Before booking a counselling session
Counselling gives you time with a trained listener to explore feelings, experiences or difficulties. The counsellor helps you understand your situation and consider your own ways forward. They will not usually make decisions for you or tell you what to do.
You could start by noting what has brought you to counselling, what you would like help understanding, and any questions about the process. These notes can give the conversation a starting point.
What to discuss at the beginning
Use the first meeting to talk about what you want from the sessions and how the counsellor works. Useful questions include:
- Have you worked with the kind of difficulty I want to discuss?
- What approach would you suggest, and what would that involve for me?
- How will we decide what to focus on?
- When will we review whether the sessions are useful?
You can also ask about practical needs: a step-free room, communication support, appointment times or a private space for online sessions. Check what the service can offer before committing to appointments.
Agree how you will work together
Ask for clear terms covering fees, payment, cancellations, session frequency and contact between appointments. Find out what happens if either of you needs to miss a session or end the arrangement. An introductory conversation and a booked therapy session may have different charges, so check both.
Confidentiality has limits. Ask the counsellor to explain what stays private, how records are kept and when information might need to be shared. Do not assume that confidential means information can never be disclosed.
These arrangements should be understandable to you. Ask for anything unclear to be explained before you agree to proceed.
In person, by phone or online
Counselling may be offered face to face, by telephone or online. It can involve individual, couple, family or group sessions. Ask which format the particular service provides and whether it fits your circumstances.
For a remote appointment, practical questions include which platform is used, what happens if the connection fails and how to contact the service. Consider whether you have somewhere private to speak.
NHS and other routes
In England, adults can refer themselves to NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression; some areas also accept people aged 16 or 17. The national finder asks for your GP surgery. If you are not registered with a GP, check your local talking therapies website: some services may accept self-referrals. Assessment and local provision determine which therapy is offered, so self-referral is not a guarantee of counselling specifically.
Use the NHS service finder or ask your GP about the appropriate route. If you live elsewhere in the UK, check your local NHS service's arrangements.
Some employers, educational settings and charities also offer counselling. For private care, the NHS recommends choosing a counsellor on a register accredited by the Professional Standards Authority. Check the individual practitioner's register entry as well as the service's description.
If you need help urgently
A routine counselling booking is not an urgent-response service. If you need urgent mental health support, use the NHS urgent-help guidance now.
Read next
- How to find a therapist near you
- Therapists and counsellors explained
- Choosing a counsellor or psychotherapist
Sources
This content is informational, not medical advice. Always check with a qualified clinician before changing routines that affect your health. Some links may become affiliate links in future.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a GP referral?
How long is a counselling session?
Is everything I say confidential?
Continue exploring
Three related pages worth reading next.
Find relevant support
Search approved UK wellness businesses and filter by city, category and online availability.
Do you provide this kind of support in the UK?
Add a free profile so people searching here can find you, or claim a listing that already exists so you can keep the details accurate. Paid placement is advertising and is labelled as such — it is never an editorial endorsement.