100% yes … in fact, a part of your unconscious mind is terrified of destabilizing (even positive) change, and it’s very prone to think “nothing is working” right at the moment you are closest to major breakthroughs. That’s when it’s most frightened.
I call this unconscious program “the drive for homeostasis preservation” and have written a ton about it in these other posts.
And yes, it can be quite the trick to tease out which is true:
- I am making real progress and my unconscious is constructing these outs because it is scared; or
- my therapist is really not the skill level I need and it’s time to find a new one
That discernment marks the difference between people who see great progress in therapy and those who stay in struggle for years.