Choosing a Therapist
Therapy is extremely effective when there is a good match between therapist and client, so, it follows that one of the most important factors in effective therapy is the relationship between the therapist and the client. Since this is a very personal choice, the best way to choose a therapist is by how you feel. Use your instincts and pay attention to your reactions to the person of the therapist - i.e., who the therapist is as a human being. You should feel relatively comfortable and safe, feel that you are being understood and challenged, and feel that you can talk to the therapist directly about your decision making, without being pressured.
Many clients think they might be more comfortable with a therapist matched along certain demographic dimensions. If you feel gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or religious background are important factors to your comfort and success in therapy, you should definitely look for those qualities in your prospective therapist. While a similarity along any of these dimensions may make you believe you will be understood, research indicates that matching therapist and client along demographic dimensions does not necessarily lead to greater effectiveness. That's because, in the final analysis these factors do not speak to how effective a person will be as your therapist, because whatever differences it makes initially disappear after the first couple of sessions.