I believe in transparency in the relationship and the use of self-disclosure. And I think knowing certain things helps make the relationship more real. It's important for many reasons, one of which is to know that they are human and have quirks and limitations just like everyone else. So the idea that they are so hyper professionalized that they are not real people doesn't make much sense to me and seems like it would actually be unhealthy.

Having said that, my experience has been that this happens in session, face to face, or over the phone sometimes, and always at the discretion of the therapist. The art of self-disclosure is very complicated so they need to be in charge of it. Face it, they are more stable and solid than we are so they have better judgement and have more experience dealing with what works for the therapeutic benefit, which is the bottom line.