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How long does it take to see results in therapy? This is an important and complex question that I get pretty often, so I wanted to take a moment to explore it a bit here.
The long answer: Ultimately, healing is a lifelong process, and whether we are in counselling or not, the work of improving and maintaining our mental health is never truly “done”. We all need to take action every day to be well, and counselling is just one piece of that puzzle.
The short answer: Generally, 3-4 months of counselling is a minimum to see sustained progress, but that is not a hard and fast rule by any means.
There are a number of factors that impact the length of time therapy can take, which I’ll describe below.
Goals
Every person entering therapy has different goals, and some goals are more involved and will take more time than others. For example, someone who has experienced complex trauma and wants to do deeper healing work may expect to work on this goal for a number of years. Conversely, someone who just wants to decrease anxiety may just need to be in therapy for a few months.
That being said, sometimes goals evolve and new things uncover themselves as we go along - for example, someone coming for anxiety may decide that rather than just manage symptoms, they want to do the deeper work of exploring and working with the root causes of the anxiety. This, of course, will take longer!
Ultimately, it’s important to know that you are in the driver’s seat here. You get to choose what is worked on in therapy, and you get to choose when you want to stop coming.
Type of Therapy
The type of therapy you receive is going to depend on your goals, preferences, and needs - but will also impact the length of treatment. For example, in trauma therapy - EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) is going to likely take less time than depth psychoanalysis would. Modalities like CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) and DBT (dialectical behavioural therapy) may be better suited to shorter-term therapy than something like a somatic or parts-work approach.
Personally, I think the quickest approach is the one that works for you. There is no use doing something that doesn’t feel like a good fit (even if it’s supposed to “take less time”) and then realize that it’s not working and have to start at square one. It is important that you are feeling good about the treatment direction, and that if you aren’t - you communicate that to your counsellor!
Therapist Fit
Research tells us that the therapeutic relationship is actually the #1 most important factor when it comes to treatment effectiveness. So this is something to take seriously when you are looking for a therapist and considering the length of time therapy may take!
If there is an option to do a 20 minute consult with a counsellor before meeting them, I recommend doing that.
When you meet a counsellor, notice if you feel like you ‘click’ with them. Do you like their approach, do you like them? Do you feel like they are someone you could be comfortable opening up to? Trust your gut feeling here - and if they are not a good fit, keep on looking!
Personal Factors
Not surprisingly, there are many factors in your life that will impact how long therapy takes. These include things like: your personal readiness for counselling, ability to commit to regular sessions, level of stability and safety in your life, level of support in your life, and more.
It stands to reason that if you have a decent amount of stability in your life, with good social support and a desire to attend regular weekly or biweekly sessions - you will see progress more quickly than if you are ambivalent about going to counselling and experiencing a lot of instability in your daily life.
That’s not to say it isn’t possible to see progress even if you aren’t feeling like you have a lot of stability or support. If that’s the case, it may be that it will be important for you and your counsellor to help you find some stability and support before doing any deeper work, which is a valuable use of time.
Overall, the amount of time therapy takes is influenced by a variety of factors. Some of the factors that are most important in effective therapy are ensuring a good fit between you and your therapist, ensuring that you can commit to regular sessions, and ensuring you are feeling good about the treatment direction. These are critical things to keep in mind as you begin working with someone!
If you are looking for counselling in person in Vernon, or online across British Columbia, feel free to reach out to me at charlotte@relateandrestore.ca or book a free consultation here.