Dropping out of Internship

[skinnerboy]

Hi there:

I am having a pretty bad experience with my supervisor. I received a remediation plan and have three weeks to meet certain goals. I am pretty anxious that I won't and my supervisor is just horrible. I am close to dropping out but not quite. Anybody here familiar with such situations and what to do? Internship D and DCT know about it. This is an APA accr. program and I am from an APA accr. program. I don't want to be more specific since I am scared to be identified. Any thoughts are appreciated. Need support!

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[thewesternsky]

Personally, I'd focus as much energy as possible on meeting the requirements of the remediation plan. I know you and your supervisor don't get along well, but approaching supervision with an openness to feedback will also be important. Try not to let your emotions (anger, frustration, fear) get in the way. At this point, it's better to do what's effective and what will get you through the year instead of what your emotions are telling you to do (e.g., drop out or complain).

It's a really crappy situation. Good luck!

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Personally, I'd focus as much energy as possible on meeting the requirements of the remediation plan. I know you and your supervisor don't get along well, but approaching supervision with an openness to feedback will also be important. Try not to let your emotions (anger, frustration, fear) get in the way. At this point, it's better to do what's effective and what will get you through the year instead of what your emotions are telling you to do (e.g., drop out or complain).

It's a really crappy situation. Good luck!

I would agree with this--if it's at all possible, meet the remediation goals (and objectively evaluate whether there are aspects of truth to the reason for its implementation), and try to just make it through the next 10 months so you can move on with your career. I don't know APPIC's policy on those who voluntarily leave a program (e.g., if they're even able to participate in the match again), so that would be something I'd look into before considering that course of action.

Also, is this just a rotation supervisor (i.e., one that will swap out in a couple months) or a year-long supervisor? If the latter, is it possible to switch to someone else?

 

[erg923]

Hi there:

I am having a pretty bad experience with my supervisor. I received a remediation plan and have three weeks to meet certain goals. I am pretty anxious that I won't and my supervisor is just horrible. I am close to dropping out but not quite. Anybody here familiar with such situations and what to do? Internship D and DCT know about it. This is an APA accr. program and I am from an APA accr. program. I don't want to be more specific since I am scared to be identified. Any thoughts are appreciated. Need support!

Dont.

Is the remidiation regarding clincial skills or interpersonal and/or professional behavior? Either way, just get it done. It not worth the gamble to reapply, not to mention that having dropped out of an intenrship for anything less than ehalth or family emergency looks pretty terrible on your APPI. Dealing with bad psychologists and/or supervisors in prety much inevitable at some point. Learn to deal now.

 

[EmotRegulation]

Do you have other faculty members you can talk to openly about this? It's understandable you wouldn't want to identify yourself online, but this is a stressful situation. You say your internship director and DCT know about it, but what are they saying? Are they supporting you? Is this the first time you've gotten this kind of feedback, or is it consistent with feedback you've received before? (If the latter, that could definitely perpetuate anxiety). Also, is the remediation plan clear on the consequences if you do not meet the requisite goals within the time frame? (Remediation plans should lay this out, but there aren't great guidelines on remediation plans in psychology, a fact I happen to know because I'm working with some folks looking at all the remediation literature right now).

Can someone help talk you through how to maybe better communicate with this supervisor?

Basically, I agree with everyone else that dropping out of internship seems extreme. I'm also hearing you needing support, which is also important, but that will work best if you can be open with someone about what is going on.

 

[ClinicalABA]

I'd echo what others have said- DON'T drop out. Any immediate relief would likely result in even more stress in the future. Developing an ability to work with a supervisor whom you have differences with is a valuable skill. Focus on the remediation plan. Hopefully it's given you concrete steps to follow to get where you need to be. Look at the evidence- if you're DCT and internship director are in agreement with the remediation and plan and have not told you otherwise, then it's likely- as difficult as it may be to hear- that there are some deficits in your performance that need to be addressed relatively quickly. Honestly, you need to put your efforts into changing things you actually have control over (i.e. your own behaviors). You may not like your supervisor (and s/he may be objectively unlikeable), but barring legal/ethical violations, do what they expect you to do for as long as you are signed on to do it. Professionally and self-deferentially request objective, measurable guidelines regarding what you are expected to do. Self-monitor your performance along these guidelines, compare your evaluation of yourself with that of others, and professionally and self-deferentially request clarification and further guidance for any areas where you self-assessment does not match that of your supervisor.

 

[PsyDr]

Under no circumstances do you not meet the goals on the remediation plan. You have approximately 500 hours to do whatever needs to be done.

Be humble. Be deferential. Agree. Find some common ground.

Act like you would with a cop pulling you over.

 

[CheetahGirl]

Also echoing everyone else...don't drop out of internship, skinnerboy. You've come too far...not to push a little farther and get 'er done.

Also, is this just a rotation supervisor (i.e., one that will swap out in a couple months) or a year-long supervisor? If the latter, is it possible to switch to someone else?

My same question.

I had a tough 6-months with one of my 4 supervisors during the first rotation of my internship. This supervisor was a mess...literally, s/he was disorganized, grossly inappropriate (s/he would answer personal phone calls and speak with family member/spouse/babysitter during our supervision time while I sat there staring at my papers), forgetful (s/he would blame and berate me for not having written notes...which caught me off guard b/c I thought I was up-to-date, and it turned out s/he was 100% wrong, 100% of the time, and would laugh it off when discovering his/her mistake...meanwhile I'm freshly traumatized from just having been wrongly accused of being incompetent), and (MY SAVING GRACE) everyone else at my VAMC was aware of this person's proclivities which was validating (but I did not find out until after I left that rotation that s/he had such a reputation). However, this supervisor was not going anywhere...s/he was an assistant professor and integral in one of the clinics. So this was not my battle to choose.

Do as you are doing here....reach out for support. Find fellow interns to support you each day, friends/family that can just commiserate with the experience (it will clear away some acute stress so that you can make room to accumulate more stress again the next workday). Something I found very helpful was to reach out to another supervisor (in confidence, not to team one against another). For me, it was by chance...I looked upset one day and my *awesome* supervisor asked what was wrong, which opened up a dialogue about the berating supervisor's behavior towards me (which I also found it later, that it wasn't only me...s/he was like this to my fellow intern who was LUCKY enough to get the berating supervisor when we switched rotations). The *awesome* supervisor offered me some words of advice, support and also a way of understanding the supervisory relationship that made me so much closer to the *awesome* supervisor (we will remain colleagues and friends post-internship). [I actually posted a thread about this situation and got good SDN feedback, http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...-bpd-or-other-personality-disorders.1123017/]

In a nutshell, do what you have to do but don't let this supervisor hold you back.

Good Luck...we're here for you.

 

[cara susanna]

Does the remediation plan seem doable to you? I know you don't want to give too much detail, but I'm wondering what the nature of the issues is--is it something that you think you can address, or does the feedback seem vague or unhelpful?

 

[Ollie123]

Many here don't know this, but I also seriously considered leaving mid-internship. To the point of emailing my DCT to find out if it was an option and the process for doing so. We have the option of switching to "experimental" during our degree and leaving would have likely meant forgoing a clinical degree entirely, but I was strongly considering it. My internship wasn't at all what I wanted (interview was highly misleading) and I was seriously concerned it was going to set my academic career back for a variety of reasons.

I wound up sticking it out and am glad I did so. It was largely a wasted year from a professional/training standpoint, save for the fact that it got me the clinical degree (and a "name" to put on my CV since it was a name-brand place) but I do maintain some belief in a "sunk costs" fallacy on this issue. Given all the time/effort I had devoted to practica and extra classes up to that point, I couldn't justify switching at the very end. Despite my concerns, I don't think it will have any sort of lasting impact on my academic career - the "gap" in my productivity is actually going to be pretty well covered by an ENORMOUS publication lag at a couple journals. I think especially if you want to be clinician its worth sticking out anything short of a downright abusive environment. If that is going on, I'd exhaust all possible options before actually leaving.

 

[foreverbull]

I'm sorry to hear that you've had such a hard time! I empathize with your experience! Three weeks is barely a blink of an eye, so it sounds like they're pretty set on seeing fast improvement for whatever reason. I understand your concerns about maintaining anonymity, so just know that our advice is limited to what we know and our own experiences.

After going through a less-than-ideal supervisory experience on internship, I can say that the smartest thing I did for myself was to keep a low profile and do what they wanted me to do to meet their expectations. Each site believes in their training style wholeheartedly (and some sites can be quite narcissistic about it) and if you can't adapt to what they want to see in terms of their own styles/orientations, you may not succeed on internship. It is disheartening that this is the case at some sites, but some TDs pride themselves on their training and may not be as open to different theoretical orientations, styles, etc.

Try not to go into your head and overthink things, just do your best to meet their requirements on the remediation! Show them that you are dedicated to fixing whatever it is and push through it if you can! If you have fellow interns at your site who can empathize, share your concerns with them, as they were a great source of support for me. Internship is a challenging time so make sure you find ways to stay grounded through this stressful process!

 

[skinnerboy]

Does the remediation plan seem doable to you? I know you don't want to give too much detail, but I'm wondering what the nature of the issues is--is it something that you think you can address, or does the feedback seem vague or unhelpful?

The plan seems somewhat doable but, at the same time, I think the supervisor set me up for failure since he does nor want me to continue on. The issue is NOT in any way related to providing therapy, or any violations of whatever. It is about quality of writing, meeting deadlines for reports, doing intakes in a medical facility, etc. there is a lot he does in order to make me look bad. Also, I feel humiliated by him a lot, disrespected, etc. I am pretty nervous when I go there and thus, every time I spend there is like an exam, and due to my anxiety about failing the requirements for the remediation plan, I am going blank when asked basics. Not a good representative of my knowledge or me. Also feel discriminated against. The supervisor is known for creating a pretty tough time for interns but I believe I am the first one with a remediation plan. Of course, I feel like I have to perform super in all other areas and my stress level is pretty high. If I fail to improve within three weeks, I will be asked to leave the rotation but not the internship.

 

[skinnerboy]

Thank you all for your support. I do want to continue but do not seem to do well enough. I assign that to my anxiety of failing and the way the supervisor treats me. I have not had any problems of any kind prior to that. I wonder what would happen if I dropped out? Does anybody know about the implications? I know I signed a contract etc., but what are our rights if a supervisor damages you psychologically and the only way out seems to leave? If I will fail I get a 'not passed' for that rotation and have to continue with that experience. I have not even told my fellow interns, out of shame, even though the supervisor is known for making it hard for interns. So, yes, I have support from them.

 

[cara susanna]

The plan seems somewhat doable but, at the same time, I think the supervisor set me up for failure since he does nor want me to continue on. The issue is NOT in any way related to providing therapy, or any violations of whatever. It is about quality of writing, meeting deadlines for reports, doing intakes in a medical facility, etc. there is a lot he does in order to make me look bad. Also, I feel humiliated by him a lot, disrespected, etc. I am pretty nervous when I go there and thus, every time I spend there is like an exam, and due to my anxiety about failing the requirements for the remediation plan, I am going blank when asked basics. Not a good representative of my knowledge or me. Also feel discriminated against. The supervisor is known for creating a pretty tough time for interns but I believe I am the first one with a remediation plan. Of course, I feel like I have to perform super in all other areas and my stress level is pretty high. If I fail to improve within three weeks, I will be asked to leave the rotation but not the internship.

I'm sorry you're having such a rough time. I've had supervisor issues of my own and I know the feeling you described. How is your training director responding to this?

 

[erg923]

The plan seems somewhat doable but, at the same time, I think the supervisor set me up for failure since he does nor want me to continue on. The issue is NOT in any way related to providing therapy, or any violations of whatever. It is about quality of writing, meeting deadlines for reports, doing intakes in a medical facility, etc. there is a lot he does in order to make me look bad. Also, I feel humiliated by him a lot, disrespected, etc. I am pretty nervous when I go there and thus, every time I spend there is like an exam, and due to my anxiety about failing the requirements for the remediation plan, I am going blank when asked basics. Not a good representative of my knowledge or me. Also feel discriminated against. The supervisor is known for creating a pretty tough time for interns but I believe I am the first one with a remediation plan. Of course, I feel like I have to perform super in all other areas and my stress level is pretty high. If I fail to improve within three weeks, I will be asked to leave the rotation but not the internship.

Why are you having trouble meeting deadlines? Is it style of writing, or just plain errors in writing? These things will certainly make you look bad. Whats he doing to make you look bad?

"Damaging you psychologically" is bit strong if he is simply highly demanding or pefectionistic. Are there ethical breaches here? If so, have you taken it up the chain of command?

 

[skinnerboy]

Why are you having trouble meeting deadlines? Is it style or writing, or just plain errors in writing? These things will certainly make you ooom bad. Whats he doing to make you look bad?

Deadlines are the morning after intakes @ 8am (Mo/We/Fr). I get drafts back the same day the original one was due (8am) and have to make changes before 4:30 that day (Tues/Thurs/weekend). I also see patients at a different facility. I get several drafts back during day 2, sometimes close to the deadline. Also, he then asks for new things to change, close to the deadline or just when I am about to have a patient. It is an issue of content, style, etc. but also an issue of him, having extremely unrealistic expectations. If you are under time pressure, you make more mistakes; if you sense that your supervisor does not believe you can succeed...- does not help either. There is just no support and a lot of hostility.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Deadlines are the morning after intakes @ 8am (Mo/We/Fr). I get drafts back the same day the original one was due (8am) and have to make changes before 4:30 that day (Tues/Thurs/weekend). I also see patients at a different facility. I get several drafts back during day 2, sometimes close to the deadline. Also, he then asks for new things to change, close to the deadline or just when I am about to have a patient. It is an issue of content, style, etc. but also an issue of him, having extremely unrealistic expectations. If you are under time pressure, you make more mistakes; if you sense that your supervisor does not believe you can succeed...- does not help either. There is just no support and a lot of hostility.

This may come across like me sounding like a bit of a jerk, but you mentioned that to your knowledge, you're the first intern with whom he's worked who's had a remediation plan. Thus, if his expectations have been the same, others have been able to meet them. Do you have any way to contact folks who've previously worked with him to see what strategies they used? Or it may be a lost cause with this supervisor, but has he suggested and/or have you asked after ways folks have gotten through these issues in the past? And in situations when he sends suggestions/corrections right before you have a patient, have you discussed this with him as the issue why the report was delayed? Just trying to problem-solve off the top of my head.

Again, my knee-jerk/gut response: the described turnaround is quick, but I don't know that I'd say it's unrealistic, although that depends on how the rest of your schedule looks. Also probably depends on what the intakes entail. Nearly all of my non-neuropsych internship and postdoc rotations required posting of notes the same day as the intake appointment, although these only included clinical interviews (and perhaps something brief like the MMSE). If you're also having to integrate information from a variety of other measures (e.g., MMPI/PAI), that'd be a bit different. I think our organ transplant evals, for example, were due the week after seeing the patient (IIRC). My internship had rotations that actually required same-day turnaround on neuropsych evals, so it's possible to do, but it's tough and can require long days, especially if you're already anxious.

How much longer is your rotation with this person (roughly, to avoid being too specific/identifying)? And has the supervisor directly indicated that he doesn't want you to carry on, or is this what you've gathered based on his interactions with you? I'd imagine that if he's outright said he doesn't want you to move on despite you not yet having a chance to address the remediation plan, that'd definitely warrant discussing with the training director, as there's usually a pretty well-detailed grievance policy in place to protect interns from those sorts of things.

 

[PsyDr]

Retail price for your education was what? Like 100k-200k?

Imagine someone put that money, in singles, in front of you. That's why you are not leaving.

Don't let one dingus make you trade that investment for some freedom from pain for a few months. You know from your training about the accuracy of emotional reasoning.

For more practical advice:

1). Figure out his personality structure. You should be able to figure out how to assuage the person.

2) ask for or find a ton of his old reports. De-identify them. Create a template. Cut and paste the hell out of them. Use damn word replace if you have to. That takes that takes care of content and speed. If he says anything, deferentially mention something like, "I was trying to understand what you wanted so I looked back in some of your old reports which is where I got that.".

Edit: sdn has restricted my potty mouth.

 

[deleted343839]

Though it's not a supervisor's job to make things easy for trainees, it sounds like this guy perhaps has a reputation for being especially tough and kind of a jerk about it at the same time. I agree with AcronymAllergy; you should reach out to other interns and ask them for advice to get through this part of your training. In the meantime, keep your head down and do what's been asked of you. It will be to your advantage to set aside thoughts of being psychologically mistreated. You should take action if you perceive that a clear ethical line is being breached, but so far what you've written does not point to that being the case. When you talk to your DCT or others about your situation, try also to focus on action steps and less on how unfair things feel right now. Self-pity does not look good even in the eyes of those who support you. Meanwhile, keep things civil and professional when you interact with this supervisor, but don't play games or become overly deferential; this will likewise not reflect well on you.

The thought of bailing out of internship altogether and putting your career on the line before this all plays out strikes me as a pretty extreme response. You've indicated that if you "fail" this rotation you would still be able to continue the internship. Objectively speaking, that is still a better outcome than walking away now and having to re-apply and do this all over again. Quitting will erode any support you might have among other faculty involved in the internship and will count against you when you apply to internships again.

You don't know how this is all going to turn out - and maybe that's really the hardest part for you to cope with right now. But you may as well work hard to finish your rotation and strive to do everything that's been asked of you so that, regardless of the final outcome, you can move forward with dignity.

 

[MCParent]

Retail price for your education was what? Like 100k-200k?

Imagine someone put that money, in singles, in front of you. That's why you are not leaving.

Don't let one dingus make you trade that investment for some freedom from pain for a few months. You know from your training about the accuracy of emotional reasoning.

For more practical advice:

1). Figure out his personality structure. You should be able to figure out how to assuage the person.

2) ask for or find a ton of his old reports. De-identify them. Create a template. Cut and paste the hell out of them. Use damn word replace if you have to. That takes that takes care of content and speed. If he says anything, deferentially mention something like, "I was trying to understand what you wanted so I looked back in some of your old reports which is where I got that.".

Edit: sdn has restricted my potty mouth.

I agree with all this. Good plan.
Maybe the OP is not used to getting critical feedback (a few doctoral programs are barely harder on students than undergrad). Maybe the supervisor is inefficient at feedback (maybe it is new critiques on every intake) and demands an unusual amount of reverence. Neither of those is a good reason to drop the internship.

 

[OneNeuroDoctor]

After attending a 3 hour workshop on Friday with Dr. Kaslow over competent supervision, APA has specific guideline during internship that supervisor and interns must follow. Both parties must follow the guidelines. Remediation plan is developed to help improve in an area of weakness. It is for skill development and different from an ethical breach or overall incompetence. Meet the guideline and requirements of the remediation plan in this rotation and move to the next rotation. If you are having some difficulty with writing, then priorities your time to improve in this area.

According to Dr. Kaslow, APA is in the process of requiring ongoing supervision CEU for psychologist who supervise interns. However, it is often the case that poor supervisors do not have any supervision training and rarely do they attend supervision workshops.

This is just one of the test you will have to overcome to be a licensed psychologist, so listen to your supervisor and get the reports in on time, corrected.

There are many protections and safeguards for interns including due process. Stay with the internship as most everyone gets through the internship year despite all of the hoops you have to jump through.

Remember, you will have the opportunity to evaluate each of your intern rotation supervisors and APA reviews these evaluations during the site visits. My guess is your supervisor will not continue to supervise if they have a pattern of putting students on remediation plans for only thee weeks. Was this a formal written remediation plan? I have heard of some having informal remediation plans.

 

[CheetahGirl]

MamaPhD is spot on. And PSYDR - all great advice. In fact, I did the same tip as far as making a template for intake assessments and subsequent reports...increased my productivity exponentially within the first few weeks of internship (after adjusting for that initial steep learning curve). But yes, attitude of the supervisor is key... of the delay, my intake supervisor said "I understand your delay, it takes time for a quality report and you are very thorough." (I was grateful for that supervisor!) Which brings to mind, looking at others reports...I discovered from other interns and reading staff intakes that my reports were unnecessarily thorough and shortly learned how to make them more succinct. So also make sure you are assessing the person based on the needs of the patient and clinic. I come from a psychodynamic/CBT framework...and I found myself writing a God-awful lot about family history and background, whereas most may not be relevant for acute care. I thought I was being helpful to the patient and future treating clinicians by being so thorough, but was shooting myself in the foot with report turn-around time.

My point to all this self-disclosure is to give yourself a break, figure out your learning curve, f**k that supervisor , and do what you need to do to LEARN from, GROW, and MOVE past this.

You've got this.

 

[MCParent]

APA has specific guideline during internship that supervisor and interns must follow.

Once again, you're writing misinformed nonsense. There are guidelines but they are hardly "specific."

My guess is your supervisor will not continue to supervise if they have a pattern of putting students on remediation plans for only thee weeks. Was this a formal written remediation plan?

OP said no one else has had a remediation plan.

 

[OneNeuroDoctor]

If it is only a remediation plan for three weeks, it may be informal. Normally during a year long internship a longer timeline would be necessary. Typically, there are at least two meetings with necessary staff including internship and program training directors before beginning a remediation plan. I think this was probably informal and may not be an actual legal remediation plan with due process.

 

[smalltownpsych]

Learning to get an psychodiagnostic intake done in the same day is a valuable skill. When I am on call, I might have to do more than 10 of them in a week in addition to my full-time responsibilities. They need to be done immediately since others are relying on the information. In any setting there is certain info that is crucial and you might be focusing on the wrong stuff. Like others said, use his stuff as a template and guide. In an acute care setting, I have the presenting problem, a description of relevant family background and current living situation, that is about three sentences, a sentence or two on education, a sentence or two on employment, a solid paragraph on psychological history including especially hospitalizations and lethality of suicide attempts, diagnosis, and a sentence or two on the plan. Usually two pages. I can type one in 20 minutes, but we use dictation so it only takes about 10. During my internship, I started at about an hour for an intake, but was able to get it down to about 30 minutes or so by the end of it.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Learning to get an psychodiagnostic intake done in the same day is a valuable skill. When I am on call, I might have to do more than 10 of them in a week in addition to my full-time responsibilities. They need to be done immediately since others are relying on the information. In any setting there is certain info that is crucial and you might be focusing on the wrong stuff. Like others said, use his stuff as a template and guide. In an acute care setting, I have the presenting problem, a description of relevant family background and current living situation, that is about three sentences, a sentence or two on education, a sentence or two on employment, a solid paragraph on psychological history including especially hospitalizations and lethality of suicide attempts, diagnosis, and a sentence or two on the plan. Usually two pages. I can type one in 20 minutes, but we use dictation so it only takes about 10. During my internship, I started at about an hour for an intake, but was able to get it down to about 30 minutes or so by the end of it.

We, in psychology, unfortunately have a habit and track record of writing reports that are both way too long, and that include information that is generally only of interest to the person writing. Learning how to convey your message in a way that answers the referral question, is useful to your referral source (if applicable), and can provide a clear and concise plan/set of recommendations (as you've detailed, smalltown) is crucial, especially as we continue to further integrate into medical settings.

Mind you, I do think there are some advantages to our typical style of report writing vs. the average medical chart note, which I don't think should be abandoned. But it's possible to include all this while still being succinct.

And yes, I've been using templates since grad school. Other than as a training exercise, I don't think I've written an entire report by hand in 8 years. Unless it was just a brief chart note, and I even have templates for some of those. There's a reason most electronic medical records programs allow the saving of personalized templates--they're useful

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Which brings to mind, looking at others reports...I discovered from other interns and reading staff intakes that my reports were unnecessarily through and shortly learned how to make them more succinct. So also make sure you are assessing the person based on the needs of the patient and clinic.

I just had this feedback for one of my fellows. She is very thorough, but notes were taking longer than needed and the referral question was getting lost in the lengthy notes. The notes were fine for grad school, but in a busy hospital setting they were cumbersome.

OP, it may be worth checking w another intern about templates they use, as they might have found a style that works well in the setting. Being able to structure a note succinctly is not only more efficient but typically more effective in regard to clinical care.

I'd also offer to consider the content of your supervisor's feedback and try and ignore how it is delivered. I'm not blindly supporting him, but often there is valid feedback in there, but the delivery isn't very touchy feely.

 

[PsyDr]

Reports should be customized to the referral source. I have psychiatrists who want a traditional 15 page report (one even wants projectives, but is the most psychologically trained psychiatrist I know), neurosurgeons who want a one page report, and attorneys who want reports that exceed 100 pages. Imo, students are taught a report format that shows the thought process instead of a high impact communications style. It ends up being almost masturbatory.

How quickly one can accomplish this is typically dependent on where they are in their career (I.e., practice makes perfect). It is unreasonable in any profession to think someone just out of training can have the productivity of a 15 year veteran.


That was an aside:

I'm suggesting using the supervisors old reports because it puts op in the position to say, "if he has a problem with what I wrote, it literally cannot be my problem.".

If ops supervisor is motivated by some narcissistic traits (easy enough to feed his needs their ala kohut), and/or wants to bill for op/keep referrals happy (easy enough, just crank it out), he's being abusive because it protects his own view of himself. If op is sitting there reacting, it reinforces the supervisors idea that he is important enough to give a crap about. By remaining calm and redirecting the need through some self identification about how they are similar, op can get a more favorable response (e.g., same report words, asking for advice, agreeing with his personal views, asking more about them, etc.). By appealing to his needs one can get through it. Respond immediately. If he asks for a change Ina report, call him back immediately and ask more questions in a super deferential manner (this creates sime negative reinforcement).

Or if you are also a dick, you could just redirect the negativity towards someone else.

"Look I screwed up. I know you wanted this changed, but Im not sure I understand why. I already did it, but can I get some time from you to learn more about this? I understand you are an expert in this."

Then: "I never knew that. Where did you learn that? (Shift to personal). Reaffirm and praise.

 

[Sendtrees]

If you drop out of internship, do so knowing that your chances of getting another APA-accredited internship are very slim. And that might in turn affect licensing and the rest of your career. If those consequences are still better than sticking this out, so be it. You also may want to think about which choice you're more likely to regret.

 

[DynamicDidactic]

I'll echo everyone else, don't quit.

Do what you need to tolerate the distress and get yourself through the year. Remember, its only 1 year and then you are done.

You wont be able to do APPIC a second time. Your chance of getting any internship will dwindle and you may not get your doctorate.

 

[Psychwomen]

Hey Skinnerboy! I was wondering how/if everything worked out for you. Can you give us an update?