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

The reason behind Chapter 417

Do you suffer from insomnia and difficulty concentrating?
That's too broad a scope.

Many issues can lead to these two problems.

Depression is acceptable, mania is acceptable, anxiety is acceptable, stress is acceptable, even anorexia is acceptable...

"I understand. It seems you do have a very urgent need."

Nan Zhuren nodded with an expression that said, "I understand." "How about I get to know you first? What should I call you?"

“Isn’t it all written in those documents?” The visitor frowned, gestured to the folder in Nan Zhuren’s hand, and said, “Well, you might have misunderstood. I didn’t come here to chat; I want to get help.”

"I suffer from insomnia and difficulty concentrating. I hope you can teach me some techniques to fall asleep quickly to help me sleep, or some methods to clear my mind of distractions so that I can concentrate better."

"You should offer psychological counseling, right? I've looked it up online; it includes things like meditation and self-hypnosis."

Does it exist?
It really does.

But the consultation process is not like that.

“I can understand your urgent feelings right now. Insomnia and lack of concentration do indeed cause a lot of disruption to daily life.”

Nan Zhuren first used a response imbued with empathy.

Then he used an analogy: "But it's like a cold. Viral colds and colds caused by wind and cold have similar symptoms, but the causes are different, so the medications are naturally different as well."

Nan Zhuren is using a medical analogy here, which should be used with caution in regular consultations.

Many visitors are averse to having their problems described as "illnesses" and dislike being treated as "patients"—this is another form of stigmatization.

After using the medical metaphor, Nan Zhuren observed the visitor briefly—the other party did not seem offended.

After that, you can be a bit bolder.

Nan Zhuren continued, "Therefore, I need to know your specific situation. When you go to the hospital, the doctor will also ask you what time you sleep, when you eat, and what you eat throughout the day, right?"

Before the visitor could speak, Nan Zhuren continued.

"Moreover, psychological counseling is a one-on-one service, which is like having a private doctor in medical terms, and therefore it is obvious that it is expensive."

"I believe you also hope that your consultation fees are spent where they are needed, right?"

This string of words is quite well-organized.

The visitor's mask bulged out, presumably because they exhaled through their nose.

"So what do we do now? Introduce ourselves?"

Nan Zhuren put it another way: "It's more like it's about letting me 'understand you better.' I can say whatever comes to mind, anything is fine."

“Okay,” the visitor replied.

"First of all—hello teacher, my surname is also Nan, and my name is Nan Zhihao." The visitor spoke in a seemingly respectful manner, but his body remained in the position of leaning back on the sofa with his arms crossed.

Because he leaned against it for so long, his body even slid down a bit, making him appear even more nonchalant.

“Speaking of which, after I left my hometown, you are the first person I’ve met with the surname Nan,” Nan Zhihao said. “This surname seems to be quite rare outside.”

"But in my hometown, there is a village called 'Nanzhai Village,' and almost everyone in it has the surname Nan."

This statement may seem irrelevant, but there are no "useless" words in a consultation.

Nan Zhuren pondered the psychological state of the visitor when he said those words.

Then he responded, "I'm glad we have this in common." The visitor looked Nan Zhuren up and down: "Professor Nan, are you from Beidu?"

Nan Zhuren shook his head: "It's a small town in Jiang Province, kind of like a rural-urban fringe area. There are quite a few people with the surname Nan in our area."

When Nan Zhuren answered this question, the visitor appeared to be thinking.

Then he thought for a moment and said, "Now that I've finished introducing myself, I'll talk about my problem... just like talking to a doctor about your illness."

The visitor's gaze shifted away from Nan Zhuren's, and he blinked twice.

“I’m currently a graduate student, a master’s student, and I’ll be graduating next year. I’m currently preparing my thesis, so I’m probably feeling rather… well, anxious.”

"That's probably why I always have insomnia at night. At first, I would only stay up until one or two in the morning, but recently I can't fall asleep until four or five. Sometimes I even lie in bed with my eyes closed and stay up all night."

As he said this, Nan Zhihao shifted his body slightly.

Nan Zhuren nodded to indicate that he understood.

"Besides insomnia, I also have trouble concentrating," the visitor added.

Nan Zhuren nodded, then looked at the visitor.

But then he saw the visitor suddenly stop talking and stare straight at Nan Zhuren.

Nan Zhuren then extended the discussion: "Why can't you concentrate?"

"I just can't concentrate; I can't focus on doing one thing at a time."

Nan Zhuren shook his head: "There are many ways to show a lack of concentration. For example, your attention may shift from one thing to another, or you may suddenly become impatient and start thinking about other things, or you may suddenly start spacing out while sitting."

Which type of inattention do you have?

The visitor's mask shifted again, and Nan Zhuren heard a "tsk" sound.

"I'm not concentrating... I'm thinking about something."

Nan Zhuren took a step forward and asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"It's just something I didn't do well during the day."

The visitor suddenly stopped leaning against the back of the chair and straightened up, supporting his thighs near his knees with his elbows, his whole body leaning forward.

"Teacher Nan, do you know 'that kind'? It's like this: you argue with someone during the day and don't win, so when you go to bed at night, you think about how you can perform better and plan what to say in the argument to win."

“I not only think about it at night, but I also continue to think about it during the day on the second and third days. I think about it from time to time, thinking about the outcome of ‘if only I hadn’t done it that way’, and then I start to have all sorts of thoughts because of that.”

"Or in other situations, when you don't answer someone's question well, or when your behavior is inappropriate, all sorts of...random thoughts may arise."

Nan Zhihao said a lot in one breath.

Because of the movement of his mouth and chin, the visitor's mask slipped down a little, causing him to constantly grab the edge of the mask and pull it up.

Nan Zhuren nodded: "So what is it you're thinking about?"

The visitor paused.

It's probably because I just spoke too much in one breath, and wearing a mask made it really inconvenient to breathe.

The visitor's chest heaved violently twice.

(End of this chapter)