A psychoanalytic consultation can help you find out more about psychoanalytic treatment and whether it might be right for you.
You can contact an analyst to arrange a consultation directly, where the psychoanalyst you see may be able to take you into treatment themselves or may refer you to a colleague, or you can arrange to have a psychoanalytic consultation through the London Clinic of Psychoanalysis.
Consultations through the London Clinic of Psychoanalysis usually take place over two sessions. They offer a chance to talk about what has brought you to consider a psychoanalytic approach, and to get an idea of what analytic treatment is like.
At the end of these sessions, you and the consulting analyst will discuss next steps, bearing in mind the nature of your difficulties, the practicalities of having treatment, and what is affordable for you. Further information about the Clinic Consultation Service can be found here.
Psychoanalysis usually consists of five sessions per week, while psychoanalytic psychotherapy takes place between one and three times per week.
The consultant may discuss with you the possibility of low-fee psychoanalysis for five-times-weekly psychoanalysis through the Clinic.
The Institute of Psychoanalysis is a charity and the fees we charge for psychoanalytic consultations go toward supporting the Clinic in being able to provide services to people less able to afford them.
There are two levels of fee for a consultation. The full fee, payable by those in employment, is £120 for the first appointment and £80 for the second. A reduced rate, of £30 for the first appointment and £20 for the second, is available for those without the means to pay the full fee.
We expect those in employment to pay the full fee but assure you that any recommendation for further treatment will take your financial circumstances into account.