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

Chapter 419 Differences in Story Recollections
Instead of talking about what happened five months ago, when the problem first started, the visitor began to talk about what they thought about when they couldn't concentrate.

This is a type of defense that manifests as "shifting the topic".

This convinced Nan Zhuren that something significant must have happened to the visitor five months ago.

It could be a disruptive event, or even a traumatic event!
However, seeing the visitor's state, Nan Zhuren did not dwell on this unknown event.

Being able to get straight to the point is good, but peeling back the layers also has its advantages.

Extending the consultation process appropriately allows the client to gradually release their emotions and accumulate strength.

This is also one of the important functions of psychological counseling.

Nan Zhuren looked at the visitor who had just taken off his mask and observed his posture.

The other party probably really needs this process.

Moreover, according to the normal consultation procedure, the task is successfully completed if the first consultation can establish a relationship and collect information.

……

At this moment, after hearing Nan Zhuren's request to "first talk about what you think about when you can't concentrate," he replied with "Of course."

The visitor shifted his body slightly: "How much longer will our consultation last?"

Nan Zhuren did not give a specific number: "It's okay, I'll remind you when the time comes."

"……it is good."

The visitor nodded.

then.

Pupils dilate, gaze freezes.

Clenching teeth, lips tightly stretched into a line, swallowing motion.

Take a deep breath and hold it.

Other facial muscles are stiff.

Nan Zhuren observed the visitors' expressions and guessed the reasons behind them.

These facial expressions and body language changes may not be pleasant for the visitor's subjective experience, but they are good news for the counseling process.

Then Nan Zhihao suddenly frowned, lowered his head, blinked hard twice, and pretended to think hard: "Then let me first talk about the thing that happened to me before, where I 'argued with someone but lost the argument and kept thinking about it afterwards'."

Ok?
That expression and reaction weren't very good.

Nan Zhuren frowned slightly, but didn't say anything more.

Let the visitors continue to contribute.

"The first thing... I hold a position in our graduate student association, that is, I'm a student union officer. A couple of days ago, I got into an argument with another of my nominal superiors."

Nan Zhuren grasped a key phrase: "nominal superior?"

The visitor explained, "They are temporary event coordinators or project managers who are responsible for assigning us tasks or reviewing things, but they are at the same level as me."

Nan Zhuren nodded to indicate that he understood, and asked, "How did you two argue?"

"It was because of a recent large event. He assigned tasks to everyone but not himself. When we asked him about it, he said he was responsible for mediating and overseeing the overall situation."

“But just a week before the event, he suddenly added some tasks for everyone and said something like…” The visitor pretended to think hard, “‘Everyone should complete the task assignments and actively push forward. If problems arise in the end, you will bear the consequences yourself.’”

The visitor frowned deeply.

Nan Zhuren asked, "You feel very uncomfortable with that statement?"

The visitor nodded: "Of course, he's the team leader, the person in charge, but isn't what he said just passing the buck? He claims to have an overall view, but all he does is relay the teacher's requirements." "Besides, I've interacted with this person before, and he's never done anything beyond my capabilities at work, as if he's never even been exposed to work before."

“An incompetent and irresponsible person is now leading my work and constantly putting pressure on me. I don’t agree with this, so I argued with him.”

"But... looking back now, I still feel regretful."

This story serves a purpose; by observing the visitor's behavior within the story, we can infer the visitor's personal traits.

However, everything shown in this story is something that Nan Zhuren had already seen before.

Therefore, Nan Zhuren is more concerned with both interpretations of the story.

The counselor asked, "Why do you regret it?"

The visitor frowned: "I just feel that there is a better way to handle this, a more appropriate way that is good for everyone."

"Now that I'm arguing with this guy in public, it's like I'm on the same level as him. I even backed down to avoid making things worse—that would make me seem inferior to him, like I'm being unreasonable."

Nan Zhuren felt like he had figured something out: "You said you took a step back first?"

“Yes, because at first I just wanted to offer some advice, I wanted to tell him that what he was doing was wrong.” The visitor frowned, “but then that person acted like he’d been stepped on, and started yelling in public, attracting everyone’s attention.”

Nan Zhuren observed the visitor's expression and noticed something was amiss.

He first made an emotional response: "You feel uncomfortable."

The visitor nodded: "I feel unwell."

Nan Zhuren then gave another summary with explanation: "What you just said seems to contain two elements: one is 'arguing with a nominal superior,' and the other is 'arguing with someone in public and attracting attention.'"

The final question is: "Which of these two makes you uncomfortable?"

The visitor was stunned again.

"There are some of each..."

Nan Zhuren pressed further, "Which one made you feel more uncomfortable?"

The visitor's gaze froze for a moment, then suddenly shuddered as if his whole body had been pricked.

"...They're about the same, I guess."

That's how he answered.

Nan Zhuren observed the other person's expression.

There are two possibilities for the visitor's response—one is that they are covering up the fact that they have done this many times today.

However, there was no sign of lying on the other person's face at that moment.

That's another possibility—the other person's subjective feelings are biased.

This is quite common. After all, "feelings" are not something objective, measurable, or comparable.

Therefore, a different standard is needed for measurement. Coincidentally, this "standard" is also one of the pieces of information that Nan Zhuren wants to know next.

“You said you always think about this, so when you recall it, you must have vivid images in your mind.”

"So, most of the images in your memories are related to the person you argued with—that is, your 'nominal superior';"

"Is it more related to the scenes of you arguing—those 'many people watching you argue'?"

The visitor was thinking very hard.

Half a day later, she replied, "It should be the latter one, the one where 'many people are watching us argue,' which makes me more uncomfortable."

(End of this chapter)