OK manipulation may not have been the correct word. I think T are taught really good persuasion or attention getting skills. I do not believe that my T ever tried to force me to think a certain way or to behave a certain way. However, in the example I provided about personal space, I think my T read my body language along with things I said and knew I had an issue with this. She used this information to her advantage. In order to persuade me to trust and open up a bit, I THINK (I don't really know for sure) that she deliberately avoided challenging this boundary. When I might be fading off during the session she knew she could quietly shift forward to perk me up and redirect my attention back to her. Other examples, are I think my T was very care in the way she worded certain things.

All I was just trying to say was...IMO many things a T does are planned and deliberate and sometime done for a specific reason or specific effect. In some cases if the patient was aware of the technique then it might not be as effect.