Thread: Therapy...

Ask your therapist is there is anyone in town she can recommend that uses a sliding fee scale or is free. I know at the community clinic where I live you can see someone for as little as $10-$25/mo and sometimes for free.
You could also talk to them about only going once every two weeks and getting homework for the in between times. Most therapists are willing to work with you if they are helping and you can't afford them.

Originally Posted by sperosi

well if it helps you should try to continue to go, or find something that is a good replacement.

is there something specific about your therapist, or is it just being able to vent?

Sperosi,

She seems to get me. She is younger, and we've already been meeting for about 7-8 times so she knows all the history, etc. She also does a good job of asking me things that maybe either:

1) my friends wouldn't think to ask OR
2) that they might be afraid would be a bit too personal/standoffish...

I also like that she's an outsider. Obviously, my friends love me and generally don't want to hurt my feelings so I don't think we really psychoanalyze each other and delve into things the way someone does going to therapy...

Originally Posted by KMonte85

I really wouldn't advise you to stop going to therapy if you're benefiting from seeing her!

Are there other places where you could cut down costs, budget a bit? Maybe shopping at low cost grocery stores (do you have Aldi's in KY?) Or cutting back on eating out? Things like that... just something that could give you some extra money to put towards bills and the like.

Could you work out a payment plan with your therapist? Sometimes they can provide their services at reduced cost... you could try asking her what options they have.

KM, She doesn't provide payment plans and the fees are due at the time of service. She's not the most pricey one around, but her visits are still close to $100/hr...

We have cheaper grocery stores like Aldi, but not close to my house and they aren't normally open late at night when I have to do my shopping. I also don't eat out hardly at all anymore. Maybe once a week. John and I go out sometimes, but he usually pays. I might pick up coffee for us or something small like that, but I would feel bad not helping at all.

I've also cut out shopping which is my favorite thing ever I haven't been to a store or mall to buy clothes or the like since before Christmas...

She seemed to think when I started that my issues weren't so intense that i needed to come often so I've been going about every 3 weeks (with my schedule it also is easier because I just don't have time every week)... I just originally budgeted thinking it was going to be a now and then thing... Here I am almost $1,000 in and I'm wondering if there might be alternatives...

well maybe there are alternatives, but i wouldnt stop until i had one that i had tried and knew was working.

is less frequently an option?

also, a real & close friend wouldnt mind asking you the hard questions f thats what you needed.

Originally Posted by sperosi

well maybe there are alternatives, but i wouldnt stop until i had one that i had tried and knew was working.

is less frequently an option?

also, a real & close friend wouldnt mind asking you the hard questions f thats what you needed.

I was going like every 7-10 days at first for the first 4 or 5 visits. Now I only go like once every 3 weeks. I mean, I guess I could make it once a month but it's hard to hit on what all has happened in that time frame. Maybe I should just suck it up and keep going for a while longer at a regularish rate. at least until something else seems like an option..

On the friend thing, I do have people that ask hard questions but I think sometimes it's easier coming from someone who doesn't know anything but the facts... has no attachment overly to you or the other people, ya know? And I feel like the therapists have been trained to word things in a way to make you think about things from a different angle than other people might think.

For the next few visits, pay attention to what the therapist says and how she words her questions and when she asks questions. A lot of times, this is all stuff we can ask ourselves if we are really paying attention to what we are saying.

Do you ever sit alone and go through your thoughts as if you are listening to someone else tell you? That helps me, I can be more objective.