What things do you consider when choosing a therapist

I picked a couple different things, but also "other" - for experience. There's 2 types of experience that I want... first, years in practice. I really struggle with how to do therapy, and I think that I'd be miserable with someone who was fairly early in their career. I want someone with the experience to not be shocked, surprised, confused, etc... by my stuff.

Second, I really want/need someone with experience in my specific issues, I think. I've tried "general therapists" several times, and they just don't have enough skills/training, specifically around childhood trauma and dissociative stuff, to be useful. It's really hard, and now that I'm a bit older, I can see how their lack of knowledge is making it even harder on me, and how I'm just spinning my wheels with them.

Otherwise... yeah, sadly location is important to me. I need someplace that I can park (!) and not too far (b/c I can't spend half the day driving there and back, due to work). I want a comfy office, but I'll accept less comfy as long as it's not really horrible and awful. Ideally, I want someone that I click with, but I don't think I've found that yet.

Mostly, I want someone who is experienced, patient, well-trained, kind, empathic, and a PROFESSIONAL - someone who doesn't screw up appointments, refer to dissociation as "the d-word", eat lunch during our session, and forget what we talked about last week.

Oh, and re: age... I tend to screen out very young therapists (assuming they don't have much experience) and very old ones (I don't want them to retire or pass away!).

I also need them to not be defensive. I need to be able to ask questions, or point out things that are bothering me, and not have them go nuts. I saw one who I asked about "phase oriented therapy" in the first session (b/c it had been recommended for me, and I didn't know what it was) and she said, "I've been doing therapy longer than you've been alive!" - ugh. Please go get your own T to work out your issues, don't take them out on me (it was really a genuine question b/c I didn't know what it was, not a snarky attempt to one-up her or anything).

Ugh!

Ooh I love a good poll!
I ticked most of these.
Had to be older than me, but not old old
Had to be female,
psychodynamic,
at least masters level in psychotherapy
Within 40 minutes drive
Nice office or home space
Needed to click
Other, need to be fairly attractive/well presented.

I don't mind if they are in group practise, if they have office staff or not, or if they're a condescending jerk.

Gender, I will only see a female therapist. They must be older than me, masters in psychology, years of experience, patient, kind, compassionate, have experiance in my issues, we need to click and work well together, they need to be professional and consistent.

I picked several things. I also selected other because I wanted someone who has an outstanding reputation and comes highly recommended by someone I trust. I was lucky to get the t I have - plus she is in my insurance network!

Gender - I generally prefer a female and refused to see a male when I was younger. I have seen men as an adult, so it's not as much of a priority as it used to be.

Whether I click with them or not is huge.

Not being a condescending jerk is also huge.

Location is important. It's not realistic for me to travel more than 40 minutes or so.

Degree- they must have a masters degree. Where I live (in Massachusetts) its against the law to call yourself a psychotherapist, or even just a therapist, if you don't have a masters degree in psychology, counseling or social work, along with a license. So for me I guess it's a non issue, but if I lived anywhere else, I would be sure that they were qualified.

Genuine- I can't deal with someone who sounds like they're quoting textbooks all the time.

Last, I need to see someone who has some empathy. They don't have to have shared my experiences necessarily,, but I need a T who understands how life experiences vary and that they may need to adapt their approach accordingly.

Not sure e if this was a typo or not, but although an LSW is a real license, it is a bachelor level, or even associates level license, which means they have no training in therapy at all. All you need to qualify for an LSW is to have worked under a licensed social worker in any capacity for one or two years and to pass an exam.

A masters level social worker is not the same thing- they have much more training and education. A masters in social work gives you an MSW, while a LCSW or LICSW, means you are a licenced clinical sw. The clinical designation means they have more intense training in psychotherapy. In fact, an LICSW has the same amount of post grad training as a PhD psychologist. Psychologists can do psychological testing, that's really the only thing besides the letters that sets them apart from other clinicians. I have my masters in counseling psychology and it's true the training in social work is different, but it's no less valuable and no less qualifying. My classmates who are choosing to go on for the PhD are largely motivated by the prospects of performing psych testing, teaching at the college level and mAking more money. I've never heard anyone say they are entering the program to be a better therapist.

MSW or LSW. I prefer a doctorates in counseling psychology. Whether they be the same or not, I take into account that my experiences with SW's have not been pleasant but have been fantastic with those that have a PhD in counseling psychology.

I've had an MS in counseling/LPC, an MSW/LCSW, and an MA in psychology/LMFT. The MSW was No. 2 and probably the best suited for me temperamentally, but I think she did the counseling track at her MSW program.

Never seen a PhD. Maybe that can be No. 4.

I love your considerations Stopdog. My ts need to be older, female, be warm and empathic and I admit to liking the new age, hippy types. I would not see a condescing jerk or someone with scary eyes or a strange voice. Oh another thing is they have to have a clean house/ office.

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I also personally prefer a Ph.D given the somewhat greater emphasis on research in their training (even if it's a Clinical Psych type program) which hopefully would translate to their being both more aware of the latest research as well as the willingness + capacity to apply it.

That's not to say that those with a Master's won't be up on the research part of it but in the absence of a strong signal about the therapist's competence early in the process (which for me is near impossible to obtain), I use the Ph.D as a filtering mechanism.

Having said that, my T who has a Ph.D and often cites research to back up what she's saying to me (which given how my brain functions, I immediately go home and verify and she has yet to falter in this aspect!), has gotten annoyed at my reading up on the research (because apparently doing so is part of my set of 'issues' but I'm yet to be convinced of it!). So, while her degree gave me a degree of comfort in making the choice in the first place, it hasn't necessarily translated in the way I'd expected.

Also, I don't know if this is necessarily the case but as my T also recently admitted, she uses a rather cognitive approach (but not CBT) which has not gone well with some folks but has worked well for me -- I'm not sure if that is because of her training primarily as a researcher or if that's just what she'd do regardless of her degree and so, that may be something else that I tend to intuitively gravitate towards in looking for T's with a Ph.D.

So, all of that to say, that this stuff -- comfort level based on degrees etc -- like so much else about therapy is highly individualistic and I don't think there's a single right or wrong answer except that it's everyone's right to pick who they choose and degrees aren't a bad way to do so.

Age, gender and not being part of a horde of therapists--and authenticity and rapport (clickability). I would add "no dramatic face making" but that probably comes under other categories, like authenticity and clickability. Also must be able to withstand meticulous scrutiny of words and intentions without getting defensive.

I've been blessed with several T all of them good, they have been Ph.D.s, LCSW and LSW the degree alone does not make of break a T. Learning is only part of the equation.

gender is becoming less of an issue for me, though I am not sure I could work long-term with a male T on the csa stuff. I had a male T at a hospital program once, and he ws someone I could work with once I got over the total panic of being in a room with him, but the other male T I had later was not someone I felt ok working on the CSA stuff with. He was nice, genuine, caring, and competant, butwe never got into the csa stuff.

Being able to "click" with the T an find someone personable, patient...

specific education doesn't really matter as long as they are actually competant.
generally prefer someone who specializes in trauma work.

distance doesn't really matter, though it would be much harder for me to get to someone over an hour away. I had one T to whom I would drive 1.5 hours each way... it didn't end up working out though. Current T is 30 minutes away.

availability, support, and cost (or ability to bill) are huge things for me though.

I need authenticity because I'm super insecure. If the T wasn't authentic, I doubt I could get past my own insecurities to get to the work.

The two T's that I have seen have both worked from home. I quite like that. It conveys something to me about how they feel about being therapist. I think it's also quite practical as it saves a lot of money on office costs. The T's philosophical approach to being a therapist is important to me. Maybe some kind of humility/I'm ok/you're ok/ everybody is ok/ I have a lot to learn/ the things I've been taught might not be true/ an intrinsic belief in the value of life and love for other human beings. Within ten minute of meeting my T I decided that she had that.

Seems interesting to me that the most common thing is Gender, for me it's a must that I see a female therapist, no way I could really open up to a male.