You have found an vintage wooden box.
What will you do with it?

[ get through the stuffs ]

[ ignore the box ]

There are bundles of papers and a tape recorder.
What will you do with them?

[ read the papers ]

[ play the recorder ]

[ leave them ]


Disclosure Form
Client Psychotherapy Intake Form

Please provide the following information and answer the questions below. Please note that the information you provide here is protected as confidential.

Please fill out this form and bring it to you first session.

Name: Nakahara Kalen (中原カレン)
Name of parents/guardian: Nakahara Yuuya (48), Han Yuri (45)
Birth Date: 1 / 11 / 1991 Age: 29 Sex: Female / Male
Marital Status:
Never Married Domestic Partnership Married Separated Divorced Widowed
Please list any children/age: None
Address: 4 Chome-2-14 Takaodori, Nada Ward, Kobe, Hyogo 657-0813, Japan.
Home Phone: +81 78-802-1117 May we leave a message? Yes / No
Cell/Other Phone: +82 115-6653-994 May we leave a message? Yes / No
E-mail: [email protected] May we email you? Yes / No
(*Please note: Email correspondence is not considered to be a confidential medium of communication.)
Have you previously received any type of mental services (psychotherapy, psychiatric service, etc.)? Yes / No.
Previous therapist/practitioner: none


[ page two ]

[ skip to the recording ]

[ close the file ]


GENERAL HEALTH AND MENTAL HEALTH INFORMATION

1. How would you rate your current physical health?
Poor Unsatisfactory Satisfactory Good Very Good

Please list any specific health problem you are currently experiencing:
Generally none. But I do get cold pretty often, and I am allergic to dust.

2. How would you rate your current sleeping habit?
Poor Unsatisfactory Satisfactory Good Very Good

Please list any specific sleep problem you are currently experiencing:
None. But I can use some extra sleep.

3. How many times per week do you generally exercise? Seven

What types of exercise to you participate in? Jogging, weight lifting at gym, pilates.

4. Please list any difficulties you experience with your appetite or eating pattern:
I am lactose intolerant but I do like to eat dairy products like milk and cheese.

5. Are you currently experiencing overwhelming sadness, grief, or depression? No/Yes
If yes, for approximately how long?

6. Are you currently experiencing anxiety, panic attacks, or having any phobias? No/Yes
If yes, when did you experiencing this? When I was six years old; my cousin locked me in the closet for three hours. Since then I suffer from claustrophobia.

7. Are you currently experiencing any chronic pain? No/Yes
If yes, please describe:

8. Do you drink alcohol more than once a week? No/Yes

9. How often do you engage in recreational drug use? Daily/Weekly/Monthly

10. Are you currently in romantic relationship? No/Yes
If yes, for how long?
On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your relationship?

11. What significant life changes or stressful events have you experienced recently:
I moved to a new apartment closer to my workplace.


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[ close the file ]


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

1. Are you currently employed? No/Yes
If yes, what is your current employment situation? Working a fulltime job as a clinical psychologist in Seoul Counseling Center, Sinsa Branch. I also host a podcast channel in S-otify.
Do you enjoy your work? Is there anything stressful about your current work?
I do. Almost everything about my work is stressful, but once I leave my office I would forget about my work temporarily. I did not bring papers from work unless very important or emergencies. My fellow co-workers are nice, oh yeah sometimes I get discriminated by my clients because I am not fully Korean. But it is still manageable.

2. Do you consider yourself to be spiritual or religious? No/Yes
If yes, describe your faith or believe:

3. What do you consider to be some of your strengths?
I am adaptable, emphatic, have a good sense of fashion, good at controlling emotions, patients, good at cooking and baking, and meticulous.

4. What do you consider to be some of your weaknesses?
Cynical, commitment issues, trust issues, deceiving facial expression, tend to get detached easily, and sensitive.

5. What would you like to accomplish out of your life?
Good retirement life.


[ play the recording ]

[ close the file ]

[ PLAYING : FILE 001 (0.00 – 4.19) ]

(Clicking noises, soft thud)
Check. Ah, okay this is on.

Hello, my name is Nakahara Kalen, a clinical psychologist. I have been working as a psychologist for four years now. And to be frank, this was not where I wanted to be (a soft sigh could be heard). Since I was a kid, I had a dream to be a performer. I love to dance, I love to sing, I love to meet new people, I appreciate arts more than everyone in the house (she chuckled).

But yeah, we never knew what fate has in store for us. My parents are both doctor; so does my grandparents. My dad is a cardiologist, while my mom is a dermatologist. Both wanted me to go down the same path as them. To be a doctor. They had always been strict to me. I had to get the top of my class, or I will be grounded until I ace my test. They are the type of parents people would refer to as tiger parents.

And of course, I was a really obedient daughter before—oh yes, I do not have any siblings. I had no choice but to be obedient after all.

(a pause for a second here, she clears her throat.)

However, everything changed when I was in high school. I had a talk with a school counselor, Mrs. Yamaguchi. You know, here, in Japan, we are obliged to discuss our future plan with the school counselor or sometimes our homeroom teacher. When I talked to Mrs. Yamaguchi that I want to be a doctor, she immediately knew that I did not actually want to be a doctor. So, we have a very long talk about it.

It was like a life changing event for me, a turning point.

For years I have been following whatever choices my parents made for me, and for once, I chose my own path. I wanted to be a psychologist, a counselor, like Mrs. Yamaguchi. I failed my medical college entrance test on purpose—of course this caused a huge fight back home. But after some deep talks, they agreed on letting me take psychology as my major. Of course, I still have to ace my studies.

So, here I am, twelve years later. Achieves my Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Tsukuba University, and Master of Science in Cognitive Psychology from University of Kent. Both with 3.8 GPA. Not perfect, yes. But I am proud of it nevertheless. And already working in a well-known clinic.

(A long sigh here) I talked a lot, haven’t I? The last I wanted to tell you in this recording is, now I am working in Seoul, South Korea. Why Korea? Hmm, about that. It was one of my professor’s colleagues who own the place, and apparently my professor recommended me to them and I think, why not? To start my career as a professional clinical psychologist I have to begin somewhere, right?

I hope to hear this recording in a few years, maybe five or ten years later. Where would I be then?

Can I be a good psychologist?

Or am I going to change my path again?

Just remember, future Kalen. You are not what happened to you; you are what you choose to become. Choose wisely.


END OF RECORDING

[ back to the papers ]

[ give them to kalen ]