Typically I have the frozen, deer in headlights thing going on with T. She is VERY attentive though. I even count the seconds on the inhale and exhale to keep my breathing consistent! I know a lot about non-verbal messages and how much they communicate and have been hurt very, very badly before because people could read signs I didn't know I was sending. But my T still picks up on a lot... much more than any other T I have worked with. Honestly I think she can notice when my eyes dilate from across the room even if I am not looking at her! I guess the most obvious signal I give off is how close I sit to the arm of the couch (we are talking differences of an inch at most). Once I sit I don't move. Oh, I do let out a DEEP exhale when she locks the door. I would LOVE to sit on the floor and I am pretty sure T would be OK with it but I am terrified. T usually uses what little I do give off to comment on how I might be feeling seeing as feeling words are not a strength. Once when I got really scared I pulled a pillow up against me and she offered me her BIG stuffed bear. But even then I said I was OK and put the pillow back.
If I sat on the floor with Pdoc she wouldn't be able to see me from behind her desk. It would totally weird her out. But even when Pdoc is all up in my stuff it doesn't feel as threatening as just being with T. I too need to feel contained and Pdoc seems to be able to do that with her presence... even if she is ADHD and usually distracted.
Massage T is where I must look absolutely nuts. I sit on her couch before and after she works on me in the same deer in headlights way I do with T. I know she is watching my breathing so I am especially attentive to that. But... When I am on the table I am OK. I can move and allow body language laying down or sitting up... and I can sit cross legged or with my knees to my chin... two of my favorites. The table is absolutely MY safety zone and massage T knows it. So we spend a lot of time with me sitting on the table talking to her. I can tell her anything from that table but have a hard time talking about anything real from the couch. And... then I have a part (DID) that will only come out with her if I am sitting on the couch. The part will do co-consciousness on the table so she can feel the massage and there are special places we work on just for that part... but she will not come out, talk, interact or let herself "be seen" unless she is on the couch.
Oh, and then there is the other T in my T's building... I had taken a class with her some 10 years ago. Thankfully I don't think she remembers me. She always tries to be nice and gentle, especially because I greet her by name if she walks in the room... But you can tell she is confused. Because I am not usually expecting her to walk in it is hard for me to control my non verbals when she does... And my non verbals SCREAM the farthest reaches of both terror and lust. IMO she is one of the most gorgeous people on the planet and I know I don't hide that worth a darn. I am sure the terror is equally as obvious given the oh so very confused but gentle look and soft "hi" I get in return.