When both client and therapist are unclear about the source of resistance, it can bring treatment to a halt. Renowned therapist Steve Andreas believes that checking in with clients about their objections to change from the start of therapy avoids many problems down the road. Even with clients struggling to cope with severe panic, he begins by asking, “Do you have any objections to not having that panicked response?”

Here, Andreas explains his method.

As Andreas notes, while sometimes people’s symptoms have no relevance in their current life, very often, they have some kind of positive intention or positive function—what’s referred to as "secondary gain."

Take narcissism, for example. As Andreas explains in his recent Networker article, "Adjusting the Unconscious," narcissism "feels good and is often richly rewarded in business and politics." Keeping this in mind, he says, "can be useful in maintaining a sense of balance and perspective."