What are great psychotherapists like?

Blooming flowers: Great therapists are in the eye of the beholder, and often not consistently so.

Great therapists: The best psychotherapists seem to be those who combine the qualities of flexible, reflective, and creative thinking along with genuine human relatedness and concern.

Different: They are all different because they have learned how to be themselves. Still, they have something in common:: they care about others, and have the capacity to feel themselves deeply into the lives of others. One might also ask, "what are great therapeutic relationships like?" they differ, of course, as do we all; as do all great human relationships.

It's a matter of fit: A great psychotherapist should help a patient feel understood. Feeling understood means different things to different people. Sometimes feeling understood feels good and sometimes it doesn't, but it does open new possibilities for positive change.