Regarding transference or other aspects which I'd be glad to hear of, if there are any.
And what gender did you switch to?

[LonesomeTonight]

This is probably a longer answer with more details than you need, but here you go:

I'd been seeing a female therapist (T1) for 6 years and often felt uncomfortable opening up to her, fearing what her reaction would be to certain things I shared, that she'd judge me. Pretty sure this was coming from some negative maternal transference, as I thought she'd respond like my mom would. I've also been seeing a male marriage counselor, and I've felt more comfortable opening up to him. However, I also have strong (mostly) paternal transference for him, but it's in more of an idealizing form, so positive feelings and attachment. But also, the thought of termination and not seeing him again is extremely painful for me.

I realized that my individual T wasn't really helping me with the attachment to MC, I think in part due to the negative maternal transference, but also maybe just her therapeutic style? So I sought out a different T to try to help me with that. I intentionally looked for a male T, figuring it would be easier to talk to him. I knew there was a risk of paternal (and/or erotic) transference occurring because of what happened with MC (and also a male authority figure or two in my past). BUT I also figured that if that did come up, it would be much easier to work through it with an individual T than trying to sort of work through it with a marriage counselor (though MC has worked with me on it the best he can while mostly staying within boundaries of marriage counseling).

I've now seen the new male T (T2) five times, and it's mostly been going well so far. I've felt able to open up to him more quickly, which I think is related to his gender. We had one conflict (financial policy related), and I immediately let him know I was unhappy about it, which I think I would have had more trouble doing if he was a female T. And we resolved it quickly (he fit me in for half-session to discuss it). It's too soon to tell for sure, and it also could be that his style is different from T1, along with his gender.

I definitely think it's worth trying a switch though, especially if you feel "stuck" with your current T (as I did with T1--on more stuff than just the MC transference, too).

I’ve always struggled to build rapport with female Ts. I think a lot of this is due to negative maternal transference. I have seen a female T for a couple of sessions recently, and won’t be going back as I find her annoying and unhelpful.

However I am going to continue (for now) to find a female T to replace the long-term male T that I’ve recently terminated with. I experienced a lot of attachment-based transference with him, and am hoping that I’ll be able to spare myself that in working with a female T this go around.

I also had a strong bias toward males for most relationships: friends, mentors, doctors, therapists, bosses, etc. I only saw two male Ts and have not been in therapy for a while now, but if I try again, most likely I would choose a female. I experienced the switch in everyday relationships and the two biggest differences were: I typically feel less motivated with females, but it is in part because I don't get obsessed interacting with them, so it remains more realistic. There is also a part that with the kinds of males that I tend to like, there is an element that I want to impress them, and that can keep me from addressing certain problem areas.

I am glad you asked the question because I have always wondered about this.

[Shazerac]

I was kind of confused by the question. I thought you meant going to a therapist who was in the process of a gender change

After reading the responses i figured it out though. I prefer therapist that are female like me and older. I tried going to male Ts a few times. I just don't think they can truly understand what it's like to be a woman.

[growlycat]

Most of my experiences with female therapists were not positive ones. I tended to have negative transference towards them and there was much distrust and disagreement. But I did once have a good relationship when hospitalized as a teen with a woman who was a psychiatric nurse. She was very skilled and knowledgeable. I wasn't getting along with any of the other staff male or female. She was my only advocate.

Outside of that experience, I've had more easygoing rapport with male ts. Maybe I am just in dire need of a positive experience with a male authority figure.

[toomanycats]

I've found that gender isn't the ticket -- it's really just about the individual therapist.

I've had female Ts I clicked with, male Ts that were crap, female Ts that were awful, and male Ts I've clicked well with.

I do feel that having a male T pushes me to confront some things about myself (my pattern for seeking a father figure) that I wouldn't confront while seeing a female T.

I'm sure seeing a female T would also bring about some unique confrontations.

Right now, I choose to stick with a male T for really no other reason than that's what I want.

[Apollite]

All of my therapists and counsellors have been middle aged females because that's what I always requested. I've always felt more comfortable around older women (probably because I have such a good relationship with my mother) so I thought that they'd be the best people for me to open up to but I was wrong. I suppose I was looking for an older woman who had a similar personality to my mother, and was disappointed when they fell short. Expecting people to live up to ideals is futile

My mother is one of those people who always seems to know what to say and do to make others feel better, and I always feel happier when I'm in her company. Qualities like that are innate and can't be manufactured. The therapists I saw were either too maternal, which would always come across as patronising, or quite dismissive and pushy, which would make me retreat into myself even more. Even though I'm a female, I find it hard to express my feelings, and other women don't understand that, which makes communicating with them challenging.

If I ever have therapy again, I think I'd request a man for a change because even though I've always been intimidated by men, I feel like I need to stop sticking to the same things and people, and try to find the courage to explore other options.

Shazerac: "I was kind of confused by the question. I thought you meant going to a therapist who was in the process of a gender change."

I also at first thought the same thing.

I had 6 female therapist in the the past 3 years. Fired 3 for kinds of mess... From lateness, yawning and telling me their life stories.

I decided about 2 months ago that I'm going to get a male therapist. It so happened that the therapist that did my intake is a man. He asked if.... I'm fine with having a male therapist. I told him yes of course! So the intake therapist is now my therapist. So far so good.

My best friend is of the opposite sex also. The only thing... He's not a psychologist.