If you’ve started receiving online therapy with us, you’re able to change your therapist if you feel like this is something that’s right for you. However, we do ask that you go through a few steps when it comes to working with your therapist, before making a final decision.
Step one - learn about your therapist
Prior to starting online therapy with us, we would advise that you review your chosen therapist’s online biography in our specialists section, and feel free to contact them directly with any initial queries. We want you to feel happy and comfortable with your decision and encourage you to take your time with this to make sure you’ve selected a therapist that feels like the right fit for you.
Step two - understand that your first session will be a ‘getting to know you’ session
It’s important to recognise that your first therapy session will be an assessment session, where your therapist will explore your current mental state and the difficulties you’re facing. It’s a chance for you and your therapist to get to know each other a bit better and for you to feel comfortable around them. Therefore, you don’t need to be concerned if you haven’t started working through therapy techniques straightaway – this will come in time and will be even more effective because you’ve started building a therapeutic relationship with your therapist.
Talk to your therapist about your concerns
Before changing therapists, we would encourage you to share any concerns that you have with your current therapist. This means you’ll have the chance to work through these concerns together in your sessions before making any final decisions. This is important because sometimes the concerns or issues you’re experiencing are related to the emotional challenges you’re going through. Talking these through can be an effective part of your therapy, empowering you to move forwards with your current therapist in a positive way.
If, for whatever reason, you don’t feel able to talk to your therapist about your concerns, you can speak to a manager instead. They’ll be able to help you manage the situation in the best way. In order to be put in touch with a manager, you can email us at prioryconnecthelp@priorygroup.com, giving a brief description of your concerns, and we’ll get back to you.
Your therapy, your choice
Ultimately, we do like to do what we can to minimise the need for patients to change therapists. We have your best interests at heart and through experience, we know that disruptions to therapy can be detrimental to your recovery and wellbeing. In addition, as outlined above, talking about your concerns with your therapist can actually lead to a better and more effective therapeutic relationship, empowering you to face your psychological issues and move forwards. Other times, it’s simply a case of ‘finding your feet’ in therapy and giving yourself and your therapist the chance to connect.
Having said that, you’re the one going through therapy and therefore, it’s completely your choice. If you’ve gone through the above steps and still feel that you would like to change therapist, this is absolutely something that we can accommodate – just get in touch with us. Although you don’t have to give a reason or participate in your next therapy session, we would ask that you let your therapist know that you’re planning to change therapist. This is courteous, best practice and something that we encourage.
