Sometimes, "getting something out of therapy" was just having some time to myself with a person who was quite willing to just be there. We didn't always have big, profound sessions where I left feeling like something major happened. And that was okay. Sometimes I actually didn't want anything big to happen because, like you say, that can be destabilizing. In fact, there were sessions where we intentional made the decision to have a lighter session simply because I knew I was in a place where I just wanted a bit of time to settle with myself. That's what I needed, and my therapist was good with that. We chose easier topics, still productive, but on a lighter scale than like working on history/abuse issues or something. Maybe we just worked on some skills. Maybe we worked on plans for being proactive (and having a lighter session because I was listening to my need for stability WAS being proactive). Things like that.

How about going into therapy today and starting with your need to leave the session feeling pretty stable, but perhaps using the time to work on something more concrete that you can use day-to-day?

It's okay to take a break too. Sometimes that's self-care and perfectly reasonable. I found times when I honestly didn't feel the need to go. I was doing okay and didn't particularly want to go just because I was on the schedule.