Who would study psychology if they didn't have some kind of problem?

Chapter 124 But I still have inquiries

Howard paused.

Because Chen's father was still beside him, Howard maintained a smile, but apart from the corners of his mouth, the muscles on his face had begun to contort.

"Consultation? Is there consultation available?"

His question was not a question.

“Yes,” Nan Zhuren answered as a question, “so I have to go now.”

Then Nan Zhuren turned to Chen Ting and said, “I explained Chen Ting’s situation to her during our last consultation. Based on my assessment at the time, she was capable of breaking free from counseling—being too reliant on counseling is not a good thing, Mr. Chen.”

"Of course, I haven't been following up on her situation recently. If you think it's necessary for her to start counseling again, perhaps you can bring her along next time so I can do another assessment and see if any 'follow-up' intervention is needed."

At this point, Nan Zhuren revealed an impeccable, professional smile.

"Thank you for acknowledging my work, but there's no need for 'repayment for your help,' since you've already paid for the consultation. If you have any other interests in the mental health field, our boss and supervisors have a much better understanding of the big picture than I do; you can talk to them about it."

Howard was already on the verge of losing his smile, but after hearing the second half of that sentence, he finally managed to keep his expression under control.

But the harmonious atmosphere that had just been established has been completely lost.

Nan Zhuren, however, seemed to have lost all emotional intelligence and ignored everything. After giving a final nod to Chen's father and Howard, he turned and left.

Only Mr. Chen, with his meaningful gaze, and Howard, who was taking deep breaths, remained.

"This……"

Mr. Chen looked at Howard, prompting the center's owner to quickly force an awkward smile.

"Haha, look, Teacher Xiao Nan is so responsible at work."

"Come, come, Mr. Chen, what would you like to know? We have a consulting manager here who came from the capital. She's Xiao Nan's mentor. You can ask us anything you want."

Mr. Chen nodded. In this situation, disagreeing would not be in accordance with adult social etiquette.

But in his heart, he was unsure.

At the same time, he would occasionally glance in the direction Nan Zhuren had left.

……

The relationship between a client and a counselor is always a difficult one.

Although most textbooks and reference books on psychological counseling begin with a chapter on counselor ethics, they all unanimously emphasize that "one should not have a dual relationship with clients and their families outside of counseling."

For various reasons, such as the Yan Nuo Center, direct contact between counselors and clients is separated, and in principle, counselors and clients are only allowed to contact each other through assistants.

But life and book dogma are always somewhat different.

Situations like this, where family members of visitors come to the door, are unavoidable.

Even if the other party came to express their gratitude, it's hard to say whether things will turn out well or badly if they continue to interact.

Therefore, after receiving verbal thanks, Nan Zhuren avoided the matter as much as possible.

With Nan Zhuren's emotional intelligence, she wasn't oblivious to Howard's hint. Chen's father was clearly a more successful businessman than Howard, and the consulting center's owner obviously hoped to gain some business advantage from this positive word-of-mouth, at least to attract more clients or sell more consulting services.

As a member of the Yannuo Center, Nan Zhuren certainly couldn't hold Howard back, so he gave Howard a way out at the end, which facilitated the conversation between Howard and Chen's father. However, as a psychological counselor, Nan Zhuren didn't want his counseling relationship to be unbalanced and turned into excessive benefits—as Nan Zhuren himself said, he had already received the counseling fee, and receiving verbal thanks was enough.

I don't want any more.

Nan Zhuren wasn't deliberately making excuses to slip away; after all, he genuinely had a consultation to attend to.

In his eyes, regardless of the identity of the next visitor, the type of question, or the price of the consultation, as long as it is a consultation, it is more important than socializing with Chen's father and Howard.

"Mr. Huang, if there are no other questions, our consultation for today will end here."

Across from him, the bar owner, a regular customer, let out a long sigh of relief, as if he had just received a mental massage and felt completely refreshed.

"Phew—thank goodness for you, Teacher Nan." Boss Huang said generously. "It feels so much better to say these things out loud. I really don't know what I would have done without you."

Nan Zhuren gave a professional smile: "I still want to emphasize that the social support system is very important."

“I know, I know, but if I seek out this, this, this social support you mentioned, then you won’t be able to earn my consulting fees.”

Nan Zhuren remained unfazed: "I must reiterate—Mr. Huang, you have long since reached the point where you can discontinue counseling at any time. My suggestion is that you suspend counseling for a month. If you experience any subjective discomfort after a month, we can discuss counseling intervention again."

Boss Huang nodded repeatedly, but clearly didn't take Nan Zhuren's words to heart.

Nan Zhuren collected facial expressions from the other person to confirm that no transference had occurred; then, recalling the consultation process, she confirmed that no other signs of dependency-related symptoms had emerged.

So we let him be.

If you can afford it, there's nothing wrong with having regular psychological counseling; in the United States, for example, psychological counseling is covered by health insurance.

Not everyone can psychologically grow to the theoretically "whole person" state. Therefore, it is very necessary for some people to incorporate psychological counseling into their regular lives for support, just like personal fitness training or medical check-ups.

However, in China, the lack of medical insurance for psychological counseling makes financial factors a concern; in addition, traditional cultural beliefs also contribute to the relative scarcity of regular psychological counseling.

Having one yourself, without causing problems due to excessive consultation, is not a bad thing.

"Speaking of which, isn't our consultation package about to expire this month? Professor Nan, why don't you call your assistant in?"

Mr. Huang had become quite adept at it, but then he suddenly thought of something, and his voice softened: "Teacher Nan, how about I add you on WeChat? Sometimes when I'm not consulting, I want to chat with someone. The price is the same as your consulting center's, no problem. Without the platform's commission, you can earn even more..."

Nan Zhuren maintained excellent composure, saying, "I'll go call my assistant in."

Regardless of Mr. Huang's disappointment at being rejected, or Shen Bing's delight at being able to renew his meal plan.

Nan Zhuren walked out of the consultation room without looking back; he had something else on his mind.

He went straight back to his workstation and, as usual, went straight to sleep.

Sink your consciousness and enter your own private dream consultation room.

【月度目标：1个月内完成“心理咨询”10小时（7/10），完成后进行1次“心理能力培训”。】

Last month's reward for the "Monthly Goal" was "Charm," which hardly qualifies as a "reward" for Nan Zhuren.

Will the rewards for the [Monthly Goals] change in the new month?

(End of this chapter)