A lot of therapists require a credit card number on file that they can charge in case you no show or cancel last minute. I’ve never heard of asking to have a month paid up front - that could be a serious hardship if you didn’t have the money. I always pay my therapist a month in advance tho because I don’t want to worry about payment each week. And if I cancelled last minute I would not expect that money back or credited.

My new T charges $35 for a missed session, but his hourly rate is $200. I find it strange that the fee is significantly reduced if you no show.

At the end the of day, they are running a business and have bills to pay as well, so i fully support some kind of system in place to protect them from no shows and last minute cancellations.