What to Expect in Your First Therapy Session

Not knowing what to expect is one of the biggest reasons people put off booking a first session. Here’s what actually happens, so there are fewer unknowns going in.

Before the session

You’ll usually fill out a short intake form: basic contact information, your consent to treatment and its confidentiality limits, and a service agreement outlining fees and policies. That’s it. There’s no essay question asking you to explain what’s bringing you in ahead of time; that’s part of the conversation we have together, not paperwork.

During the first session

You choose whether your first session is 60 or 90 minutes when you book. This is your intake assessment appointment. We’ll go through your history and some biopsychosocial questions, things like your health, relationships, work, and what’s going on for you right now, so we can start building a full picture of your situation. Nothing needs to get touched in detail until you’re ready and resourced to go there. You don’t need to have it all figured out going in; naming that you’re not sure is a completely normal place to start.

What it isn’t

It isn’t advice delivered from a script, and it isn’t a single conversation where everything about you gets summed up and settled. A good first session feels more like an unusually focused, honest conversation with someone whose job is to actually listen and start understanding your particular situation.

How to prepare

Nothing is necessary. We’ll walk through it together; there’s nothing you need to prepare or figure out on your own beforehand.

After the first session

Sometimes one session is enough to get a clear sense of where to start. Sometimes the assessment phase continues a little longer, over a couple of sessions. Either way, we work toward building a clearer picture of what’s going on and what would help, and I like to introduce regulating techniques as early as that first session, so you’re leaving with something practical to use, not just having talked.

My first sessions

Mine run 60 or 90 minutes, your choice, in English, Spanish, or both. If you’d rather talk before committing to a full session, I also offer an optional free 20-minute consultation.