Do you expect to be in therapy forever?

I expect to be in therapy for a very long time. Maybe forever. I am trying not to be ashamed about this.

I am beginning to realize that I am impaired in severe ways by things that have happened to me and the way my brain has responded (i.e., PTSD). A lot of things that are relatively easy for other people, like trusting friends and family or believing they are generally good people, are really challenging for me. So I go to therapy to try to learn these things. But I am going very slowly.

When I first sought help, I figured I'd be in and out in six months. After several years, I realize I am just at the tip of the iceberg. Therapy has made massive changes to me and the way I see myself and my life, and I'm excited by the idea that there are more changes to make. I'm hopeful that life can be better than this, and if therapy gets me there, then I'm grateful for it.

I have been in therapy with the same therapist for 18 years. There are times when I have seen her once a month or every six weeks, but currently I see her every week. I feel like my life is so much richer knowing her. I have made so much progress in my life working with her. She is like a mother to me. Her presence in my life undoubtedly has made a positive impact not only on me but on my relationship with my husband and my children. So YEAH I will work with her probably until she retires. She is 65 but plans to keep on working in her private practice. I absolutely cannot imagine working with anyone but her.

Mine is 75. She says she isn't planning to retire. She says she can't imagine what she would do if she retired. My hope is that even if she does retire, she will still let me see her every now and then. I do worry about her, even though her health seems fine, and she has more energy than I do.

-Far

I don't want to be in therapy forever. I want to get to a point where I have other intimate sustaining relationships that make it possible for me to comfortably say "I don't need to do this any more," to my therapist. Unfortunately that day is a ways away, and there are times when I despair of ever getting there...

Wow-what a wide range of views we have!

I think I fall on the same spectrum as Stumpy. I have been with T for 3 years now and have finally given myself permission to not feel guilty that I go twice a week. The first thing that popped into my head was that well, when you get married you say it's forever so why not therapy? And no, that is not a romantic crush speaking (although I have that too sometimes.) It was a statement about relationships. I think of therapy as where I really learned how to be in an intimate relationship with someone. At this point, T knows me better than my mother did for sure. My relationships with H and kids and everyone have greatly improved because of my relationship with T. So, why not stay forever? I imagine at some point I won't need to go twice a week but even if I do, then that's okay. Like Stumpy's T, my T said I can get rid of him when I'm ready. And I am nowhere near ready. In fact, one of my biggest fears is that he'll retire at some point and abandon me. Oy.

I expect to be in therapy for as long as it is helpful. So far, it has been life saving. I have no crystal ball for the future. And my goal is one day at a time.

It would be so great to form intimate relationships with other outside of therapy, and have that connection 24/7. This is one of my goals that i am working on. While I value my relationship with T and i will see her for as long as i need to, she is just a stepping stone