Who would study psychology if they didn't have some kind of problem?

Chapter 7 is not depression.

"Xiaoting, how are you feeling today?"

"...Not very good, Mom."

"But it's better than the previous times, right?"

Chen Ting hesitated for a moment: "...Yes."

“You’ve already changed three therapists. If this continues, it will put your mother in a very difficult position.”

"I'm just feeling really bad."

“I know, I know.” The middle-aged woman held her daughter’s hand. “But you don’t really want to drop out of school, do you? You finally got into Jiang University, majoring in law. You’re going to be a lawyer, or even take the civil service exam. The first semester isn’t even over yet. How can you get sick at this time? Xiaoting, how about we go to the doctor, but also go back to school and continue our classes? Is that okay?”

"But I've already spoken with the school, and the counselor's opinion is that we should take this seriously, and it would be best to suspend my studies..."

"What do you mean?"

Chen Ting opened her mouth, but ultimately lowered her head: "I don't know either."

Chen Ting's mother frowned as she looked at Chen Ting, and was about to say something when she suddenly heard a strange sound coming from Chen Ting's abdomen.

—Gurgle~
The woman frowned: "Hungry? Didn't you just have breakfast?"

"...I eat very little."

Were you full at that time?

"full."

The woman pursed her lips, said nothing, and finally took her daughter's hand and stepped into the consultation center.

Upon entering, the eight large, artistic characters of "Yan Nuo Psychological Counseling Center" immediately catch the eye.

Lu Jia, the receptionist with big, wavy hair, faced two women of the same sex, one big and one small. She toned down her curves and skillfully flashed an impeccable eight-tooth smile.

"We've booked a consultation for 9 a.m.," Chen Ting's mother said succinctly.

Lu Jia maintained her smile: "Wait a moment."

She expertly verified Chen Ting's mother's phone number, then took two cups of hot tea from her and guided the mother and daughter to sit down on the sofa in the reception area.

She then took out an informed consent form: "This is a notice for visitors, informing them of their rights and obligations; next is a confidentiality agreement, which the visitor will need to sign if there are no problems."

Chen Ting's mother naturally picked up the pen: "Okay."

Lu Jia suddenly interrupted Chen Ma's actions, saying, "If the visitor is an adult, it's best if the visitor signs the document himself."

Chen Ting's mother frowned: "The previous counseling center was able to get me to sign."

Lu Jia skillfully took a step back: "Then it would be best if both your signature and the visitor's signature were signed at the same time."

The process went smoothly; Lu Jia is not only young and beautiful, but also highly professional. Given the procedures before the consultation, it was impossible for anything to go wrong with her.

She calmly received the signed agreement and skillfully added it to the visitor file she had prepared in advance.

"Please wait outside for a moment while I take the client to meet the counselor." Lu Jia maintained her calm smile.

Chen Ting's mother nodded noncommittally.

After seeing her daughter get up, she quickly said, "Tingting, have a good consultation!"

The little girl lowered her head: "...Okay."

Lu Jia didn't give a second glance to the interaction between the mother and daughter. She was experienced in her work and remained calm no matter what kind of visitors or guardians she faced.

With an impeccable smile, she led the little girl through the reception room, past the office, and toward the consultation room.

The office is a private space within the consulting center and is generally not open to the public or visitors.

Therefore, Lu Jia did not see the composed bald consultant Yang in the office and was unaware of what had just happened.

So when she opened the door, she saw Nan Zhuren sitting upright.

……

Lu Jia's heart skipped a beat, and she could no longer maintain her composure.

there is a problem.

She looked closely at Nan Zhuren, but this time her gaze wasn't focused on those alluring, deep eyes; instead, it was directed at the object of those eyes.

Nan Zhuren was rushing to look at Chen Ting's file, and it seemed that he had just finished reading it just before Lu Jia and the others entered the room.

This is a big problem.

Lu Jia's facial expression management is comparable to that of a psychological counselor; she knows that now is not the time to show any abnormality in front of her client.

She closed the door without making a sound, then strode off into her high heels towards the office.

But Lu Jia stopped abruptly. After her eyes darted around in thought for a moment, she suddenly turned and returned to the reception room as if nothing had happened.

She quickly pulled out her phone and answered a number: "Hello, is this Sister Pingting?"

"Come quick, something's happened at the center!"
-
The consultation room is about 20 square meters and has green wallpaper.

In the center of the room, near the window, there is a gray sofa and a matching single sofa. Between the two sofas is a round table with a pack of tissues on it.

From Nan Zhuren's perspective, one can also see the clock hanging on the wall, with its second hand moving slowly and steadily.

The two single sofas weren't facing each other, but rather reclined. Nan Zhuren sat on the left sofa, allowing him to face the visitor with his right side. He watched as Chen Ting immediately sank into the sofa upon entering the room. The sofa was large enough for three people, but she chose a small spot in the middle, slightly to the right, which placed her a little further away from Nan Zhuren.

Then she lowered her head and remained silent.

After silently counting to three or four, and seeing that the visitor still showed no sign of speaking, Nan Zhuren made up his mind.

"Good morning, Chen Ting, right? I'm your psychological counselor, you can call me Teacher Nan." Nan Zhuren introduced himself first.

Then came the opening remarks: "Your red sweater is beautiful, and it complements your hair perfectly."

Instead of getting straight to the point, he tried to create a calming atmosphere for the nervous girl in front of him.

Based on the visitor information recorded in the file, Nan Zhuren was confident in handling this consultation.

Before being stabbed to death by that antisocial personality disorder individual, Nan Zhuren had spent several years navigating the complexities of the industry. He had encountered depression before.

Nan Zhuren chose to take on this case not only because he wanted to accumulate hard-earned consultation time, but also because he was confident that he would not have a negative impact on the client.

However, the anomaly occurred faster than expected, and Nan Zhuren quickly realized that something was wrong.

It wasn't a negative accident, but rather a "breakthrough" in the consultation process.

In her previous life, as a professional consultant capable of independent counseling, Nan Zhuren had long since developed the ability to multitask.

For example, right now, he is recalling Chen Ting's file, choosing a suitable opening line, observing Chen Ting's reaction, and forming an impression of himself as a counselor for the client.

Something's wrong; she's very nervous. Considering her diagnosis of depression, and the fact that we haven't established a therapeutic relationship yet, this "should" be normal.

But why did she become even more nervous after I gave my opening remarks?

As Nan Zhuren pondered, a sudden, intense clash of thoughts struck his mind.

Looking down, avoiding eye contact, and tensing up are indeed signs of nervousness.

However, hidden behind this tension, some more subtle information began to be collected by Nan Zhuren.

Micro-expression analysis - Beginner level

It's starting to take effect.

In psychology, "expression" is not just a narrow concept like "facial expression".

Language also has "expressions," and speech rate, tone of voice, and so on can express one's inner feelings; not to mention body language, in some ways, the expressive power of "body language" even surpasses that of facial expressions.

Now, Chen Ting's body language is constantly conveying her master's emotions to Nan Zhuren.

[It's not nervousness; it's another kind of negative emotion. And after I started speaking, this emotion was further amplified—what is this emotion? And why was it amplified?]

The basic micro-expression analysis only tells Nan Zhuren that "something is wrong," but it doesn't tell Nan Zhuren "specifically where is wrong" or "what is right."

Nan Zhuren needs to find the answer himself.

"Thank you, my mom bought this dress for me," Chen Ting replied softly to Nan Zhuren's earlier compliment on her outfit, very politely.

[It's that same emotion again, a slightly less intense feeling, but it's still there.]

At this time, Nan Zhuren observed another point.

He noticed that the visitor seemed to react quite quickly.

Just now, when she came in, she displayed a mix of nervousness and other emotions. This emotion intensified after Nan Zhuren spoke, then subsided after a period of adjustment, only to rise again after the little girl responded.

They react quickly to external stimuli, and their emotions fluctuate rapidly.

Such frequent mood swings seem somewhat different from the symptoms of depression.

"Was it your own decision to come for psychological counseling, or your mother's?"

"It's my mom." Chen Ting swallowed almost imperceptibly.

Here it comes again, that feeling.

After giving that answer, Chen Ting fell silent again.

Nan Zhuren silently counted to three again, and after realizing that the visitor had no intention of continuing to confide, he smiled.

“I understand your current situation very well. I also know that you have been reluctant to receive counseling and intervention, and you only came here at your mother's request.”

"I want to say: It takes a lot of courage and is a very commendable thing for you to be here."

Chen Ting neither confirmed nor denied it.

Nan Zhuren continued to smile, then glanced down at the file in her hand: "Your main complaint to the counselor has always been 'feeling uncomfortable and not getting any help from the counseling,' right?"

Chen Ting nodded.

"So you changed therapists several times."

Nan Zhuren maintained a calm expression, but his gaze was gently focused, imprinting every expression on the girl opposite him.

"They give you a questionnaire during every consultation. How do you feel about it?"

Chen Ting lowered her head: "I don't feel anything, I'm just annoyed."

Nan Zhuren strongly agreed: "I also find those forms and multiple-choice questions annoying, so I hope this time I can give you a different feeling."

"This time we'll start with psychological testing, but not some kind of scale."

(End of this chapter)