How Much Does a Therapist Cost in Connecticut?
Takeaway: The cost of therapy depends on many different factors like location, the type of therapy you’re looking for, and more. However, it’s often worth the investment for many people. Here, we’ll break down the average cost of therapy in Connecticut and help you understand the “why” behind the figures.
"Is it worth it?". I am sure that is a question that runs through every client's mind before committing to a therapist. My name is Amber Young. I own Cope & Calm Counseling in Danbury,CT. We offer online therapy and in person sessions, and treat a variety of conditions such as depression, anxiety, trauma, and more. If you are considering Connecticut therapists, then you will want to know " How much is a therapist in ct?"
Let's discuss what the median session fee for therapy is in Connecticut, explore what goes into that fee, and discuss how to know if you are getting the best value out of your therapeutic experience.
Understanding the average cost of therapy in CT
Throughout the state, cost varies greatly. On average, a 45 or 50 minute session will range from $90-$300.
| City in CT | Average Cost of a Therapy Session |
|---|---|
| Danbury | $70-250 |
| New Haven | $100-300 |
| Greenwich | $150-375 |
| Brookfield | $175-200 |
| Ridgefield | $240-300 |
What influences the cost of therapy in Connecticut?
So much consideration goes into determining a therapist's fee. Factors such as experience level, location, and cost of business have a strong influence on your therapist's fee. For optimal client care, it is important for therapists to be learning new approaches, to have time to collaborate and consult, and to not be over worked and burned out. In order to provide optimal client care, a session fee will reflect that.
Experience
In order to become licensed mental health professional in Connecticut must complete a Masters program. In Connecticut, the program must be Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) approved or aligned. These programs require 48-60 credits in counseling and/or mental health with just under 900 hours of counseling practice counseling. After completing that program they must accrue 3000 hours of counseling as a pre-licensed professional.
There are so many different ways therapy sessions can be structured. As you grow into the profession, you get to hone your skillsets and receive specialized training that allows you to meet the unique needs of your clients. Of course, these trainings require a that mental health counselors make sizable financial investments. This will impact what they need to charge per session. Typically a therapist with a higher fee has received an extensive amount of post graduate training and will therefore have a higher fee.
Mental health professionals are not immune from the impacts of the market, and those of us in private practice have to be mindful of competitor pricing and market influence. We understand that people will not continue to pay our fees if they do not see the value in the mental health treatment. If a therapist has been in mental health care for a while and is able to charge a higher fee, that means that the clients they serve are happy with the treatment that they are receiving and can be an indicator of high quality care.
Workload Balance
In order to ensure that we have the time and energy to be the best therapists possible, we need to have time. In addition to therapy sessions, we also need time for trainings, about best practices for varying mental health conditions, consultations, responding to messages, treatment planning, and more. You know how in college it is suggested that you budget an hour per credit for each class you take? For every therapy session that we have, we have the same amount of time or more of work outside of that window.
In order to have that time, a therapist needs to have a reasonable caseload. If we are sticking to the 1:1 hour rule and aiming for a 40 hour work week, a therapist should have no more than 20 sessions per week. Different mental health diagnosis will require different levels of care. It is not unusual for a client to bump to 2 or 3 sessions per week if they are going through a really difficult time or crisis. In order to ensure that we have the bandwidth to provide the same quality of care to all of our clients, we have to be mindful of the demands of our current caseload.
A therapy session will cost more if that therapist is managing their caseload size. We only get paid when we work. The amount of clients that your therapist treats in a week directly impacts the quality of your treatment and the fee the therapists charge then we need to increase our fee. Chances are, if your therapist has a higher fee, then they are more regulated, more trained, have a higher level of support, and have more time to consider the best ways to structure your treatment.
Insurance
Credentialing with insurance companies, going "in-Network", will also impact your fee. When you accept insurance, you do not get to set your own rates. Session fees are pre-determined and vary company to company, policy to policy. These payment ranges are not published for public viewing. An average payment for services can range from $60-$90 for an in-network provider.
Unfortunately, processing insurance claims is not a seamless process. Accepting insurance requires a lot of additional administrative time that takes time and energy away from providing services, professional development, and collaboration with stakeholders. Much of this paperwork is collected to "prove necessity" of therapy. Even though your monthly premium is the same each month, insurance companies will take time out of your sessions and require extensive documentation from your therapist, and they determine if your treatment is covered and what to pay your therapist. This required documentation also requires that you permit your therapist to break confidentiality in order to provide evidence of your unique needs.
An insurance company is a business that measures success by profit margins, not patient care, so claims are often denied or challenged. If an insurer takes issue with your therapist's notes or treatment plan, they can "claw back" or revoke previous payments. It takes a lot of time to accept insurance and it costs a lot of your therapist's time and energy that gets redirected from their time with you. Private pay, licensed mental health professionals can set their own rates, determine their own treatment approaches, and treat your specific needs using their specialized professional judgement.
Is therapy worth the cost?
I'm guessing that you are holding a screen a reasonable distance from your face right now. If you were to press your nose on your screen, the images would become blurry and impossible to discern. That distance is key in order to have a beneficial perspective. That is why therapy is so helpful. You can have a trained, objective, and safe individual to observe your inner world and provide insights and guidance with your best interests and goals in mind. Studies have shown that other types of mind-body intervention are all beneficial, but none of them have the same efficacy as therapy. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has been shown to have the large breath of efficacy in treatment of mental health. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy sessions can also improve physical health symptoms, such as IBS and other digestive issues. These counseling services can lead to whole body wellness. Compulsive or problematic behavior can also be treated effectively with CBT if you attend therapy.
Your therapist can:
Observe your current patterns of thinking and behavior
Identify the development of those patterns whether it is intergenerational, societal, or otherwise
Teach you how to cope with heavy emotions in a way that lets you feel good about yourself.
Explore your unique symptom presentation and inform you of the biological process driving them
Provide a sense of belonging and understanding.
Investing in your wellness at Cope & Calm Counseling
Write a brief concluding sentence after the bulleted list.
Talk therapy is an investment. However, you deserve to have a safe space in which you can genuinely foster a solid therapeutic relationship.
At Cope & Calm Counseling, we aim to provide the most value and highest quality services possible. The alliance between a client and their therapist is the number one predictor of therapeutic success. You may be able to get a similar service for less, but making a connection with an overworked licensed professional counselor could be a bit more difficult. Do you know the feeling of emotional fatigue after supporting a loved one? Imagine that feeling every day on the hour. Many therapists can burn out and the care that they are able to provide suffers.
The therapy cost and your rapport through the therapeutic process holds more value if your therapist is able to maintain a smaller caseload, attend more trainings, consult more, and is not limited by health insurance requirements. When seeking OON services, you get to maximize your insurance coverage benefits by getting reimbursed for your mental health services. Your monthly premium is the same each month, you might as well use it to the fullest.
Considerations that factor into our therapy fee:
We keep our caseloads low and are less prone to burn out.
We seek weekly consultations to ensure that your care is getting consideration from multiple perspectives--with full confidentiality, of course.
We attend monthly trainings (or more if we get over excited about a topic).
We have time to reflect on treatment plans in order to ensure sessions are aligned with your goals.
We can practice therapy using our informed judgement and many years and hours of training, without having to be confined to the insurance providers requirements--who are not licensed professionals in mental health care and are not qualified to inform treatment.
We can keep your session information confidential. We do not have to submit notes and other documentation to your insurance company to justify services.
You are more likely to feel a connection with our providers, because they can prioritize work balance and will be excited to see you every session. You won't feel like a burden or feel a sense of abandonment or rejection because your provider won't be as overstretched.
You are more likely to achieve your goals when working with a therapist that you like. Our client's like us a lot.
Final thoughts
If you are seeking therapy, there are many factors to consider when selecting Connecticut therapists. Of course you want to consider if they offer in person therapy or telehealth services. Do they treat your specific needs? Anxiety disorders, eating disorders, self esteem, life transitions, relationship issues, and personal growth all require differentiated care.
At Cope & Calm Counseling, quality is the driving force guiding our practice. It is our job to work ourselves out of a job. We want you to achieve your goals. In order to maintain a high standard of care we prioritize maintaining a caseload balance. We are mindful of the amount of time that we dedicate to consultations and trainings. We spend time outside of the session reflecting on your needs and thinking of ways to align treatment with your goals. All of this time, requires that we have fewer direct or in-person hours in our week, and this requirement informs our fee.
If you are ready to come in to our therapist's office, give us a call or submit a request on our site. We are accepting new clients. We love what we do. A common trait of our therapists is that we all have a passion for psychotherapy. We are excited to meet you!
