Is This a Rupture? — Clinical Decision Flowchart
Something felt off in session. This flowchart helps you sort out what actually happened — and respond accurately rather than reactively.
What is in this flowchart
Step-by-step diagnostic sequence — starting from the specific moment something changed (or the slow drift that has no clear moment), working through what happened and why.
Therapist-initiated vs. client-activated triggers — specific examples of each, what they look like in session, and why the distinction changes what you do first.
The rupture repair protocol — the full sequence for when you contributed to a rupture: naming, listening, acknowledging impact, owning your part, and what to address after repair.
Pattern work vs. repair — when the trigger is primarily client-activated, how to explore it as relational or attachment material rather than as a therapist error. Includes transference exploration language and attachment-pattern scripts.
Slow drift branch — signs of accumulated alliance erosion with no identifiable moment, and the meta-conversation language for naming it directly.
Quick diagnostic table — observable signals mapped to most likely cause and first clinical move.