It's great that your T experienced this himself--I'm sure that helps him really understand what you're going through.

Talking about feeling awkward/ashamed for having these needs (and fearing being rejected for them) with my marriage counselor has helped me, too. He's also said that wanting to be cared for is normal. And that it might be good to examine why letting myself want to be cared for makes me so uncomfortable. And that really made me think. Especially because it clearly connects to other stuff in my life (past and present).

I know this was originally about Art (right?), so Art, that might be an avenue to consider. If you're ashamed at having those feelings for T, maybe you also struggle with that with other people in your life?