When/If you feel gratitude towards your therapist for their work with you do you ever express it in any way? If so, how? And how frequently?

I think I had embarrassed mine by telling them how I appreciated the way they had helped me through a difficult session. They turned red and suddenly they were the one who found eye contact difficult. Usually they are rather composed so it was surprising to see them became bashful... especially to that degree. Since that time I've been hesitant to offer such sincere gratitude again. It had left me with the sense that while they were grateful for what I said, they were bothered by their loss of ability to maintain their professional mask.

I don't want to make my therapist uncomfortable, but neither do I want to behave like I don't recognize their difficult and emotionally draining work. I'm curious how you all handle it.

[Echos Myron redux]

That's an interesting reaction from your therapist but I hope it doesn't stop you from expressing whatever you need to in session. You should be able to express all your feelings towards your therapist.
I express my gratitude towards my therapist whenever I am feeling it in the moment. I also express admiration and love for him and he has never shied away from any feelings I bring. I say things like "I'm grateful for your support" and he just accepts it I guess. It doesn't feel uncomfortable.

[winterblues17]

I've said thank you a few times for the help they have given me in the past. I've also wrote them a note of gratitude and said just how much it has meant to me. When I gave her the note she thanked me and said it was kind.

I'm still not sure she truely knows how much I appreciate her support and stability, especially through hard times.

Maybe a letter/note? They can take it away in their own time and read if need be.

[nottrustin]

I thank her at the end of every session. Beyond that I have expressed how much I appreciate her and all that she does in emails quite freauently especially after a particularly difficult session. Once in a great while I send her a card.

[DP_2017]

always handwritten notes or letters. I'm better with writing things

Not really. But then I'm not good at showing what in feeling.

[CharlieStarDust]

I'll usually write an email. I'd say I express thanks a few times a year (usually when I feel like she's gone above and beyond for me).

[elisewin]

I do all the time. She sometimes blushes a bit and that is kind of cute. I find it easy and pleasant to express gratitude.

[junkDNA]

I express it kind of often. Usually thru email or text lol. He reciprocates it at times... He's said I'm a good client and said he is thankful for me ☺

[WarmFuzzySocks]

I will occasionally thank my t for something specific that she said that was helpful or meaningful, and tell her the way it helped me or why it was meaningful. Not only do I feel genuinely thankful, it also offers feedback about what she does or doesn't do that helps, which is valuable information for such close work together.

[NP_Complete]

I express gratitude to my therapist, although it usually happens in email. I think the last time I did so I told him that he'd been my life raft for the last year and a half. Next session he said he was glad he could be that for me.

[annielovesbacon]

I'm not super great with expressing emotions so I don't really thank her out loud, although I hope she can tell by the way I treat her how grateful I am for her...
I do remember thanking her once when she went out of her way to schedule a session for me out of her regular hours.
With my old T, during our last session, I couldn't even thank her lol, I said "I don't really have the words to express how grateful I am..." and I kinda paused and she smiled and said "it's okay, you don't need words" so I think she understood

[Anne2.0]

I'm a very polite person IRL. I say please and thank you to everyone who does something for me, even if it is their job and/or I pay them out of my pocket. I do say thank you to T after most if not all sessions. I've also told him about some of the specific things that have been useful in my therapy, ways he has specifically helped. But I think what you mean by gratitude (I enjoy feeling it, not so much directly about therapy but about all the privileges and where I am in life), I have not done. I don't know if I will. But I like the idea of doing it.

[MRT6211]

I tell my T how grateful I am for her and her help continually, but only in my writing to her. She keeps telling me I don’t need to thank her, but I feel the need to anyway.

I tell her thank you and that I appreciate her time frequently. Also email/ text her that sometimes. When we lived in the same country and saw her in person in an office, I used to stop to pick us both up some coffee or some cold tea, depending on the weather. She has also loved it when I make her homemade goodies. Occasionally I make her a card expressing my gratitude.

[mostlylurking]

I did explain how much certain things had helped me, usually some time later when I was looking back and noting some progress that had been made. My T tended to say he was glad, and then he'd somehow give the credit to me or to the therapy process itself, but would deflect it from himself personally.

And sometimes I just let him know that I was feeling a lot better after seeing him. I gave him some form of thanks about once a month I'd guess, by email or in person.

[Wonderfalls]

I was always more likely to praise him than to thank him, if those are two different things. He always looked maybe just a little embarrassed but definitely pleased. I don't think people can get enough praise or thanks (not counting from obsessive people or the overly insecure). And then I always said thank you at the end of the session, but that was more generic. I was sorry I couldn't write him at the end of our sessions, but I just couldn't.

[stopdog]

No. I never felt particularly grateful to the woman. She provided nothing special. I paid her to sit there. Sometimes she could not even manage that well.