I actually think most therapy is more painful than it needs to be, but it's not because T's love pain. I think it's because they either don't know how to make the process less painful, or because people expect stuff to be more dramatic than it really has to be.

It's interesting to me that in IFS, if the client is in a lot of pain, it means they are too "blended" with a part and the T needs to help them unblend. Likewise I think in Somatic Experiencing, if something is feeling intolerable it means you are trying to go too fast or the client isn't sufficiently resourced. In general I think therapy can be less painful, it just means slowing down and drawing more on whatever makes the client feel calmer and stronger.