Rio, I think going to the university therapist for 10 sessions or less and working on a defined problem could be helpful, and help lead you to a solution with a longer term therapy with a different provider. It seems like a stumbling block for you toward getting into therapy is whether to tell your parents, how to deal with their reaction, and how to get the therapy paid for. I think these issues could be worked on with the short term university therapist, who could help you come up with an action plan that will work for you.

What kind of insurance do you have? Will it pay for therapy? Or is therapy not covered at all or only partially? Maybe these questions don't apply since you are in Scotland. I'm just wondering if you could at least pay partly the cost of therapy, perhaps reimbursing your parents or paying the therapist directly.

I think it is important that you solve the issue of how to handle your parents. If they think that therapy doesn't work because you need to go back, explain to them that is not the case. If it is important to you that they not hold these negative views of therapy and you, then set them straight. And if they still don't believe you, well, you tried, and move on. I know that's very hard to do, but is part of the process of separating from your parents, and I think this kind of thing would be right up the alley of a university therapist used to working with young adults.

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when I got to the session, near the start he told me "this will be our last session" - no "what do you think?" or "do you agree?" or anything! I was too stunned to say anything, so that was our last session.

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">Rio, I have always remembered your story because it was right around the time that I got my teenage daughter to begin seeing a therapist (in March 2007). There are times I wonder if therapy is helping her and if she should quit, and there are times she has told me she wants to quit. I keep your story in the back of my mind, as I don't want to force a similar painful situation on my daughter. Things are going pretty well with her therapist now, she doesn't tell me she wants to quit anymore, and I believe she is benefiting. I do wonder sometimes when will this end? How will it become evident when it should end?