I voted "other" for a few reasons.

1. I'm 47 years old, and I've had many, many T's that could easily fit "all the above" and then some! For example, I once had a T get so scared of me that she called 911, left the room (not screaming though, but she might as well have screamed), and then had me taken to the psych ward. True story. We still worked together because I had "no choice," or so I thought. I was homeless, and I was waiting for SSDI to kick in. I was approved right away, which I wasn't expecting. It took 6 months, but I didn't have to deal with appeals or lawyers - thank goodness. Still, I struggled finding adequate therapy at the time. I was misdiagnosed many times for the stuff I brought up. It wasn't until I got properly diagnosed with DID that I finally knew the treatment I needed, and how to weed out the "bad therapists" from the "good therapists" and "trauma-and-dissociation specialists." More often than not, I didn't get a "specialist," but I did get someone who was seasoned enough with trauma work that they would be willing to learn and treat me for dissociation.

2. Most therapists these days are NOT in it for the long-haul. They'll see you for maybe upwards of 2 to 3 years, or maybe even 5, before they move, retire, get promoted, get shuffled around the VA system, or decide that you're "too complex" for them to continue treating you. I've had all this done to me sometime after stating the many things I was thinking, had experienced, etc. - much of which entailed trauma histories. Vicarious/secondary trauma can occur when the T is experiencing PTSD symptoms from hearing their clients. I can certainly understand their need to refer me out when they took on more than they can chew, especially when offering low-paying Medicare as a newbie therapist. I've had many of these that I had to just leave because they weren't a good fit for me all around. I didn't feel safe sharing or what I did share scared them too much. Honestly, I truly need a therapist who can be there for me for a decade or longer. I also need a therapist whose personality is very calming, caring, empathetic (not just sympathetic), and democratic in nature. I also need a culturally competent therapist who understands racial traumas as real, ongoing threats. Additionally, I also need a therapist who knows how to take care of herself so that she's not blaming me for her burnout or getting triggered by me (countertransference) because of some unresolved issues in the T's life, etc. For these reasons, divulging my traumatic histories and ongoing traumas can become too much for some therapists, and most culturally INcompetent therapists.

3. Therapists who are so politically and culturally different may not realize that they are mistreating, misdiagnosing, and/or neglecting you in psychotherapy. They might also go as far as gaslighting, minimizing, downplaying, or even psychologically abusing you in session if your culture and/or beliefs and/or religion differ from theirs. This is bias among the therapist, which should be an indicator to the therapist that this relationship is NOT a good fit. This is also the right of the client/patient to state that this wouldn't be a good fit either. This isn't about discrimination as much as it is about how different the psychotherapeutic relationship/dynamic is, and why it's NOT the same as just finding a psychiatrist to dole out meds or screen you for a diagnosis (though they can be biased, too), or a medical doctor treating a physiological or neurological disorder (though they can also be biased). In psychotherapy, the dynamic relationship between the therapist-client/patient dyad should be based on connection, transformative relationships, trust, and some similarities (not all). For minorities, this would be especially difficult to find and trust divulging secrets because of your differences from mainstream society, mainstream culture, mainstream race, mainstream beliefs, etc. But then again, with polarized politics and how that has infiltrated our belief system about vaccines, boosters, social distancing, cleanliness, air filtration, medical tests, and more, there might be situations where divulging information will reveal how different your T is, and how that could leave room for misdiagnoses, misunderstandings, therapeutic ruptures, therapy abuse, and more. It's important that we patients/clients/consumers identify our rights and our needs in therapy. If you can't be treated in one area, it's probably best that you find a different therapist that can treat the wholeness of you, not just bits and pieces that they are comfortable with. You cannot fully get treated if your T doesn't accept all of you and all that you want to discuss.