Therapist self disclosure

Therapist self disclosure is a process of communication you may have considered using when engaging with clients during sessions. Therapist self-disclosure occurs when a clinician shares personal information with a client. Personal information may consist of thoughts, feelings, personal information, or personal experiences. 

Therapist self-disclosure may occur in a brief and limited manner such as sharing with a client who struggles with a chronic illness that you also have a chronic illness. It can also happen in a more in-depth or detailed way. For example, this same therapist may share their personal struggles and emotions regarding life with a chronic illness with their client. 

This article will discuss:

• Types of self-disclosure
• How different treatment orientations view self-disclosure
• Benefits and risks to self-disclosure
• Factors affecting self-disclosure

Types of therapist self-disclosure

In a therapeutic relationship, self-disclosure can occur in various ways and on different levels. In some instances, you can work to protect or limit therapist self-disclosure by becoming aware of how you may intentionally or unintentionally share personal information. Other times, you may have limited ability to control the disclosure.

Deliberate self-disclosure: With deliberate self-disclosure, a therapist engages in the intentional sharing of personal information. It may happen verbally or nonverbally.

It may occur through: 

• Photos in an office setting (ex: child’s school photo on the therapist’s desk or bookcase)

• Discussion of the therapist’s vacation plans while scheduling the next appointment (ex: “We need to skip the session next week because I will be on a cruise.”)

• Sports memorabilia in the office

• Books placed in the office

• Engaging in certain gestures, touches, or sounds during a session

• Unavoidable self-disclosure: Unavoidable therapist self-disclosure happens when the therapist discloses personal information that cannot be prevented.

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Some of the unavoidable information includes:

• Gender
• Age range
• Accents
• Visible tattoos
• Pregnancy
• Visible disabilities such as limps, need for a wheelchair, hearing impairments
• Wedding or engagement rings
• Religious jewelry
• Fashion (clothing, make-up, hairstyle, jewelry)

A home office can present with other means of unavoidable self-disclosure. This self-disclosure can occur during a telehealth session or a face-to-face session in a home-based office. When a session occurs in your home, clients have a view into how you live your personal life rather than the intentional design and decor of your office.

Clients may learn personal information about neighbors if neighbors are loud or visible during a session. Pets may make noises or come into the session. Family members may walk into a session (despite your best efforts to prevent it). Clients may obtain personal information regarding the appearance of your home and home decor. Certain hobbies might be visible. Personal artwork might be displayed in view of the client. A home office may disclose information regarding personal food choices or beverages, books you enjoy, or plants that you like. 

Accidental self-disclosure: Sometimes accidental disclosure happens.

Some examples might include:

• Unplanned meetings in a public place or location outside of the office or telehealth session 

• Impulsive, instinctive, or spontaneous reactions to something that happens during a session

• Accidental events such as dropping a folder and a personal item falls out of the folder, forgetting to put away a personal item that was present before the session, or an item forgotten in the office garbage can

Deliberate actions by clients: In today’s digital world, clients can learn almost anything about their therapist with an internet search. Internet searches can reveal personal information about you that you might work very hard to protect in the therapeutic relationship.

Clients can learn a variety of information such as:

• Political party affiliations
• Personal address
• Family member names, ages, locations
• Volunteer activities
• Criminal history
• Religious affiliations
• Prior work history
• Licensure complaints or violations
• Anything posted on social media

How do different therapeutic orientations view therapist self-disclosure?

Because a therapeutic orientation guides the approach to treating your client, differing therapeutic orientations look at therapist self-disclosure from different perspectives. The perspectives stem from the history of the treatment approach and the dynamic of the therapeutic relationship. 

Traditional psychoanalytic perspective: A psychoanalytic orientation would typically approach the therapeutic relationship as an opportunity for the client to project their thoughts and emotions onto a neutral psychotherapist. The counselor in a traditional psychoanalytic relationship remains neutral and separate from the client. Therefore, this orientation encourages minimal self-disclosure to maintain the anonymity and neutrality of the therapist.

Humanistic orientation: The humanistic approach to therapy considers that therapists should remain open and transparent with their clients to promote a more genuine and authentic client-therapist relationship. Humanistic therapists consider this relationship as essential to the success of the therapeutic process and outcome. Humanistic therapists suggest that therapist self-disclosure helps clients to see their therapists as humans who also have struggles, just as they do.

Behavioral, cognitive, and cognitive-behavioral orientations: These treatment approaches utilize modeling and reinforcement as essential components of the therapeutic process. Self-disclosure is one of the tools that therapists can use to foster these tools. From these perspectives, self-disclosure helps to reinforce and normalize what the therapist tries to teach the client.

Self-help and 12-Step Programs: These approaches use self-disclosure techniques and transparency of the therapist as a guiding principle. Some of these programs may use a peer-led or sponsor approach, but many use a therapist as a group facilitator or class instructor. During these sessions, groups, or classes, self-disclosure becomes part of the process.

Benefits and risks of therapist self-disclosure

Self-disclosure can be a useful tool in therapy when a therapist uses it in a limited and professional manner. It can help to increase the trust between the client and therapist, develop more empathy, and reinforce a more authentic and genuine connection between the therapist and the client. 

When used appropriately, therapist self-disclosure can help to normalize issues the client has experienced by learning that someone else has also gone through this issue. For example, a client may feel comforted and supported to realize that they are not the only person to have experienced whatever challenge or stressor that the therapist has shared in the session to have also experienced. This self-disclosure may lead to the client feeling more connected to the therapist knowing that the therapist has shared a similar experience.

Therapist self-disclosure can be used in a session to reinforce concepts addressed in the session. A therapist may discuss how they have used a specific intervention, skill, or technique. For example, when teaching about creating a journaling habit, the therapist may share their routine and how they made journaling a habit.

Self-disclosure can also be used to model and reinforce healthy choices, behaviors, and actions. If the session addresses the benefits of creating a healthy morning routine, the therapist may share some details of their morning routine as a guide, example, and reinforcement of how a morning routine can reduce stress. 

There is a balance to consider with therapist self-disclosure between presenting risks and enhancing the client’s progress in treatment. When not used appropriately, self-disclosure can sabotage treatment progress because it can take the focus of the session off the client and direct it towards the therapist. 

The client, and subsequent discussion, may address the information revealed in the self-disclosure vs. the treatment-related issue of the session. The therapist self-disclosure may give the client unintentional permission to not process a difficult issue or work on the treatment goal. 

Therapist self-disclosure may lead to the client wondering more about the provider. The client may then ask or seek out additional personal information regarding the therapist. The client may use time in the session to inquire about the therapist’s personal information or situation instead of working on the issues and goals of the session. Or, the client may use time outside of the session to research online about the therapist.

For example, the therapist may address the client’s stress related to a home remodel introduced in the session. The therapist may share “I understand. We remodeled our kitchen last year. It was a lot of work. The house was a disaster all the time and I had to take my kids and husband out to eat way too much!”. 

This therapist self-disclosure may lead to the client asking more personal questions about the therapist’s house, children, or spouse. After the session, the client may be wondering more about this personal information and research it online. It may result in the client learning about where the therapist lives, details about the children, and even result in a visit to the therapist’s home.

Self-disclosure can also trigger certain challenges a client may battle. When the therapist self-discloses problems, challenges, stressors, or even trauma experienced, the client may then develop worry or even anxiety regarding the therapist’s well-being. The therapist's self-disclosure may lead to an increase in the client’s caregiving tendencies. The client may want to work to solve, fix, or mediate the issue the therapist discloses.