About Paying For Psychotherapy: How Much Does It Cost And Why?

2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43

Psychotherapy is, on the one hand, a fairly deep human relationship, on the other, a field of activity and services. This is a job for which money is paid, and money is included in the process of helping the client and plays the role of a psychotherapeutic factor: even for a low-income person, it is important to contribute as much as possible for the sake of their changes

For an effective psychotherapeutic relationship, the issue of money - like other issues of the psychotherapeutic contract - must be clearly discussed from the very beginning: this sets boundaries (and in order for psychotherapy to be successful, the optimal distance between the client and the therapist is necessary, which is precisely created by the fact that that the client pays for psychotherapy); it sets me up for work (it’s work, not a miracle, “adoption” or “something that will be done to me”) and brings many other benefits to the client.

The answer to the question "what does the psychotherapist take money for?" simple: for his professional work. A psychotherapist is not someone who “loves people for money”; he receives payment not for "help" or "compassion" (this can be given by friends or relatives), but for his professional work, in which he applies skills, techniques, skills; because he knows what to do and knows how to do it.

A psychotherapeutic space is a place where you can discuss any topic that worries the client. And since the topic of money (no matter how low or, on the contrary, super important it may not be felt) plays a significant role in our life (moreover, regardless of whether we are fixed on money or have chosen the path of absolute non-acquisitiveness), it is not only possible to talk about it within the framework of psychotherapy but also need to speak.

Moreover, it is most important to discuss the topic of money in the framework of psychotherapy for those people for whom money is, for one reason or another, a “sore spot”. For example, a person is generally stingy. Or - on the contrary - he, earning good money, compulsively squanders money and therefore lives much worse than he could. Or the client is constantly afraid of being deceived; or maybe he is, in fact, regularly deceived. Or his favorite scenario is trying to "buy a relationship." Or a person with high qualifications and extensive work experience constantly earns less than he really is, or even works for minimal amounts or even free of charge. Or the client thinks he cannot spend money on himself. Or he can spend on himself, but only on "necessary" (for example, health or education, but not on rest, or improving the quality of life, or psychotherapy).

All of these (and much more) are "money themes".

And when discussing payment for psychotherapy with a client, they usually pop up, a competent psychotherapist pulls them out. So the first conversation about payment is already the thread by which you can unwind the tangle of the client's internal problems, this is already a step towards his - the client's - benefit. The client's responsibility lies in the fact that he must decide whether these monetary conditions suit him or not.

Why is it so pitiful to pay for psychotherapy?

Not all cases are about greed or the level of income of potential clients. Perhaps the main idea about paying for psychotherapy is this: money is usually not about money. Perhaps the main reason why the thought of paying for future (not yet begun) psychotherapy causes an inner protest in a person is fear.

Fear of giving money "for nothing", more precisely, for "nothing". For quackery, idle chatter, at best for "just talking", at worst, for manipulating his own vulnerable psyche.

No wonder. After all, psychotherapy is a commodity that you can neither taste nor touch with your hands; it is a paid service and will not require a free sample or return.

The anxiety of being deceived, miscalculating, missing is very high here. Moreover, such cases also happen: there is a risk of wasting money in vain, getting to a low-quality specialist or to a high-quality one, but one that is not suitable for this particular client. The fear of giving money for something that is not at all valuable is also due to the seeming simplicity of psychotherapy (often the reaction to the first meeting with a psychotherapist or a counselor psychologist looks like “this is all? But where is the miracle ?!”) and its duration (psychotherapy disappoints, does not meet expectations is unrealistic quick success).

Nowadays, one often gets acquainted with the work of a psychotherapist through films about psychoanalysts (without even suspecting that a psychologist and a psychotherapist, a psychoanalyst are far from the same thing), every second person believes that "he himself is well versed in psychology." Taking their compassion (or the ability to manipulate, or the ability to give good advice) for the innate gift of a psychologist, having superficial knowledge obtained from books or half-year courses (but by no means skills, techniques, and other base necessary for psychological practice), people often refer to psychotherapy with the setting “I can do it myself”. And who wants to pay someone else for something that you can do just fine?

Why does a psychotherapist need it? What does a psychotherapist take money for?

It is difficult to dispute that a normal person, no matter how much he loves his job, is interested in receiving a salary. However, there is such a widespread opinion about psychotherapy (mainly people who have never worked with a psychotherapist) that this is not a job at all: “Why take money here? It's just a conversation!"

Often people who say this do not take into account the following: the psychotherapist really works every minute of this time.

He cannot switch, take a smoke break, eat, play solitaire, read jokes or talk on the phone. He cannot even just “think about something else”, be lazy. This is truly an hourly rate.

And more than that: all this hour it should be! fully included in the other person, being present and empathizing with him, and - often - at the same moment, simultaneously doing significant analytical work.

Even this “just listening” is a work in itself: few of the clients tell something pleasant. Usually people share bad events and bitter, negative feelings of very high intensity (affects, "overwhelming" feelings), which are difficult to bear in everyday life: we have all come across the fact that from a person in acute or prolonged grief, the moment when all its sharp corners came out, I want to stay away.

Finally, psychotherapy is a technical job that uses specialized knowledge and skills. This is an action that, among other things, also includes a conversation according to certain rules.

For example, this is work with resistance and defenses, which consists in, on the one hand, bypassing the defense mechanisms (which sometimes prevent a person from changing for years), and on the other hand, not to break them together with the person. In addition, the psychotherapist gives feedback, helps to find a resource, offers experiments, exercises, tasks, which are not always verbal.

The work of a psychotherapist is a work that requires a great emotional and energetic contribution.

The client pays for psychotherapy, firstly, in order to receive quality services from a professional who is ready to work with him.

Secondly, in order to make the process of psychotherapy useful for oneself.

Payment and symmetry i

Psychotherapy is an unusual relationship. Attention, the focus of this relationship is on one person - the client. On his feelings, problems, history, goals, desires and opportunities. Or on his contact with a psychotherapist, on how exactly he contacts. This is a relationship for the benefit of the client and focused on his benefit.

The therapist can talk about himself, show his presence, communicate his feelings, reactions and experiences, but exactly to the extent that he believes that this contributes to the promotion of the client and his benefits (and not in order to "share" or remember that “I also had something interesting” or “important”).

And in such a deliberately asymmetric situation, in order for such a relationship to remain healthy, the client has to pay with something: because when in an ordinary conversation, in ordinary relationships, one person is the focus all the time, then this is use. That is, the situation is unethical and unhealthy, and there is no place for such a situation in psychotherapy. The fee in this case helps to align the balance.

Payment and responsibility for the process

Responsibility for the psychotherapy process exists on both sides. The responsibility of the psychotherapist is that he must be a professional (know his business) and comply with ethical principles in relation to his clients.

The client assumes responsibility for what he pays, attends meetings on time and for his own development.

Moreover, the responsibility of the client is an indicator of his mental health. As W. Glosser said, "Mental health is a responsible and realistic perception of the world." The result of long-term psychotherapy is, among other things, a person's acceptance of the authorship of his life and responsibility for this authorship.

Payment and boundaries

In order for psychotherapy to be successful, an optimal distance between the client and the psychotherapist is necessary, which is established, among other things, by the fact that the client pays for psychotherapy. It tunes in to work (specifically for work, not for a miracle, "adoption" or "something that will be done to me").

Payment and security

When two people are in a relationship and interact, each of them gives something and receives something. Even if a person says that he does not receive anything, but only gives, this is not entirely true: as a rule, if you ask in more detail, he gets satisfaction, self-affirmation, a sense of his own worth, or something else. However, practice shows that people of any profession who constantly work for free or for an amount that does not compensate for their efforts, in the overwhelming majority of cases, tension begins to accumulate, even if the work itself brings the joy of creativity and satisfaction. This accumulated tension significantly reduces motivation and performance.

Therefore, the safest relationship for a client is when a psychotherapist loves his job (only money is not enough for the quality of work) and receives a decent payment for it.

There is another reason why paid psychotherapy is safer for a client: when a person does not work for money, you do not know what he is working for. What problems does he “act out” or solve by working with you, what does he strive for?

Payment and motivation

The intention is not enough to show once, it must be supported. It's difficult.

There are things that work to support your own intention, make it easier to implement. These include efforts already made.

"People are always better at accepting the knowledge and change they have had to pay for." This can be refuted a hundred times, but the time of a paid consultation is usually used more efficiently than a free one. And what was discussed or realized for money is almost always more difficult to be repressed. To change something in your life, you need to make an effort, including money. Therefore, psychotherapy should be paid for by a tangible amount for the client, which depends on the level of his well-being.

Why is professionalism worth so much?

Is it possible to meet a good specialist among those who take less?

Yes, it happens. But rarely.

Because usually a professional is expensive.

among other things, money is a certain qualification. For example, it prevents people who are driven by banal curiosity from coming to therapy.

It helps weed out low motivated clients: those who were “persuaded to go”; who came in order to correct someone else (wife, husband, child), and not to work on themselves. Or those who came to prove to themselves that "it doesn't help."

This qualification is often needed also because the psychotherapist's capabilities are often limited.

I talked above about what emotional and intellectual calculations, what kind of concentration the process of psychotherapy requires.

Not every psychotherapist can (even if he really wants to) receive clients at home. Therefore, the price often depends on the rental of the premises.

Finally, maintaining a professional form, as well as increasing professionalism, also cost money.

To be a good psychotherapist, it is not enough to graduate from medical school five, ten or twenty years ago and undergo a specialization in psychotherapy. This profession requires constant work on oneself and further training, namely: undergoing personal individual and group psychotherapy, training in one or more areas of psychotherapy, undergoing supervision, certification in the profession, etc.

As a result. Whether psychotherapy is expensive for you, or cheap, I don’t presume to judge. Each person determines his readiness for the price, how much he is ready to give for an hour of someone else's work. And perhaps willingness for price is willingness for the value you are about to get.