What if my T votes completely different from me in election to parliament?!

No, she partly works with therapy, partly with other things in church.

Thanks. Yes, it could impact me if I suddenly realised she didn´t share my values at all but that she just had seemed to because of her supportive way of being.

I think it´s a good question why those values are important to me. One answer is that my political views aren´t just something that I hold for the moment or because a certain party leader is interesting but it represents much of how I look upon society and other people.

That is, if my T voted for the opposite wing, I would probably feel that she voted against beliefs that are very important to me and also affects my daily life.

I don´t at all think that she would debate or that she would show any dislike but it´s more a matter of how authentic she can be if there was ever to be a situation where political views became apparent.

Thanks. Yes, I agree knowing how a person votes doesn´t give the whole picture. Asking her about specific values would though probably be too personal and she wouldn´t answer. Perhaps if I asked in a very general manner like "what do you think about all people living on very little money". But not more specifically how she thinks poverty could be solved or similar.

Thanks for this. You mentioned this about being judged and I think to me this is the core to why I think about this issue at all.

It´s not that I find my therapist judgemental but indirectly I would perhaps feel that way if I know that she actually had very different opinions on matters that are important to me.

She doesn´t seem like a person who´s very politically engaged, it´s an impression I have, I don´t really know. It´s not that I think she´ll create some kind of political debate but more that I perhaps realise she votes for the opposite wing and the difficulty in how to handle that.

Thanks. I agree it´s important to know what a vote on a certain party stands for, if it reflects a person´s deeper values or if it´s just "something to vote for as you should vote".

That´s though more or less impossible to get to know about a therapist who probably wouldn´t even tell a client "left wing or right wing".

As you say it also has much to do with how one thinks one or the other problem could be solved. Both left and right wing has some kind of solution on how to, as an example, handle people on welfare. But how they actually value and look upon those people differ much and it´s here my concerns emerge as I don´t want a T who "in real life" would look negatively upon me.

I don´t think she actually does but I can´t know what she really thinks about my issues and how autenthic she is when she supports the issues I bring to her.

Sometimes one can meet with a therapist who clearly shows it´s her/his way or no way and who tries to theorise around different issues to get the client to change or "understand the point". My T isn´t at all that way, it´s me who wants like a guarantee that my T can genuinely like me and is authentic within her therapy role.

One's politics depend on the priorities they give to things. Since therapy is a back-and-forth relationship I think the therapist's politics matter a lot. You can say you don't care about politics but what's going on politically shapes your daily life whether you want it to or not. I assume my therapists share my political beliefs and that's always turned out to be true.

Thanks. Yes, I agree to that and even if I understand the logics behind a T being able to treat "anyone" regardless of religion or political views I also think politics do have some importance.


As an example my T doesn´t seem to be a person who is very politically active but she still might have opinions I would find hard to accept.


How did you find out about your therapists political views? Did you ask them or did they tell you themselves?

I don´t think my T would answer if I asked her about her political view, she has integrity at the same time as she´s a warm person. She´s not rigid but I notice she, as me, knows well where to place her steps and not.

I suspect this isn't really about politics. It's more likely about values and character. (I don t know how well these words translate into Swedish.).

"Is T the kind of person I can trust and respect?"

I would typically say I don't care, but...
if my T voted for Trump, I'm pretty sure we have a mismatch in personal ethics that would mean I could not work with him as my therapist.

We have that too in the States here-there are two main parties here. One identifies with values that government should not provide welfare or 'intrude'. The other identifies with values that promote social safety nets. Those parties identify with other concepts, too, but this is a key divide.

Thanks. Yes, I agree it has to do with her values and character and one way to find out about that is through politics. Even if I now don´t actually expect her to tell me who she votes for.

But it tells rather a lot about how a person looks upon other members of society and is also very much a basis for trust and respect when it comes to a therapeutic relationship.

From what I´ve read here and in other places it seems many T:s vote for left wing parties and sympathize with those of small means. It´s at least some kind of comfort even if that might not be true when it comes to my T.