How many sessions will it take?

Life has more downs than ups at the moment and you're ready to get some help. But you're worried about what financial commitment it will be. How many sessions will you need? How much will it cost? And how can you make the most out of each therapy session? Take a read as I discuss how many sessions you may need and share 4 tips on how to make the most of your therapy.

Here are 4 ideas to consider how many sessions it's going to take:

1. Overall, the longer you have been living with this issue the longer it will take.

if you just want to solve one specific issue that came up recently - e.g. taking a decision whether quitting a job or staying or how to handle your spouse when they get emotional - it will take just a few months.

If you grew up in a rather difficult situation and want to improve your self-esteem, change the way you are coping with emotions or how you are relating to others - especially in close relationships - it certainly takes some more time. And especially if it has always been this way and you can't imagine how life could possibly improve - that's certainly tough but it's still an actual impression and may change completely within some time. In this case and some others) it may be very helpful to see a psychiatrist additionally to counselling. When you are feeling better there's the decision to take whether you are happy with meds or you want to keep working on your mental health until meds become dispensable. As you can see, even during long therapeutic processes there are many points to check in and consider how many sessions you are up to.

2. Feel free to speak openly about time or money limits

If you have money or time limits it's very helpful to bring them up as soon as they occur. THat can be within the first session - but at any other time as well. The advantage is that the process can be adapted in an adequate way and reachable goals will be set. Furthermore additional or alternative options (e.g. group therapy, self-help groups, counselling provided by institutions) can be discussed and you are more likely to find the way that's most suitable in your specific situation.

3. Goals will be worked out, set and reviewed on a regular basis

In any case goals will not only be discussed in the first session but reviewed after the 5th session and checked in at any time they may be shifting. The counsellor is constantly considering whether the process is developing in the right direction and will bring it up in case there are any doubts. Although the counsellor is aware that they are responsible for the process and it may be scary to bring up doubts or worries towards the counsellor directly, you are highly encouraged to open up about any questions, doubts or struggles with the therapeutic process. This way it can be resolved faster and above that it is a great practice of bringing up and communicating doubts in a high stake relationship.

4. The client is in charge of the topic and there's no commitment

so you generally can end the process at any given moment.
Nevertheless an ending session is highly recommended.

How can you best prepare for the counselling session

In a short term process, in the long term process and anytime

In the short term process it is helpful to think about the goal or topic you want to discuss whereas in a long term process a very strict way of planning may prevent you from experiencing the actual moment. The right time for every experience will naturally come up. In long term processes you are rather invited to stay with whatever is coming up at the given moment.

There are 4 ideas how to improve the effect of the counselling experience:

1. Show up in time and present for the session.

It sounds very obvious but many times you can be very busy and the outside world doesn't stop because of your counselling session. So the better you can "clear your space" for the session, the more inner space you'll have for your counselling process. For some people it is very hard to be on time as it can also be a great strategy to avoid feeling the tension or fear that comes with counselling or in general. Especially during those "useless waiting times" we can experience a lot of uncomfortable feelings. It is very understandable trying to avoid them - but really there's great inner work going on. And the phone is always with us. Still, every time you get distracted or even answer the phone, you have to leave your inner experience and it takes some time to get into. That can be a great chance in case the experience is too intense but in general it is hard to get back into experiencing and certainly takes some time shifting from outside distractions to your inside process. So, very easy advice: turn your phone into flight mode before the session. Another comment about phones: in our everyday world it has become normal to "google" at any given time any "missing" information. During the counselling process it is really more helpful to engage fully into the inner process and gather any helpful information afterwards. I send my clients if required additional information after the session.

Depending on the counselling approach it may be different how the counsellor will answer and work with the questions and needs you open up about - but all the counsellors are highly welcoming and interested in your needs, wants and worries. So the more fully you open up about any occurring question or worry, the faster it can be solved. As a person-centred counsellor I talk to you just like any normal person and try to help you figure out your issues - whether they are about the amount of sessions you need or existential fears.

3. Practising mindfulness techniques

There are two little habits I generally advise my clients to engage in on a frequent basis: journaling and/or meditating. Both are so very helpful to get thoughts and feelings organized and clean up the mind in little steps. I consider them like brushing teeth or vacuuming your flat and really encourage to have a try ... or several tries (every attempt counts).

4. Taking time after the session

Counselling is not accomplished during the session and you will not leave all of your experiences in the counselling room (although that can be helpful and possible in some occasions). So it is great to take some time - either directly after the session or later during the week - to let your mind process the work. Sometimes your thoughts will just show up unexpectedly and sometimes they will wait until there's time and space provided. In both ways it is convenient to take some time between the sessions to process the inner work. Especially on the way back after the session, emotion and thoughts are highly activated and it is great to take some time before getting rushed back to everyday life.

In this blog we've explored: that you are in total control of how many sessions you're going to have. The importance of communicating openly with your therapist.
And how to make the most of each therapy session and get the most from your experience.
I hope you find this useful and your therapy brings about positive change for you.

If you'd like to work with me, please reach out for a chat about how I can help you.