I started out optimistic, but my hopes were dashed the longer I watched the HBO series “In Treatment.” It turns out that Paul, the psychologist, never read his APA Code of Ethics.

Paul fails to report an incidence of child abuse–a 30+ year old coach sleeps with his patient, a 16 year old girl. He lets a patient give him an expensive gift. He is sloppy about collecting his fees. He allows couples to scream and punch at each other in his office. And saving the worst for last, he hugs a patient who has been trying to seduce him for a year.

How sad. Paul had the potential to give viewers who have not been in therapy a real insider’s view of the process. But no. Instead the show sank to cliches–the therapist that falls in love with patients and fails to set boundaries.

Have you watched? What do you think?

I know some people are going to ask me if I’ve been watching the HBO series “In Treatment.” Of course I have, I’m curious to see how therapists are portrayed this time. A psychologist interested in media portrayals of psychologists put them in three lists: Dr. Dippy, after a shrink shown in an asylum in a silent film from 1923; Dr. Evil, like Michael Caine in “Dressed to Kill”; and Dr. Wonderful, like Robin Williams in “Good Will Hunting.”

So far, “In Treatment” is one of the most true to life portrayals of a psychologist, which, as a New Yorker critic pointed out, is boring. Watching a psychologist listening to a patient isn’t really all that intriguing. I know, because most of my patients are too wrapped up in what is going on for them to notice what is happening on my face, which is probably pretty much a lot of nothing most of the time. After all, we need to remain objective, and if we displayed too much emotion, the client might get thrown off track or defensive. We want to help clients relax, and in relaxing, reveal the little details that they keep shored up behind carefully built walls, most of the time.

Still, I would encourage you to watch so that you get an idea of what therapy is like. It isn’t really fun most of the time. In fact, sometimes it is extremely emotionally wrenching. But slowly, slowly progress is made, hidden reality is unveiled and made into something that can be tolerated now that it has been brought into consciousness.