DEPTH OF CHRONIC PSYCHOLOGICAL SUFFERING: EXPERIENCES AND REFLECTIONS IN THE PSYCHOLOGY TEACHING CLINIC.

Resumo

The present study consists of an experience report developed from the experiences of a Clinical Psychology supervision group at a psychology teaching clinic, aimed at monitoring individuals with chronic mental disorders and intense psychological distress. The experience enabled reflections on the multiple dimensions of mental suffering as a chronic condition, understood not only as a symptomatic manifestation, but also as a subjective expression permeated by social, affective, and existential factors, linked to the history of the mental illness-health binomial. In this context, the teaching clinic constituted itself as a formative space and a place for the construction of active, ethical, and humanized listening, focused on treatment adherence, social skills training, and emotional and social support. The objective of this study was to reflect on the depth of the psychological suffering experienced by individuals with chronic mental disorders, based on experiences experienced during Clinical Psychology superv ision, discussing the challenges of mental health care and the importance of active listening in Psychology training. This is a qualitative, descriptive study of the experience report type. The analyzed material originated from discussions carried out with in a Clinical Psychology supervision group at a teaching clinic, emerging from consultations conducted by fifth -year Psychology interns. The reflections were constructed based on clinical observation, interns’ reports, and the theoretical -practical contributions of the cognitive- behavioral approach discussed weekly during supervision meetings, from February to May 2026. Partial results demonstrated that chronic psychological suffering is frequently associated with feelings of stress, overload, anxiety, lon eliness, exclusion, and social stigma, as well as difficulties in building relationships, linked to long trajectories marked by continuous medicalization and psychological treatment. Furthermore, vulnerabilities were identified in specific areas of life, s uch as professional and academic contexts, activities of daily living, and peer relationships (support networks). From the perspective of Cognitive -Behavioral Therapy, such experiences may contribute to the strengthening of negative beliefs of worthlessness, incapacity, and rejection, directly influencing the ways individuals interpret themselves, others, and the world. These cognitive patterns, frequently associated with avoidance behaviors, isolation, and hopelessness, tend to reinforce psychological suffering and hinder processes of autonomy and social reintegration. Simultaneously, clinical supervision proved to be a fundamental space for elaborating students’ anxieties, expanding clinical listening, and developing more humanized and critical practices in mental health care. It is concluded that the experience within the teaching clinic, both in the context of supervision and clinical consultations, enabled an expanded understanding of the depth of chronic psychological suffering beyond diagnosis, reinfor cing the need for dialectical clinical practices and perspectives committed to the singularity, dignity, and subjectivity of individuals experiencing chronic mental suffering.