I wish I had a therapist. I can't afford one, even on a sliding scale. Our insurance deductible is $7500, and I had to take an amulance ($928 bill), get surgery (over $1800), and stay in the hospital 6 days (God knows the cost of that). I have an expensive upper endoscopy procedure coming up. It's all I can do to afford the pdoc. Oh, and to add to our bad luck, our air conditioning went out. We live near Houston, TX and air conditioning is a must. Fixing that cost over $2500. We just barely have any money in the bank at all.

Also, and I'm sure this colors my view of therapists, over the 20 years I've been in the mental health system, I must have seen over 10 therapists and never clicked with one. I can't just go out there trying on therapists like you do new shoes; I can't afford it. Our only income comes from my husband, who teaches high school physics, and they overwork and underpay teachers (though of course, they pay them enough I can't qualify for any sort of disability or help with medical bills). If I can afford a therapist, I have no clue how to go about finding one I will like, and I hate going over all the old baggage again & again with new therapists.