Building a therapeutic relationship with a person takes time. I find that it takes about 8 weeks of regular weekly sessions before the relationship builds. During this initial time, it can seem like the person isn’t even aware that I am there, or indicates that he or she doesn’t want me there.
During these first few weeks, I find it’s useful to balance the session length. Even if the session if for 30 minutes, sometimes I may end the initial sessions after 10 minutes. It’s based on quality rather than quantity. I find that initially the person may engage for a short while and then stop engaging, if I push on at this stage, it often has a detrimental effect for future sessions.
So, if you’re building a therapeutic relationship with a person, if you feel that there is no progress or the person prefers you to not be there, know that it just takes time.
Feel Better Music Therapy 