alexandra, I liked your spin on ECHOES' experience: nothing risked, nothing gained. It is indeed wonderful to know one's T chose to work with you.

ECHOES, I hope you will tell us more about how you like the psychoanalytic/psychodynamic approach when you are ready.

Perna, was your T surprised to see you turn up after 9 years? Did you have any contact at all with her during that gap (running into her at the grocery store)?

When I saw my first counselor, I think she was obligated to continue seeing me because I found her through my EAP and she was under contract. With my current T, who is such a good match for me, I kind of lucked onto him. I got in to see him the first time through a recommendation from a close colleague of his, who happened to drop his name when he (the colleague) had lunch with a sibling of mine, who then passed his name onto me. I didn't realize how highly sought after my T was and got in just because of this fortuitous connection. It was a month between our first and second sessions, and it never occurred to me he wouldn't accept me as a client because of my experience with my first counselor. Now that I know how it works better and how long his waiting list is, I feel effing lucky. Like somewhere out there in the ether, someone was pulling strings for me. My T said after the first couple of sessions that he liked working with me because I was so direct and honest. Ha.