How to Discuss Your Progress with Your Provider

You’ve been going to your appointments, taking your medication, and doing the work in therapy. How do you talk to your provider about how it’s all going? A follow-up appointment is more than just a quick check-in; it’s a crucial opportunity to review your progress, discuss what’s working and what’s not, and collaboratively plan the next steps on your journey. Knowing how to structure this conversation can help you and your provider make the most of your time together.

At Televero Health, we see these follow-up conversations as the heart of measurement-based care. It’s where your personal, subjective experience meets the objective data from your assessments. This combination allows us to get the clearest possible picture of your progress and make the best decisions for your care.

Start with the Data

A great starting point for a progress discussion is the data from your standardized assessments, like the PHQ-9 or GAD-7. As we’ve discussed, these tools provide an objective measure of your symptom severity over time. You can start the conversation by looking at the trend with your provider.

You might ask questions like:

• “How has my score changed since our last appointment?”
• “This score seems to show some improvement. Does that match what you would expect to see at this stage?”
• “My score is still in the ‘moderate’ range. What specific symptoms on the questionnaire are keeping my score high?”

Using the data as a starting point grounds the conversation in objective fact. It gives you a shared language and a clear picture of the overall trend, separate from the day-to-day ups and downs of how you might be feeling.

Connect the Data to Your Real Life

The numbers are important, but they don’t tell the whole story. The next, most important step is to connect the data to your real-world, lived experience. Your provider will want to know: How does this progress (or lack of progress) actually feel in your daily life? This is your chance to share your personal perspective.

Think about specific examples. You can structure your feedback around a few key questions:

• What’s Better? Be specific about the positive changes you’ve noticed, no matter how small. “My energy is definitely better. I was able to go for a walk three times this week.” Or, “I’ve noticed I’m not getting stuck in worried thoughts as much as I used to.” Sharing your successes is motivating for both you and your provider.
• What’s Still a Struggle? Be honest about the areas where you are still having a hard time. “Even though my mood is better, I’m still having a lot of trouble falling asleep at night.” Or, “I’m still finding it really hard to concentrate at work.” This helps your provider identify the lingering symptoms that may need to be targeted.
• What About Side Effects? This is also the time to give an update on any side effects you are experiencing from medication. “The nausea I had at the beginning is gone, but I’ve noticed I’m still clenching my jaw a lot.”

Look Toward the Future

Finally, a good progress discussion should always include a look ahead. Based on the progress you’ve made and the challenges that remain, what are the next steps? This is a collaborative conversation.

You and your provider should discuss:

• The Treatment Plan: Does the current plan need any adjustments? Should you continue with the same medication and dose? Is it time to consider a change?
• Your Goals: What do you want to work on next? “Now that my energy is better, I’d like to focus on trying to be more social again.” Setting clear goals helps to keep your treatment focused and moving forward.

A follow-up appointment is your dedicated time to take stock of your journey. By preparing to discuss the data, your real-life experience, and your goals for the future, you can ensure that you are an active, engaged partner in your own care, working with your provider to build on your progress and continue on the path to wellness.

Key Takeaways

• A progress discussion with your provider should involve reviewing both the objective data from your assessments and your subjective, real-life experience.
• Be prepared to talk about what has gotten better, what is still a struggle, and any medication side effects you are experiencing.
• Use the data from your assessments (like the PHQ-9) as a starting point for the conversation.
• The conversation should be collaborative and forward-looking, focused on reviewing the treatment plan and setting goals for the next phase of your recovery.

Ready to take the first step? We can help. Get started with Televero Health today.