Guide
How long does therapy take? An honest answer, without a number.
It is a fair question, especially when you are weighing time, energy and cost. So, how long does therapy take? The honest answer is that it depends on what you are working on. Erin L. Smith, MSPC, LPCC, LPC, does not set a number of sessions before she has met you. What she can do is explain what shapes the length and keep progress out in the open.
01How long does therapy take?
What decides how long therapy takes
Several things influence the length, and most are about your situation rather than the method. The goal matters: easing one specific worry is a different project from changing a pattern that touches every part of your life. So does history. A habit or wound that has been in place for decades often takes more patience than something that started recently. Your current load counts too, since a hard season at work or at home leaves less room for the work. And the strengths and supports you already have can carry more than you might expect.
02How long does therapy take?
Goals give the work a finish line
Erin works especially well with people who come in focused on their goals and intent on finishing treatment. Early on, you set goals together in concrete terms, so you both have a way to tell whether things are moving. Along the way, she asks directly what is helping, gives honest feedback about what she is seeing, and changes the plan when something is not working. That steady check-in keeps the question of length from going unspoken. Where you stand is part of the conversation, not something you have to guess.
03How long does therapy take?
Trauma work is paced on purpose
If you are working through trauma, the early sessions may feel slower than you expected, and that is deliberate. Erin builds the relationship and your footing first, including the things that steady you and a plan for what to do if a session stirs something up. Deeper processing starts once that footing is in place, and the pace stays one you agree to. That can make the first stretch feel longer. The point is to make the harder work more manageable when you get there, rather than rushing into it unprepared.
04How long does therapy take?
Shorter, more focused work
Not every concern needs a long runway. Work on a life transition, such as a move, a new role or the end of a relationship, is short and focused more often than people expect. Erin's solution-focused, strength-based style means building on the coping skills that carried you through earlier changes and applying them here. Accelerated Resolution Therapy, which Erin is certified in, is designed to work quickly on a specific distressing memory, though no number of sessions is promised, and it often runs alongside ongoing talk therapy.
05How long does therapy take?
Finishing well, and coming back
Therapy here is not meant to be permanent. As your goals come into reach, you and Erin talk through what maintenance will look like, which early warning signs are worth watching for, and how to come back if you need to. The ending is something you plan together, on purpose, rather than something that just happens. Returning later is allowed, and it does not mean the earlier work failed. Life brings new seasons, and coming back for a hard one can simply be part of looking after yourself.
What shapes the timeline
- What you want to be different
- How long the pattern has been there
- What else life is asking of you
- The strengths you already bring
You and Erin can talk about pace and progress whenever the question comes up.
Questions
Common questions
- How many sessions of therapy will I need?
- Nobody can give you an honest count up front, and Erin does not try to. Instead, you set concrete goals together and check in on progress as you go, so the length follows the work rather than a number picked on day one.
- How many ART sessions does one memory take?
- It varies. ART is designed to be brief, and some people find a memory settles after as little as one session, while others need several. Both are ordinary. Each ART session runs about 100 minutes, and Erin will tell you plainly what she is seeing as you go.
- Is it a bad sign if therapy takes longer than I hoped?
- Not necessarily. A longer course often reflects the size of the goal or how long a pattern has been in place, not a lack of effort. If something is not helping, Erin will say so and change the plan with you, so time does not pass without a conversation about it.
In Erin's words
What she would say if you called today.
I will not guess at a number of sessions before I have met you. What I will do is set goals with you in concrete terms, ask what is helping, and give you honest feedback about what I am seeing. When your goals are met, we plan together how you finish well.
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Book a consultation with Erin
Fifteen minutes by telehealth, at no charge. You can describe what is going on, ask how Erin works, and decide afterward whether to book a first session. Scheduling opens in her secure SimplePractice portal.
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