Hi Dr. ---,
I just want to thank you for all of your help this past year and a half. I was holding off on sending this email because I wanted to wait and see if if I had indeed gotten any better since we first met.
Well, since we last met, I started my new part-time role at work and have picked up hours on the side working for myself (consulting, tutoring, curriculum writing, and mentoring new teachers). In some sense, I have fewer stressors in my life now than I did when I first came to you.
I've also had some hard times. My friend's mother was violently killed. Around the same time, a student of mine's stepbrother was killed. These tragedies really shook me. I felt myself starting to revert back to fears that I had discussed with you and had worked through in my worry group. Besides that, annoyances at work came up, as I suppose they always will, which shook my confidence in myself briefly.
When those setbacks happened, I thought about reaching out to you for help. But first, I thought about the tools and resources that I had more immediately available to me that would help me feel like I had my feet on solid ground again. I replayed some of conversations that you and I had in our sessions over again in my head. I talked out what I was feeling to my partner and a friend as I would have done with you. In the end, whereas I initially felt like I wanted to turn to you to ask look for confirmation that my worries would pass and that I would find my way on the other side of hardship, ultimately, I was able to call back on what you had already taught me and find that confirmation that "this too, will pass... I will figure this out!" in myself and in my support network.
So, I guess I'm writing to you now not because things feel like they will be smooth sailing from now and forever more, but because I want to thank you for helping me learn how to manage tough times as they come. I hope that your door remains open in for me in case I need to talk again in the future, but until then, I am proud of myself for being able to handle things better on my own.
Thank you for your patience and compassion, Dr.---. You are a really good therapist.
Kindly,
A
