Waiting Room Etiquette

[Retired]

When you arrive for your appointment to see your psychologist, psychiatrist or other mental health therapist, and someone else is in the waiting room, do you engage them in conversation? How do you respond if the other person tries to engage you in conversation?

 

[David Baxter PhD]

Look him or her in the eye and whisper, "I can read your thoughts, you know."

 

[AmZ]

I personally avoid all eye contact and any contact at all! Almost like they are invisible. That's what works for me anyway.

 

[suewatters1]

When I go to my see my 2 Drs when I get to the waiting room I am the only one there and the other person will show up before I am done with my visit with my DR. When I am done I go out a different door so nobody knows who is the person before them or after them. That is how both my DRs does it. One of my DR has a camera and monitor so he know when they other person shows up. I get 40 minute session with each DR.

Sue

 

[Daniel E.]

When I am done I go out a different door so nobody knows who is the person before them or after them.

Yeah, I've seen that before but only at one place I went to.

 

[GDPR]

I go early in the morning, when there's nobody else there. But occasionally, there will be one other person in the waiting room. I don't mind idle chit chat, but dang, there was a woman that started telling me all of her chaos and drama with her sister, and the police,etc. And she did it 3 weeks in a row. I couldn't handle listening to her anymore and basically told her she needed to just tell her sister to f*** off. And I told her she needed to shut the hell up and stop telling me her problems. The last time she was in there, she didn't even speak to me at all,as a matter of fact, she didn't even look at me. I haven't seen her since then. That was probably wrong of me, but good god, I just wanted her to stop talking to me.

Now I avoid chit chat altogether,as much as possible. Saying hello can turn into a never ending conversation. If someone says hi to me, I will say it back, but I try not to let it go any further than that.

 

[Retired]

If someone says hi to me, I will say it back, but I try not to let it go any further than that.

If someone tries to engage you in a conversation at your doctor's waiting room, and you prefer not to talk (or listen) you might say something like, "I''d love to talk with you but you will have to excuse me, because I need some quiet time to focus and plan for my appointment"

If the person persists, then you might have to replace tact and diplomacy with something more assertive, perhaps, "I cannot speak to you right now, and I prefer silence."

I suppose if that fails, then what you said, "I told her she needed to shut the hell up and stop telling me her problems."

Sometimes only the big guns work!:lol:

 

[H011yHawkJ311yBean]

I only talk to someone if they talk to me first, because I am not really nervous about talking in the waiting room. I would try to limit it to small talk...

The receptionist tends to try to chat with me though. I think it exasperates my therapist because she will tell me when her fax machine stops working or the boiler bursts or something. lol

At least she's nice. I tried to help her with the fax machine and told her it's probably best to talk to the manufacturer or the people that sold it to them and get it replaced. I only know this because that's what we tell people who call us at our technical support call centre. It turned out to be the correct advice... lol My therapist was a little surprised to see me leaning over the fax machine behind the receptionist's desk just before my appointment... lol

I don't mind just chit-chat and she never asks me personal questions. I've only been in the waiting room with someone else briefly and they were reading a magazine, so that's what I did, too.

lol If I had a jibber-jabberer like LIT I probably would have told her that I wasn't qualified to help her with her issues, and I had my own issues or I wouldn't be in the waiting room with her! lol I would perhaps put it to her, "You may be making yourself feel better telling me these things, but I have my own issues and I don't like to talk about them." If she didn't get the hint, I would probably have to be more direct like LIT was! lol "Excuse me, I don't wish to be rude, but you seem to have mistaken me for a therapist." lol Actually we gave our therapist a tee-shirt that says "Do I look like your psychologist?" Maybe you should get one, LIT!! lol

 

[Jackie]

Its always best to take a book or magazine, sit down and start reading before anyone has chance to engage with you, go with headphones in your ears and listen to your music! I always try and find a single seat or a quiet corner. I'm not one nowadays for talking to people in waiting rooms!

 

[GDPR]

Jackie,headphones are a good idea, I hadn't thought of that. I use them here at home, and even if I'm not listening to music or a book or anything, I sometimes(actually often,not sometimes) act like I am just so I don't have to listen to or talk to my husband . If he starts talking,I point to the earbuds,and he stops. That would work well in the waiting room. I have tried pretending I am reading a magazine or a book,and people don't seem to care,they still start talking to me. If I have earbuds, I can just point to them and ignore them. Problem solved....