Therapists establish boundaries with their patients for several important reasons. Boundaries are an essential aspect of maintaining a safe, ethical, and professional therapeutic relationship. They create a clear framework for the therapeutic process, ensuring that both the therapist and patient understand their roles and responsibilities. Boundaries help establish a professional distance that allows therapists to remain objective and provide unbiased support and guidance. They also help maintain the focus on the patient’s needs and ensure that therapy remains centered on their well-being. Boundaries also serve to protect the therapist’s own well-being and prevent any potential conflicts of interest. By maintaining appropriate boundaries, therapists can create a therapeutic space that is free from dual relationships or personal biases, fostering trust, respect, and a healthy therapeutic alliance. These boundaries promote the safety and integrity of the therapeutic process and support the client’s overall growth and healing. Without boundaries, feelings become muddled and you might feel like you are becoming friends or more-than-friends with your therapist. This is extremely common but critical to address. Under no circumstances are dual relationships permitted. Dual relationships are unethical and harmful to both the patient and therapist. If you begin to feel like your relationship with your therapist is no longer professional (if you begin to desire having your therapist in your life as more than a professional therapist), please let us know about these feelings. Your therapist can help you work to resolve this conflict or support you through a smooth transfer to another therapist at River Oaks Psychology so that your treatment process can remain professional and most effective for you. When a patient maintains boundaries, this means they remember the therapist is a professional (not a friend, parent, neighbor, etc.). They do not ask for inappropriate things from the therapist (asking to come to special life events, asking for special treatment, etc.). They do not take advantage of the therapist’s time, abilities, or services, and they do not make unreasonable demands of the therapist. Maintaining these boundaries allows the patient to achieve the most effective therapy outcomes without disruptions due to boundary violations.