This is one of the first questions people ask me, and it's a legitimate one: before starting something, you want to know what you're getting into. The honest answer is that there is no standard duration — but that doesn't mean nothing precise can be said.
What it depends on
- The nature of the difficulty. A recent, circumscribed crisis requires different timing than a way of functioning that has been established over years.
- The goals. Reducing the symptoms of a panic attack is different from changing a way of being in relationships.
- How long the situation has lasted. A problem that has been present for twenty years rarely resolves itself in six sessions.
- The frequency of sessions and the continuity with which it can be maintained.
- The resources already available: relational network, living conditions, the ability to stay with one's own emotions.
Realistic orders of magnitude
Without promising numbers that no one can guarantee, some reference points help to get oriented.
A focused consultation, to clarify a situation or make a decision, can be completed in a few sessions.
A course of therapy for a circumscribed problem — anxiety linked to a specific situation, stress management, processing an event — is generally measured in months.
Work on established relational patterns, on traumatic experiences, or on long-standing difficulties requires more time, and proceeds in phases with periodic check-ins.
One constant fact: the first perceptible changes often arrive sooner than expected — a few weeks — while consolidation, that is, the point at which the change holds even under stress, takes much longer. This is the phase in which one is most tempted to quit.
How often
Usually one starts with a weekly session, which allows continuity to be built without losing the thread between one session and the next. As the work progresses, the frequency can become less frequent. Each session lasts about fifty minutes.
How it is decided when to conclude
The conclusion doesn't come when one "feels good" in absolute terms, but when the agreed goals have been reached and the person has their own tools to face what comes next. It is decided together, and it is prepared for: the closing of a course of therapy is itself a phase of the work, not an interruption.
You can stop at any time — no one is obligated to continue — but talking about it before doing so is almost always more helpful than disappearing.
A better question than the first
Rather than "how long does it last," the useful question to ask at the first meeting is: at what point will we know if this course of therapy is working? This is a question a therapist should know how to answer.
A journey in Florence or online
I receive clients at my office in Florence, at Via Tommaso Campanella 5, in the Campo di Marte – Coverciano area, and online. If you want to understand what kind of course of therapy would make sense in your situation, you can contact me for an initial introductory session. You can also find out what to expect from the first session.
Se non sai ancora a quale figura rivolgerti, questa pagina ti aiuta a scegliere tra psicologo e psicoterapeuta a Firenze.
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