It should be ok to speak up if something is bothering you. Especially if you have a history of pointless and degrading therapy encounters.

If the therapist cannot handle hearing honest feedback, expressed tactfully, even early on, then it's probably going to be a mess..

I could be wrong, but seems like the central issue here is fear of therapist reprisal -- shaming, punishment, termination -- if you step out of line.

Therapy relationships tend to be fear-based. So clients suppress authenticity to preserve the relationship... which is a classic symptom of dysfunctional relationships.

Not sure if public healthcare makes this worse, due to the assumption that you must take you what get. But that to me implies a basically disempowering situation.

What if you just stopped going to therapists?