Completely Unsafe
When I was just starting out as a therapist, I worked for a community mental health clinic at the satellite office, which was located in the basement of a community center. Looking back, it was completely unsafe. No other staff worked there except for me.
I was in a cinderblock room, alone, with individuals who had varying degrees of mental health issues. One day, it came to a dark climax. The incident involved a woman with Schizoaffective Disorder. She was typically very odd in her presentation, with loose associations and bizarre speech.
However, she really was a sweetheart overall. But one day, she came into my office holding a giant rock. She was agitated and indicated that people were trying to “mess with her,” so the rock was for protection.
I’m grateful that I had an established relationship with her and navigated the session without getting bludgeoned. But afterward, I was shaking and needed a bit to center myself for the next client.
I also began to raise concerns about the safety issues (and it didn’t change a thing). Story credit: Reddit / AlwaysTheIntrovert