I have no particular set number of sessions I recommend clients see me. My happy/successful/satisfied client lengths of therapy have ranged from two sessions to 50 or more, but I would say the typical length I see clients is perhaps 6 to 12 sessions. I actually think there's a lot to be said for seeing a number of different therapists in your life, rather than seeing one person for years. I think different therapists have different insights and strategies to offer, and having a variety of tools to cope with life’s stresses is a good thing.

Of course, some issues may benefit from long-term therapy, especially if the issues you’re working on took many years to develop, as in the case of childhood trauma. But even with larger or ongoing struggles, much can sometimes be done in a short time, especially if what is being done in therapy is learning strategies for dealing with particular problems (like depression or anxiety, for example), or finding new ways of looking at difficult situations (for example, troubled relationships with family members).

The short answer is, you’ll decide how long you want to work with me. You'll also find I'm the sort of person who takes your word for it when you say you're done. (I don't have a Beemer I need to make payments on!) Occasionally clients work with me, then stop for a while, and then come back later when a new issue comes up that they need help with.