How Often Should you Talk to Your Therapist: Therapy Guide

Last Update on March 8, 2022 : Published on October 18, 2020
How often you should talk to your therapist

Sometimes, going into therapy can be a really mysterious procedure. Due to running stigmas around it, it can be really hard sometimes to improve mental health with the introduction of coping strategies. Also, stigmas leave various people about how actually therapy works and how they can actually make the most of the therapy.

The most common question I have observed people asking is “how often should they talk to the therapist.” This blog tells you how frequently you can contact or talk to the therapist. So, let’s get started.

Different Timeframes for Different Models

Different Timeframes for Different Models

Some of the therapy models require more time or we can say more frequent meetings, like psychoanalysis. For most people, psychoanalysis can continue for a few years as well (it completes the severity of issues).

Talking about the most common therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has defined cores which require 45 minutes of weekly sessions. CBT hardly stands for a few months.

Coming onto family, group, or couples therapies, these types of therapies run on the basis of requirement and need. Specifically, such therapies are practiced according to the availability of your therapist. These types of sessions can also be scheduled online (due to pandemic). Remember, the longer the session, the more effective it will be. The therapist provides extra time for each individual for sharing their experiences. The therapist also allows some time for figuring out new coping skills and lends support whenever needed. It might take a little time to get in sync with your normal routine and therapy routine.

How Individual Therapy goes

How Individual Therapy goes

There are various studies going on the effectiveness of therapy on the basis of the time. So, as far as observed and research, it shows that approximately 12-16 therapy sessions are required to change lifestyle and introduce coping mechanisms for clients. Each therapy session should be of at least 45 minutes, says research for better outcomes. It has also been researched that 3-4 months of weekly sessions are more feasible for the client and the therapist both. However, in severe cases, therapists schedule treatment according to the goals and complexity of the issues.

Talking about online therapy, you can check with your therapist twice in a day or five days a week according to your schedule and routine. This might shock you a little bit, a study performed by Columbia University shows that “computerized cognitive behavioral therapy satisfies people more” than in-person therapy or we can say traditional therapy methods. So, talking about how often you should talk to your therapist, all the studies proves that it all depends on your needs and availability of the therapist while undergoing traditional therapy or online therapy.

For people with fewer concerns, it generally takes only a few weeks to set them on the road to their desired goals. For people with trauma, it might take more time to explore their trauma and relational support. However, therapy is for everyone and addresses all the concerns. The stigma needs to really remove. Indeed, therapy is wonderful, adaptable, and flexible for everyone.

All procedures are flexible

Talking to your therapist whenever you want to remove your stress instantly. The entire therapist tries to support and helps people to synthesize their feelings with the introduction of coping strategies. Regardless of the complexity of the condition, the therapist provides essential insights to help everyone heal and improve their mental health.

With this statement, I want to bring this fact into light that the therapist-client relationship works like a collaborative partnership. I think the particular reason why people are opting for therapy over staying quiet is that people feel safe in a non-judgmental background. Additionally, they improve and set goals from the feedback given during therapy sessions.

Providing feedback is considered to be an important part of therapy. It is always important to check with your therapist and get appropriate feedback on your progress. Therefore, according to this you can really make your therapeutic process flexible and opt for your therapist whenever you feel low. Make sure you’re booking appointments with a therapist who is available whenever you need them.

I hope this blog helps everyone to break the stigma around talking to a therapist. Comment down your queries regarding “how often should you talk to your therapist.” For more content, follow Calm Sage on all social media platforms.

Thanks for reading.

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About The Author

Aayushi Kapoor
Aayushi Kapoor

Aayushi is a Content Creator at Calm Sage. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Food Technology and a Master's Degree in Clinical Nutrition. Her constant interest in the improvement of mental health, nutrition, and overall wellness embarked upon her career as a “full-time educational writer.” She likes to make an asynchronous connection with her readers. Her mantra for living life is "What you seek is seeking you".

7 COMMENTS

  1. Kerin
    Kerin

    Thankfully, online therapy has made things a little easier to communicate with our therapist.

  2. Tom hanks
    Tom hanks

    As often as needed. Right now I am taking therapy for CBT therapy

  3. Jackie
    Jackie

    When I did in-person therapy, it used to take almost an hour even if I had not much to talk about but after I switched to online, I've found that my time with a therapist is now easily manageable.

  4. James
    James

    What if we go for therapy but we are unable to connect with the therapist and feel uncomfortable? Should we stop seeking it?

  5. Rashmi Kandhil
    Rashmi Kandhil

    Enjoyed this article. I really appreciate your efforts, many people becomes confused about this issue but I am sure this blog will definitely help them. I am going to share this with my friends for sure.

  6. Amara Smith
    Amara Smith

    Is therapy twice a week too much?

  7. CHTN
    CHTN

    another taboo in different parts of the world that needs immediate attention!! Plus what I blv is that the frequency of sessions depend on how much they are helping you.

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