Frequently Asked Questions

Before your first therapy session:

  • Your first session may feel a little different from future sessions. Your therapist will spend much of this time asking questions and learning about you, your history, and what brings you to therapy. Depending on how much there is to cover, you may not get very far into the concerns that brought you in—and that’s completely normal. The first session helps your therapist understand the bigger picture so you can begin deciding together where to go from there.

  • You don’t have to be in crisis or know exactly what you want to work on to start therapy. You may be looking for support through something difficult, trying to better understand yourself or your relationships, or simply feeling like something needs to change.

    The truth is, you may not know if therapy is right for you until you give it a try. One session may not be enough to know what you’ll get from the process, and progress doesn’t always happen in a straight line. We encourage you to give yourself time to settle into therapy, explore what comes up, and see what you begin to take from it.

  • Most therapy sessions are approximately 50 minutes. Session length may vary depending on the type of appointment, your treatment needs, or insurance requirements. Your therapist will let you know if your sessions are scheduled for a different length of time.

  • Your privacy is an important part of therapy. What you share with your therapist is kept confidential, with certain exceptions required by law, such as concerns involving serious risk of harm or suspected abuse or neglect. Your therapist will review confidentiality and its limits with you so you know what to expect.

During the therapy process:

  • There isn’t a set number of sessions that works for everyone. How long you spend in therapy can depend on what brings you in, what you hope to work through, and how things develop along the way. Early in the process, your therapist will talk with you about how often they recommend scheduling sessions based on your needs and goals. Some people notice changes early on, while others need more time. As therapy continues, you and your therapist can check in on your progress and adjust the frequency of sessions as needed.

  • That’s okay. You don’t have to share everything before you’re ready. Some things take time to put into words, and building enough trust to talk about difficult experiences can be part of the process itself. You can let your therapist know when something feels hard to talk about, and you can work through it at a pace that feels manageable for you.

  • Yes. You don’t need to have a diagnosis, a specific problem, or even the right words for what you’re experiencing before coming to therapy. Sometimes you just know that something feels off, you’re feeling stuck, or you want to better understand yourself. Therapy can give you space to explore what you’re experiencing and begin making sense of it.

  • Therapy can bring up thoughts and emotions that continue after your session ends. You may leave feeling relieved, emotional, tired, thoughtful, or even unsure of how you feel. When possible, try to give yourself some time to pause after your session and avoid scheduling anything especially stressful or emotionally demanding right afterward.

    If something comes up between sessions that you would like your therapist to know about, we encourage you to reach out through the SimplePractice Client Portal messaging system. Your therapist can follow up with you and help determine what may be helpful moving forward.