I think it can also depend on your relationship with your therapist. Yesterday, I went to see a substitute therapist while mine is on vacation. We ran into some silence because I said something that was an emotional land mine for me and sometimes I have to just quit talking so I can rein my emotions back in to a comfortable level. The silence there was torturous. With my regular therapist, sitting in silence seems okay most of the time. But it wasn't that way at the beginning. As I felt more connected to him, it became more comfortable to sit in silence.

I like what somebody said about giving you a moment and then rephrasing the question. That seems like a good way to help you talk through whatever it is you're having difficulty expressing.