What do we pay psychologists for? Is it possible to reduce the price or guarantee the result? It is possible and necessary to clarify money issues. Moreover, this is part of the therapy.
One of the main barriers for those who want to start psychotherapy is money. In many cases, therapy is indeed expensive. How valuable is our own mental well-being? We asked specialists to find out what the rates are and to understand what caused the discrepancies in prices.
Why is money important?
We can talk for free about our difficulties (although not all) with a loved one or a casual interlocutor, but such a conversation does not guarantee full attention to us, does not imply a result or continuation. Even if we are friendly with a psychologist at a party, it is still just a conversation.
Money changes everything. “The payment confirms the seriousness of intentions on both sides: the client and the specialist,” emphasize family psychotherapists.
What do we pay for?
To achieve their goals in therapy, psychologists use the methods and techniques that they have learned during their expensive training and many years of education. We pay them for qualifications, experience, skill.
Psychologists maintain their professional level, and this requires expenses from them. They are undergoing personal therapy because clients share difficult experiences with them and they have to deal with it, participate in paid conferences, consult with colleagues about their work. The cost of the service also often includes the rent for the premises rented by the therapist.
Thus, the payment serves as a guarantee that the therapist has no interests other than the client’s.
How much does it cost?
The prices cited by analysts and therapists reach $200 per session, with an average cost of $65-$250. The price depends on the frequency of sessions, experience, reputation, and sometimes ambitions of the therapist, and the cost of rent. With long-term therapy, as a rule, one price is set for all sessions.
Regretfully, not every person can afford expenses related to psychotherapy and have to borrow money to pay for sessions. According to the research, 14% of consumers regularly take payday loans in Georgia for bad credit to pay for psychotherapy. These are unsecured, short-term loans designed to help you cover emergency expenses like auto repair, home renovation, debt consolidation, medical bills, moving expenses, weddings, education, etc. The borrowed funds can be used for whatever needs. It is very easy to get payday loans online. You only need to reside in the USA be at least 18 years old, have a stable income, and have a bank account in your name. Users can apply for payday loans online from the comfort of their homes and get accepted in 10-15 minutes. If approved, you should expect to have the funds in your bank account within a few hours or immediately.
The frequency of the sessions is determined in conjunction with the psychotherapist and may change during the analysis. The duration of treatment can range from one year to ten years – it all depends on your problem and motivation. But you can interrupt psychotherapy at any time without the obligation to pay a forfeit. Talk to your psychoanalyst or therapist about this: he or she will help determine whether you have really finished the analysis or therapy, or the phenomenon of resistance has triggered, since in the course of treatment you have come close to something very important and, possibly, hurting you.
It is not easy to estimate the upcoming costs of therapy because one problem can open up another, and then the number of sessions increases. More precisely, we can say about the cost of a very short therapy.
Is it possible to change the tariff during the therapy?
Yes, if your income has changed and the specialist believes that these negotiations are part of the therapeutic process. Payment is one of the tools for influencing changes, so discounts should be psychologically justified. It is important for a client to pay at least as much as possible. If he is looking for something cheaper than he can afford, he thereby creates an attitude towards himself as less significant than he really is.
When and how we pay
There is no consensus as to when it is better to pay for the meeting at which point in the session. Some therapists prefer to receive money at the beginning of the session so that later they do not think about it. For others, hand-to-hand transfer of money is a way to ground the client at the end of the session. The transfer of money from hand to hand helps the client return to the real world. This is a sign that the meeting is over.
Some therapists let clients choose the timing of the calculation, using their choice as a diagnostic tool. The way a client handles money gives a psychologist additional information about him or her.
Recently, psychotherapy has been developing on the Internet. Today, clients can receive professional assistance remotely – using Skype. It increases the popularity of cashless payments. It seems that we will soon all switch to cashless payments. Therefore, the question of when the client transfers the money to the psychotherapist is not very important.
According to specialists, the form of payment should correspond to the contact form: In the virtual space, you can use non-cash forms, and if you meet with a psychologist face to face, it is better to use the physical form of payment, that is, cash.
Are there free psychotherapy sessions?
“Oline rich people can afford psychotherapy.” To end this prejudice, it is important to know that today anyone who wants to undergo therapy can do it, regardless of their income.
In case of constrained circumstances, you can contact an institute where psychotherapy is taught. Many of them have free psychotherapeutic assistance programs. At the same time, trainees supervise the work of the psychotherapist (they also comply with confidentiality policy). The client pays for help not with money but with the fact that it provides young psychologists with the opportunity to learn, watching the work of the master. ”
There are also state psychological centers for women, families, adolescents and vocational guidance centers, where counseling is free.
Should I pay for missed sessions?
Probably, yes. For most psychoanalysts and some psychotherapists, missed sessions are payable if you do not report that you will not come within 24 hours or 48 hours. Such an agreement strengthens the client’s responsibility for their actions. Be sure to discuss this with your analyst.
Free = useless?
Will the therapy be effective if the client does not pay the specialist? The key point here is the professionalism of the therapist. The psychotherapist must maintain a professional position without becoming a rescuer or friend. A specialist must be aware of what he or she wants from this work, what bonuses he or she receives and whether it is useful for the client.
The psychotherapy that the insurance company pays for is likely to be short-term. But for deep work, an alliance between the therapist and the client is needed, third parties must not interfere, especially those whose interests may not coincide with the interests of the client. It would be good for the client to pay the money himself and receive a refund from the social insurance system. Those who repeatedly go to a psychotherapist in a clinic or participate in educational psychotherapeutic programs, apparently, are already strongly motivated for positive changes in their lives and therefore have a chance to achieve them.
Category: General
Tags: lifestyle, Mental Health, mental well-being, psychology, psychotherapy