Thank you all.

I've been seeing her for almost 6 months.

Yes, she does remind me of my mom. It's not as much her personally as her responses in therapy.

My mom was never available emotionally, she was never affectionate, and didn't give me the support I needed. My therapist understands this. I've never really had anyone who was there for me in that way. When my therapist tells me I'm thinking about something the wrong way, without sufficiently acknowledging how I feel, it just reminds me of my mom telling me how to fix my problem, or to just deal with it, rather than comforting me.

I know my therapist is quite willing to see me, and wants to help me in her way. However, I feel like that she is not there for me in a more personal and emotional way. I don't know how that works, with boundaries and all, but I do feel like I'm being kept a a distance in a way that seems unnecessary.

I have tried talking about it. I've tried explaining that sometimes when I'm in pain I express it in obscure ways, and I've tried being more explicit about how I feel. I tried telling her that she needs to be gentle with me. I've tried telling her when I'm frustrated. I'm afraid of being more direct.

She does better when I get more emotional and express myself in emotive terms, but she doesn't seem to help me to do that. She will ask me vague things like, "What do I want to talk about?", but I'm left on my own to figure out how to do it.