Common questions

Fees: Fees are based on income and are agreed at an initial meeting. A limited number of reduced-fee sessions are available for people unable to pay a standard fee. Sessions cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice are payable in full.

Length: Sessions vary in length, lasting up to 50 minutes.

Frequency: Most people come once or twice a week, although it’s possible to come more or less frequently than that.

How long does it take? In some forms of counselling and therapy a fixed number of meetings is agreed at the outset. Psychoanalytic work is different in that the unfolding of the work itself determines how long we continue to meet. Some people may feel better after a few weeks or months, but it’s best to approach therapy as an open-ended process, one that’s different for each person.

Confidentiality: The feeling that anything can be spoken about in psychotherapy is crucial, and confidentiality is part of what allows this sense of trust to develop. Everything relating to the therapy — including what is spoken about during sessions — is completely confidential. To read more about confidentiality and my ethical code as a trainee, please visit the CFAR and UKCP websites.