How long does psychotherapy usually take?
As previously stated, it is important to view psychotherapy as an educational experience, and every worthwhile educational pursuit requires a significant amount of both time and effort. Psychotherapy can be considered to be successfully completed whenever you and your therapist feel you have accomplished your individual goals. One can always benefit from continued psychotherapy, just as one can potentially benefit from additional education of any type. Some people choose to stop their formal education upon graduating from high school; others wish to pursue a college degree, while a few have goals that are not satisfied until they have obtained a masters or doctorate. Your goals should be discussed with your therapist, but the decision to terminate psychotherapy is ultimately your own. Many choose to terminate psychotherapy and return later to review what they have learned or to apply their knowledge to new situations.
