Each person lives the therapeutic processes in a different way. Neither the duration nor the frequency of the sessions will be the same depending on the problem treated and the evolution of the patient. But when is the time to stop going to therapy? The memory that the patient carries of the therapy as a whole depends to a large extent on the termination phase. Ideally, the discharge should be agreed between the therapist and the patient, as opposed to unilateral abandonment due to failure to meet their expectations, a fact that will increase the risk of suffering a relapse.
A good sign that the time has come to leave therapy is the culmination of the proposed achievements by the patient. Knowing how to detect the trigger of a problem and adopt effective tools to cope with it is the ultimate goal of all therapy. The possibility of maintaining sporadic maintenance sessions is a useful resource to gradually end the therapy while the therapist can verify the progress and reinforcement of the skills acquired by the patient or assist specific stress episodes.
Unfortunately, not all patients manage to finish their therapy successfully, at least the first time. The reasons are varied, from lack of time or money, to dissatisfaction with the results. A common sign is the feeling of stagnation in their progress, which may be due to a refusal to face uncomfortable situations or a lack of willingness to apply what they have learned in the sessions at home. On the other hand, other patients err when they are satisfied with the disappearance of the symptoms that brought them to the consultation. Requesting discharge in these circumstances may mean that the work done is incomplete.
In any case, before ending a therapy, you should communicate the reasons to the professional who is treating you. Even if he shouldn’t be pressuring you, not picking up the phone or missing appointments can leave the therapist insecure, who must assess what is in your best interest. Sometimes it will be the disagreements or the lack of connection with the professional that lead you to abandon the therapy, but if you think that the sessions are repetitive or that the therapist does not have enough training to treat your problem, perhaps he can refer you. to a specialized partner.
When it is the psychologist who proposes to the patient to end the therapy, two things can happen. On the one hand, that the person embraces the opportunity to put into practice what they have learned or, on the contrary, that the end of the treatment causes them anxiety. In both cases, the professional will have considered that the patient has obtained the tools to deal autonomously with the world around him and that he has achieved the objectives set. The correct way to close the cycle is for the therapist and patient to discuss the mixed feelings of pain and discomfort and define the guidelines to maintain the progress achieved autonomously.
