In real life, people get to "pretend" that they don't see someone. If people are honest they'd admit that they do it all the time--they're rushed and don't want to stop and talk to someone in the grocery store or in the parking lot of their child's school or perhaps they are irritated by the last meeting they had with the person and don't want to discuss/argue/compromise how things went and they just walk by, pretending they don't see the person. . . there are a thousand different reasons for not wanting to deal with reality. . . .The sad thing in this situation is that the person is a therapist and perhaps he is "pretending" not to see you. If that is the case, his decision to not acknowledge you is unprofessional and sadly immature. As the professional, it is his job/mission to be the one who steps out of his comfort zone and be the one to be brave and authentic. I can only hope that he didn't recognize you.

There is a small. . .and I mean miniscule chance that the individual didn't recognize you, but that seems pretty slim. I mean, he came into the room and walked directly toward you to address the person sitting next to you (if I'm understanding the situation correctly). I know that I have severe difficulty recognizing "acquaintances" in strange or different situations. Sometimes people thing I'm being rude or disrespectful and it is about facial recognition. That might be your former therapist's problem. I don't know. You'll only know if you gently talk to him about what happened.

The other issue is that sadly, many therapist aren't much different in their ability to deal effectively with difficult and upsetting interpersonal relationships than most of us who seek out their help. I truly wish it was different. It doesn't mean that good/competent therapists aren't out there, but the sad thing is that many of us go to someone who is licensed and believe that the person is "competent and qualified". Definitely not always the case! Sometimes the person has more issues than we do. I hope that you are able to find closure on this issue.