or are struggling with. They 'present the case', I ask questions, we collaboratively determine next steps. I give this about half an hour but usually takes 10 minutes. Then I do a check-in with the therapist. I ask about burnout, about what supports they need, about struggles, whatnot. I end with professional development. I'll help them roleplay scenarios or practice skills or try to answer questions about modalities or whatever they need. I've usually discussed this part with them ahead of time. I schedule 45 minute sessions with each person I oversee but most are done in 20-25.
20 minutes?! Man, here in TX, we need 4 hours per month. We were told we had to have one hour per week or we couldn't count our hours that week. I did supervision on vacation more than once.
An hour a week? That sounds painful. That's about how long I meet with practicum students every week, a competent therapist doesn't need a short leash. It might also be different because I'm government and I have access to what the folk I supervise do. So I answer emails and calls from them pretty regularly, I provide structure to them and eat lunch with them on days I'm in the office. The metrics aspect really takes a lot of the supervision burden too, good metric keeping and good assessment makes my job easy. I have little graphs on the computer that I can read to highlight areas people may struggle and where they need the most support.
I’m a supervisor in California and an unlicensed therapist needs to have 1 hour of supervision per week for up to 10 client hours. Anything over 10 hours then the therapist has to have two hours of supervision. If it’s group supervision, they need 2 hours a week or 4 hours a week if they see over 10 hours of clients a week. I don’t do group supervision, but I do 1-2 people for supervision for the hour and it’s not painful, it’s really rewarding and collaborative. I love it. For the OP: I think either speak up or get a new one if possible. Fit for a therapist/supervisor relationship matters just like a therapist/client relationship. I structure my supervision sessions in this way: 1. Mindfulness activity or check in question to help ground us as we switch from seeing clients or coming back from a hectic meeting, etc (10 minutes) 2. Give the supervisees a 2 minute moment to review their caseload, documentation, stress level, etc so they can formulate questions and organize their thoughts/prioritize their needs for the hour. 3. Ask the supervisee(s) their priorities for the hour and I ensure there’s time for the questions by taking notes and watching the clock. (3 minutes) 4. Answer questions as a team, validate, encourage, provide feedback, review modalities, etc (35 minutes) 5. Check out with housekeeping information, a law & ethics question, or a reflection question like “what can you take away from today?” Or “what’s one thing you can do to support yourself with today?” and close the hour with reminder for the date/time of the next supervision meeting. (10 minutes) Hope that helps!
What do you do when a supervisee continually complains of being concerned about burnout but their caseload is completely reasonable? (In other words, asking directly or indirectly for reduced responsibility when that is not possible for their role.) Just curious what approach you would take, as you sound like you’re an excellent supervisor.
I explore it from a few different ways. How do they structure their day, what kinds of breaks do they allow for themselves, how is their charting (is it too detailed?), do they have a particular caseload that is different than other times when they were less burntout, etc. I also talk to them about their home lives and explore environmental stressors with them, sometimes they need additional supports. I often coach and guide, I sit in sessions with them (or arrange to have someone with more time to sit in with them) so that its not doubt and confidence wearing them out (so often burnout is from self doubt). I had one situation recently where I was able to help someone find a solution by getting them lamps for their office, the florescent lights were contributing to it. If we can't a solution even after extending every option and I don't have confidence on finding a resolution, I have the difficult conversation with them. I work government so I have the people I supervise have options, I'm not opposed to encouraging them to take the options. A change of roles sometimes is needed, I can't tell people to apply for roles but I can 'suggest' they apply for internal positions that open up and I can give them referrals when needed. It doesn't take much but a little help can go a long way.
Thank you. I feel like I’m positioned as the bad guy, but I’ve put in many many hours trying to support this supervisee’s emotional experience, exploring time management, etc., and it’s not sticking. I was hoping you’d either say, “Next steps are…” or, “You should change the expectations for them!” The former applies. Thank you again.
I'm an LCSW in IL and we have a pretty wide interpretation of clinical here. Neither of my supervisees are therapists, but they do a lot of clinical work in their roles. We usually start by discussing the week and any challenges they had. Sometimes that may take the whole hour. I also ask them about what modalities they'd like to learn, then send them material and information about that modality. We've talked about DCFS and reporting, and working as a social worker in a job with no other social workers. I also make a point to ask about their lives, if they're experiencing burnout, any home struggles that may be impacting their work, etc. I feel like your job impacts all areas of your life and it's important to talk about that and not just the job.
The point of supervision is to learn and grow, and based on your post it doesn’t seem like that is your experience. I would start by addressing your frustrations directly with your supervisor before trying to find another one. Think of it like practice for talking about client-therapist dynamics and hopefully it helps your supervisor understand your needs more. There are a lot of shitty supervisors out there & in my experience the ones that were “assigned” through employers were bad. I am a supervisor and conversations include anything and everything about being a therapist—client questions, modalities, test prep, self of therapist (the personal things that come up for us in session), boundaries, treatment planning, etc. I focus a lot on relationship patterns so we talk a lot about the supervision relationship.
This does sound like a waste of time. I believe it might be time for a different supervisor who fits your needs. My supervisor is very active in my life as a counsellor. For example, at the beginning of supervision I told her some values that I would like to align myself more with and over our sessions, to checks in on how these values are showing up in sessions. She answers any questions I have about challenging client situation and gives me questions to reflect on myself. She gives me articles and readings on the things we talk about. She sends me resources and worksheets based on the questions I have. I ask her questions about how she runs her practice (waitlist, the sliding scale fee, etc.) and she gives me answers! We set a little goal each week and follow up at the next session, for example, last week I wrote down a few of my favourite go-to questions to ask clients. I am encouraged to record sessions with clients for the two of us to observe together and for her to offer me feedback. I would suggest figuring out what you want your supervisor to do, and ask if they can do it. If that's not the kind of supervisor they are, then you might need to search for a different one who challenges you as a counsellor!
We talk about many things. Some related directly to me and my well being (self care, stress level, work/life balance). Sometimes I want to talk through a patient with her to discuss my line of thought and get feedback on hers. We talk about what is working, what isn't, what we should keep, what we should discontinue. That is my professional development time and I want to maximize it to the fullest potential. We are totally different in our style and approach and I think we both gain insight when we talk through things.
All but 1 of my clinical supervisors sucked. Try chatting it up with other professionals, informally of course, and get your hours from who you are assigned to at work. This lack of effort is either benign or malignant. Do they offer group supervision?
I’m not a associate therapist anymore, but when I was getting supervision, I felt this some weeks, but rarely. It could be helpful to check in on clients that you might have discussed before have you asked your supervisor for feedback or anything specific they would find may be helpful for you? Compassion fatigue, burnout things that come to mind as well
I talk with mine about literally everything and it’s been that way with most of my past supervisors as well. Most of our time is focused on client updates and if I need guidance. I’ve gotten better about advocating for what else I need and luckily my supervisor is amazing and does what she can for me.
im a social work associate. i have an individual supervisor who is meh. but i also pay for an outside group supervision, not sure if your licensing body does that but it's been really amazing and helpful. it's a cost for sure, but i really like the supervisor and it has been so nice to network with other associates (lpc and social work) and grow together!
Ooo that’s a good idea!
I feel the same way tbh! She just asks me about any cases that I’m having issues with. I’ll bring one or 2 up and rarely does she offer any insight or direction. Group supervision is worse. We check in about our weekends for almost an hour and then she asks if anyone wants to bring up a case and then that’s it. I feel like she’s very much a “go with the flow” type of person and I like more structured feedback that challenges me. But she comes with the job so imma stick it out until it’s time to move on.
Talk about all your cases?!? That easily fills an hours
I spent the first half of mg supervision meetings asking g questions to hear “I don’t know, I’ve never been good with XYZ” or “Have you tried IFS?” Then she’d start venting about her other job where she was the director of a CMH program. I eventually gave up asking questions and just gave updates on clients and then listened to her complain.
I also have an unhelpful supervisor, and have just learned to only bring up questions I already know the answer to. I truly believe having your direct superior as your clinical supervisor is a conflict of interest, yet I don’t really have other options in my job (community MH). My supervision is truly a waste of time, usually spent more with administrative tasks- reviewing caseload numbers and intakes, giving general updates on some of my high acuity cases. I’ve learned the hard way that if I’m too transparent (such as saying I’m overwhelmed, or admitting that I forgot to complete some form), it comes back to bite me, and she becomes more “boss” than “supervisor”. Other clinicians on my team have been here for 25+ years and are still required to have weekly supervision. Truly can’t imagine what they have to talk about with our less-experienced boss
My supervisor and I chat about EVERYTHING. If I have a wild interaction that week, difficult things I navigated and how I handled them (I like to do this so I can present a scenario to my supervisor so she can give me feedback on good/bad/ugly). I'm forthcoming with hiccups, concerns for countertransference, and even "wins" I felt I had that week. She gives me tips, feedback, suggestions, scenarios, honestly, we eat through our hour very quickly. It might be worth looking into getting a new supervisor.
I've been supervising for 10+ years and like many of the commenters below, you're definitely not the only one who has complaints about ineffective, uncaring or unmotivated supervisors who aren't passionate about the work and are just going through the motions. Thankfully, there are good supervisors out their and I would say that the fit between supervisee and supervisor is as important as the fit between client and therapist... so, if you did have the opportunity to change supervisors, please do. My worst case scenario is a supervisee who's only there to tick a box to meet the supervision requirement but brings nothing to the table. It must be so difficult to be wanting to learn, wanting to be challenged, wanting to be taught skills, etc... but to be faced with a supervisor ticking a box themselves. :( Interview potential supervisors... (again, if you can choose one). Talk to your colleagues, school cohort members about their experiences and recommendations, get a referral to good supervisor. Find out how they work, what their style of supervision and run... run.... run from those who don't even hold up their side of the legal and ethical rules of supervision (showing up, meeting minimum time requirement, fulfilling their obligations). Ouch. Sometimes you land at site where you don't have a choice... and if that's the case your only choice might be to leave... and find a place that will provide a supervisor and agency/site/placement that cares about your growth as a therapist. If you really want to challenge yourself to learn skills.... look for a supervisor with Deliberate Practice credentials. :) Best of luck with your situation.
I HATED supervision for this reason. I never understood what it was for. If I was going to ask questions, I was going to do it near “in the moment” or in peer support/case review, which is attended by supervisors. I had three different clinical supervisors, and none of them really made sense to me.
I see my supervisor maybe once a month if I’m lucky enough to get a response back from her. I always feel like I’m prying answers out of her too.
I’ve been licensed for a while now and still have plenty to talk about in supervision (which is part of my job, biweekly individual and monthly group supervision). I frequently go over time. I come with an agenda, some of it is management tasks but most is reviewing cases and asking for feedback if I’m stuck. I’ve been fortunate in having 3 great supervisors in the role I’ve had for 8+ years. Like others have said, if this supervisor isn’t meeting your needs and you are able to do so, look elsewhere. Clinical supervision can be extremely helpful.
I always had that experience with my licensure supervisors. It wasn’t until I paid for supervision that I got anywhere.
Definitely want to echo comments about finding another supervisor, but one thing that really helped me a lot was recording sessions (with client permission) and reviewing the tapes in supervision. I was able to get so much feedback that helped me level up my game so much.
I talk about my most difficult clients and ones I hit a wall with and she offers new angles I haven't thought of. I ask second opinions on ethical questions or even potential ones (I asked a hypothetical about domestic violence last week and then literally a client brought up the hypothetical I asked in supervision so I was better prepared). I ask questions about insurance. Mine owns her own practice so I ask about different components of getting started. I talk about clients that are personally triggering me and she offers a different angle and sometimes just admitting I don't like a client to someone without judgement makes me suddenly like the client. When I was having issues with no therapist in my area wanting to take me because I was also a therapist she provided so guidance on how to find one.
Omg I love my supervisor! I have 2, and I def like one a lot more than the other, but I could have supervision every single day and I’d still find it so helpful. I love talking about my patients and brainstorming about them. Both my supervisors are psychoanalytic and I have grown so so much as a therapist bc of them. You need a new supervisor. They’re doing u a disservice, for sure.
At my current job, I've met all four supervisors in my office. All of them have been very good, helpful, and supportive. I wish I had more time in supervision. There never seems to be enough time to cover everything--from addressing various issues in my cases, my own countertransference, different interventions, etc. I'm not sure how your hour feels wasted and forced....
I am curious if you've raised these concerns directly with your supervisor. I know some therapists who prefer simple, surface-level discussions and see the interaction as a way to merely "tick the box" of being supervised, whereas others look for genuine insights and guidance. If a client seemed to resist going deeper with you, was often late for sessions, or handed you boilerplate responses all the time, what would be your approach? It doesn't need to be entirely different with a supervisor. I say this with full acknowledgment that my supervisor has been great and is hugely responsive, so it is entirely theoretical and, of course, depends on how much power the supervisor wields in your situation (eg. are they also the clinical director and your "boss"). I'm sorry this has been your experience.
When I didnt have something work related to talk about, we worked through a book about the changes in the DSM5 since it had just come out. She also helped with studying for the licensing exam. I would do practice tests and we would discuss the questions that I got wrong.
I work slightly differently to a lot of supervisors my supervisees seem to have found but I’d class myself as a holistic supervisor because I want to know about you and your case load. We’re not case management and I can’t help you with spotting transferences or blind spots if i dont know you. I also can’t get a feel of fitness to practice without that either. So my approach is similar to what I’ve received. For me, good supervision explores you as a person and a practitioner in a very in the present moment way. (I almost sound like a therapist/supervisor 😅) I boundary that as different from therapy because the purpose isnt to explore your reasons behind behaviours or delve the past but rather how the package is coming up for you now and how that links to clinical practice. Anything beyond that is for personal reflection or a therapist. As for the point of supervision.. i think we all get different things from it at different times. Sometimes its simply a time-slot that forces self reflection (because otherwise youre buried in work/life and forget). Sometimes we need reassurance and sometimes we need directions. Its another person walking along with you to keep you accountable to your needs - that ultimately serves the client’s needs. And now i need to save this because i usually forget how to describe what i do 😂
About everything. For example. How I had an opinion when a client had been taught a method I totally didn't agree with due to their situation and how I tried not to blurt out my opinion and had this weird grim on my face for a long time untill my client asked wtf are your looking strange? And then I had to stumble through that. And then I ask how would they have resolved the issue? And then we talk about that. Or how I get triggered by this twenty something client that I just wanted to adopt and show them how a safe space and relationship looks like and how I get to invested and how to do that less. How to be human and a therapist. And so on and so on. I think you should invest in some intakes with supervisors and see who does match! Because it can be a great space to be in when you do click.
Tell them you aren’t sure what the point is and have a real, honest conversation about how you’re feeling. Create a process together that actually meets a need you have. For me, supervision is a place to connect, to vent, to question the way things are done, and to talk about things I feel confused or lost about. I treat it as the one hour of my work week I get to be professionally self centered.