Psychotherapy offers a non-judgmental, confidential and safe space for you to reflect on any emotional difficulties with a trained psychotherapist.
Our psychotherapists are trained to listen very closely to you and help you express your thoughts and feelings and explore what comes up when you do.
Find out more on our What is psychotherapy? page.
All psychotherapists are highly trained and equipped to support you with emotional distress. There are many different types of psychotherapy and different theories and approaches which qualified psychotherapists specialise in. You certainly don’t need to understand them all, but it can be useful to think about which type might suit you best. You can always ask a psychotherapist about how they work.
Find out what’s on offer on our Types of psychotherapy page.
Many psychotherapists work with individual adults but may also work with couples, families and groups, or work with children and adolescents.
You don’t need to be in crisis or have a diagnosed mental illness to have psychotherapy. It can help you with emotional or mental health problems, including everything from anxiety to grief, addiction to sexual problems. It can help you to achieve a specific goal or overcome a challenge. Psychotherapy can help you understand yourself better and fulfil your potential. Psychotherapy is about helping you bring about change in your life, to help you live more authentically.
Find out more on our What is psychotherapy? page.
It’s different for everyone. Psychotherapy is a safe place to get in touch with your feelings, experiences and inner world, to let your feelings out and share what’s on your mind. It can be a relief to talk about something that has been upsetting you or that you have been keeping to yourself. When someone who understands really listens to you, without judgement, it can be very powerful. Feeling heard, seen and understood can be very moving. You might find yourself crying, getting upset or angry in psychotherapy or between your sessions. This can feel unsettling and intense, but your psychotherapist is trained to help you process and cope with the emotions that come up.
Find out more on our What is psychotherapy? page.
Yes. In addition to the personal testimonies of millions of people around the world who have been helped by psychotherapy, there is a large body of evidence to show that psychotherapy is effective in addressing most mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, substance use problems, and what are often diagnosed as ‘personality disorders’.
The idea is for you to have the opportunity to explore the issue or concern you want to work on with your psychotherapist. Different psychotherapists will support you to do this in different ways. Some will support you to talk generally about your feelings, behaviours and thoughts. Others will have specific exercises or techniques to help you do this.
They will listen, and ask questions, but won’t tell you what to do. This might feel difficult to begin with. But your psychotherapist is there to support you to open up and guide the process. The process is about you becoming more authentic, responsible and empowered in your life and relationships; it wouldn’t make sense for someone else to tell you what to do. Sometimes just talking about your problems will help you see them in a different light and bring up new ideas you may not have considered.
Times of crisis may require more direct interventions or suggestions from your psychotherapist, but they will never tell you what to do or try to make you do something you don’t want to do, and you will always have the freedom to say ‘no’.
Find out more on our What is psychotherapy? page.
It varies depending on location, training and experience. Psychotherapists will normally state their fees on their website or social media if they have them. If not, ask the psychotherapist how much they charge for sessions when you contact them. It’s important to clarify this at the start, to help you make an informed choice.
Sessions may have lower fees in the daytime than in the evening, and some psychotherapists may offer discounts for people on low incomes, for psychotherapy students, or as part of a package. Feel free to ask the psychotherapist directly.
One-to-one sessions are typically 50 minutes long but can be up to an hour. Group sessions are generally longer than this.
Most often, people see a psychotherapist once a week, at the same time. However, it can be more or less frequent than this. It depends on what you agree with your psychotherapist and how they work. This is another thing to clarify before you begin working with your psychotherapist.
Psychotherapy can be short or long term, depending on your needs which of course can change over time. The number of sessions you have will depend on you, your psychotherapist, the type of psychotherapy and depth and complexity of the issues you want to work on. It’s unusual for psychotherapy to last for fewer than six sessions. Some may continue for several years.
Find out more on our What is psychotherapy? page.
ICP registered psychotherapists are all accredited members of a professional association according to the theory and approach they have been trained in (which is sometimes called a modality). All members of these professional associations commit to abide by a Code of Ethics and Practice that aligns with the Code of Ethics of ICP. A Code of Ethics and Practice provides boundaries for you and your psychotherapist which are important in building a professional, trusting relationship.
Psychotherapists on our register are committed to good practice, ethical conduct, and ongoing learning and development. Feel free to ask your psychotherapist which professional association they are accredited with, about the Code of Ethics and Practice they abide by, and about the relevant Complaints Policy and Procedures. This information will also be available on the professional association’s website.
Yes, you can. A lot of psychotherapists work online or over the phone. They might state this on their ICP Find A Therapist profile, or you could check if they do when you contact them.
First, search Find a therapist for qualified ICP psychotherapists. When you’ve found a potential psychotherapist, send them an email or give them a call. Organise a first session to see how you feel being with the psychotherapist.
Many people don’t find the right psychotherapist first time. If that happens, don’t worry, you can book an initial appointment with another psychotherapist to try again.
Find out more about How to choose a psychotherapist.
The first session is a chance to get a sense of how the psychotherapist works. They will probably ask you to talk more about what brings you to psychotherapy and might have an assessment form which they fill in on your behalf. This helps assess if they are the right person to help you. They might ask about the history of the issue you want to work on, your past and family, and what helps you cope. During this initial session, the psychotherapist will also outline for you their contract for working, including confidentiality and its limits, contact between sessions, cancellations policy, and so on.
You can ask questions to help you decide whether you want to work with the person.
Find out more about How to choose a psychotherapist.
Talk to your psychotherapist when you want to stop working with them. You can think about whether it’s the right time to end and plan how and when to stop. It’s best not to stop abruptly, if at all possible. Sometimes psychotherapy can make you feel very unsettled, and this can be difficult to cope with. You can speak to your psychotherapist about this as it happens so that they can support you.
It varies. Generally, if you need an appointment early in the morning, up to 9pm, or on a Saturday, you should be able to find an available psychotherapist who works then. Often, psychotherapists include their availability in their profile on Find a Therapist or on their own website. Or you can ask them about it when you first contact them by phone or email.
Psychotherapists won’t usually be available to talk to you outside your agreed session time.
Search Find A Therapist and be assured that all the psychotherapists you find listed are fully qualified and committed to good practice, ethical conduct, and ongoing learning and development.
Yes, a psychotherapist will keep what you say confidential and will be able to let you know the legal and ethical limits to this.
Psychotherapists are highly trained mental health professionals who support clients to identify and heal from emotional, mental health, and relational issues.
Psychotherapists often work on deeper psychological issues, trauma, the unconscious, and long-term patterns. Emphasis is placed on the therapeutic relationship as a key component of the healing process.
Psychotherapists train for many years, usually to postgraduate level. They are also required to undergo intensive, long-term personal psychotherapy, ongoing clinical supervision of their practice, and abide by a professional code of ethics.
The work of counsellors can be similar and overlap with psychotherapists. Both use talking therapy to help someone tackle an emotional difficulty. Counselling tends to be more helpful for immediate issues and for short term work. Counsellors train for a number of years, usually at undergraduate level. They are usually required to do some personal psychotherapy, clinical supervision, and abide by a professional code of ethics.
Psychologists and psychiatrists are different. Psychiatrists are medical doctors that diagnose illness, prescribe medication, manage treatment and provide a range of therapies for serious mental illness.
Psychologists have a degree in psychology and work in schools, hospitals, care homes, prisons, as well as private practice. They work to understand people’s behaviour and address psychological distress. One way to think about it is that psychology is the study of the mind, and psychotherapy is about applying insights from psychology to help people.
A psychotherapist may also be a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other mental health professional who has done additional training in psychotherapy.
If you’re looking for a psychotherapist for a child or an adolescent, you can try searching our Find a Therapist and select the option for a psychotherapist that works with children and/or adolescents.
Find out more about psychotherapy for children and adolescents.
Call 999, 112 or go to your local emergency department if someone’s life is at risk – for example, they have seriously injured themselves or taken an overdose, or if you don’t feel you can keep yourself or someone else safe.
You can find your nearest emergency department, injury unit, or GP out-of-hours service here.
For urgent help with a mental health issue, click here for services.
You could also contact the Samaritans, a charity which offers a free confidential listening service run by volunteers to anyone in distress 24 hours a day. Call 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.ie
If it feels okay, you could try talking to the ICP psychotherapist you’re working with. This would give them a chance to put things right.
If you don’t feel comfortable talking to the psychotherapist about your concerns, you can contact the psychotherapist’s accrediting body who will give you information about how to make a formal complaint about their member.
The HSE does provide or fund certain mental health services. You can get information about what’s available through the HSE by asking your GP, or by calling the Your Mental Health information freephone number 1800 111 888.
ICP is campaigning for the HSE to offer a wider range of talking therapies and employ more psychotherapists. This would increase the likelihood that you find the right psychotherapist and that the psychotherapy is successful.