Most people put off the first appointment far longer than they intended. Not because they have changed their mind, but because a first session is an unknown, and unknowns are exactly the thing anxiety is best at inflating.
So here is the plain version of what happens.
You will not be asked to relive anything
This is the fear I hear most, particularly from people carrying trauma. A first session is not an excavation. It is a conversation about where you are now and what you would like to be different.
You decide what is said and when. If a question lands somewhere you are not ready to go, you can say so, and we move on. That is not evasion — knowing your own limits is useful clinical information.
The structure
A first appointment is an initial clinical intake. In practice that means four things, roughly in this order:
- Your history — what has happened, what has helped before, what has not
- Your questions — about me, about how I work, about anything at all
- Your intentions — what brought you to book, in your own words
- Goal setting — what we will actually work toward
The assessment part sounds more clinical than it feels. It is mostly a conversation.
It is also your assessment of me
This is the part people forget. You are deciding whether I am someone you can work with. Fit matters more than credentials, and you are allowed to conclude that it is not there.
If it is not a fit, saying so is not rude. It is the single most useful thing you can do for your own treatment.
If we are not right for each other, I would rather help you find someone who is than have you spend six sessions being polite.
Practical details
- Sessions run 53 to 60 minutes
- Everything is by secure video, so you can be at home
- Paperwork is completed electronically beforehand — nothing to fill in on the day
- You do not need to prepare anything or bring notes
If you are still not sure
You are welcome to call or email with questions before booking. There is no obligation, and asking questions is not wasting anyone's time.
The first step really is smaller than it feels.