Therapy Frequency & Capacity: A Guide for When You’re Feeling Stretched
- Dr. Jenny Turner
- Sep 26
- 7 min read
If you're currently exploring your options, for engaging in some therapy, and you're thinking:“Part of me really wants to commit to weekly therapy… but I just don’t know if I can manage it right now,” — please know this: You are not alone.
For many of the mothers I work with — especially those in midlife — therapy can feel like just one more thing to try and fit into a life that already feels like it is bursting-at-the-seams.
Between the constant giving, the endless responsibilities, and the emotional labour that no one sees, it can feel impossible to find space for yourself at all, let alone commit to something ongoing, and weekly.
It is also common for finances to be cited as a significant barrier to having weekly sessions of therapy too, and I very much understand that - Therapy can indeed be a signficant financial investment, as a well as an investment of time, attention and energy.
If any of this feels familiar to you - I want you to know is this:
Any conversations, with a therapist, about therapy frequency should always begin with where you are — with what is safest, most supportive, and most realistic for you right now. This blog takes you through some of the conversations we will have, about therapy frequency, if you reach out to enquire about my services.
Honouring Your Capacity, While Holding Space for Your Needs
When you reach out to me, we will gently explore:
What your emotional and therapeutic needs are
What rhythm of therapy feels possible at this stage in your life
What preferences or limitations you’re working within (time, energy, financial resources)
And what current options I can offer within my practice structure
This is a collaborative process. You will never be forced into a session frequency that doesn’t feel manageable for you — but we will also have honest, informed conversations about what different rhythms can offer you, and where their limitations* may lie
(*especially if you have come into therapy to process any trauma. I wrote recently about the need for weekly sessions to support trauma healing here).
A Note on My Practice Structure
In the interest of transparency: The majority of my diary is reserved for weekly therapy clients.This is because I have found, again and again, that weekly therapy offers the depth, consistency, and emotional containment that trauma-informed work really needs.
And, in my experience, this deeper work (which weekly therapy facilitates) tends to be incredibly valuable to the specific population of clients I work with. That is: Mums in midlife, who have lived with chronic anxiety and/or a sense of low self-worth for too long, and who are feeling overwhelmed or burnout from trying to be 'everything to everyone', while their own needs tend to keep falling to the bottom of the pile.
That said, I do hold a limited number of spaces for clients where fortnightly work feels most appropriate and safe, based on our shared understanding of their goals and current capacity. These slots tend to be reserved for clients who have done a series of weekly sessions, and have entered a more 'maintenance phase' of their healing journey.
If we discover that I’m not able to offer the session structure you’re looking for right now, please know that I will always support you in finding someone who can. I often refer clients to other trusted professionals with similar specialisms to mine, and I’m always happy to help you find the right fit — for you.
This Is About Empowered Choice — Not Shame or Pressure
This is your therapy journey. The decision around frequency is not about ticking a box or meeting anyone else’s expectations. What matters most is that you feel informed, empowered and supported to choose what feels right for you at this moment in your life.
Sometimes weekly therapy will be the right next step. Sometimes fortnightly might be the best rhythm for now. Sometimes, it’s not about starting therapy right away at all... Sometimes it’s about planting a seed of intention, and coming back when the time is right - this option can also be useful if financial aspects are a concern (more on this below).
Whatever your decision, you deserve support that honours both your inner world and your real-life circumstances. I will never make you feel bad for how much (or how little) you feel able to do, right now.
My role is to meet you where you are — with honesty, compassion, and care.
Ready to Talk About What Might Work for You?
If you're unsure about what frequency of therapy is right for you — or whether you’re ready to begin at all — please feel free to get in touch.
I always offer a no-commitment-necessary, one-off, initial appointment to prospective, potential clients, in the first instance. Within this context, we can absolutely have an open conversation about your needs, and we can explore objectively whether I might be the right fit for you, or not.
So - please know that you don’t have to have it all figured out, at the outset - I can absolutely help you explore what options might work for you, and what options might not.
Budgeting for Weekly Therapy: It’s Okay to Wait Until You’re Ready
If finances are a significant barrier for you right now, it’s absolutely okay to pause and take some time to plan or budget for therapy that feels truly supportive — rather than jumping into something that doesn't fully meet your needs. In fact, waiting until you’re able to affordably access weekly therapy (even for a defined period of time) can often be more beneficial and cost-effective in the long run than starting with a rhythm that feels fragmented, or doesn’t allow for deeper work.
Lets' use a hypothetical example here:
You've found a therapist you think will be a good fit for you, but you know that you can only currently afford 2 sessions per month (based on their fees) - So you request fortnightly sessions for this reason, which makes sense. But then you say to your new therapist that you'd really like to process your birth trauma* in your therapy (*for example, or perhaps any other form of trauma, such as childhood emotional neglect, etc.) and so your therapist suggests that weekly therapy would probably be a far more safe, and more effective approach for you. In this instance, it might make sense for you to delay starting therapy if you want to work with this therapist - this would give you the opportunity to pro-actively save the money you would have been spending on fortnightly sessions, so that you can go on to have a more effective (and therefore also more cost effective) series of weekly sessions of therapy, without getting into debt.
It’s Also Always Okay to Choose a Different Therapist:
The other thing to say, if finances are a concern for you, is that not all therapists charge the same amount per session - just off the top of my mind, I'm aware that prices for therapy typically range from around £70/hour up to £300/hour (or even more in some cases).
Some therapists also allow you to fund your sessions through your insurance, while others (like me) work with self-funding clients. In some cases, therapists also work alongside charities to provide low-cost options, and therapists who are in training are often more affordable too (while also usually being very well supervised, and knowledgeable, due to their immersion in their learning, at that time in their career - On a personal note, my first experience of talking therapy was with a very low-cost psychotherapist-in-training and it was totally safe, extremely effective and positively life-changing for me).
If you are looking for a therapis, there truly are a huge array of options, at a variety of price points - there is really never a need to feel 'trapped' into the offer of one therapist, if what they are offering you doesn't work for you.
I absolutely celebrate all of my potential clients 'shopping around' for a therapist. I would always suggest you find a therapist who is trained in a specialism that means they can best support you, as well as one who has a fee that is within your financial capacity.
That might be me, or it might be a different therapist - and that is entirely okay.
It is also important for me to again be transparent here too: Some professionals have a different take on the weekly session vs fortnightly sessions debate (this blog is written only from my own perspective, based on my experience of training, supporting the clients I have supported, and my current capacity), so it's always worth exploring your options with various therapists, if you are feeling very sure that a fortnightly structure is the best option for you.
Summary:
Therapy is an investment — financially yes, but also emotionally, mentally, and energetically too — and it’s an investment that is therefore worth approaching with intention, thoughtfulness, curiosity about all the options, and care.
I wholeheartedly respect and support your decision to begin therapy only when you feel ready, and when you feel resourced to do so, in a way that honours your healing journey.
Related blog posts, also written by me, Dr. Jenny Turner:
I'm Dr. Jenny Turner, Clinical Psychologist, Mum and founder of Mind Body Soul Psychology - a specialist, trauma-informed, private psychology service for mothers in midlife - I can help you heal from trauma, and finally transform your relationhsip to your own anxieties, shame, guilt, rage and/or overwhelm to enrich your life & relationships.
I offer online appointments to women based all over the UK, and I offer in-person appointments in Ripon, North Yorkshire - click here to find out more: www.mindbodysoulpsychology.co.uk
You might also like to follow me on Instagram, @drjennypsychologist , or sign up to my Substack newsletter for regular moments of solidarity in the challenges of this midlife mothering journey, as well as compassion & inspirations for guilt-free self-care, at this time of life.
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