Soundings

Pay-if/what-you-can therapy with a trauma treatment focus

Affordable

The average cost of a single therapy session in the United States is $150-$200. Our goal is to make counseling accessible for everyone.

Some of our clients come to The Women’s Center with no more than $5 in their bank account. 20-30% of our clients are under- or uninsured. Half our counseling clients say that the primary reason they delayed therapy is that they couldn’t afford it.

Soundings is for you if you:

  • don’t have health insurance;

  • have a yearly deductible that you cannot meet;

  • cannot afford your per-session co-pay;

  • are looking for that extra layer of confidentiality that being “off the insurance grid” allows; or

  • do not have a qualifying diagnosis, yet are struggling with mental health symptoms that interfere with everyday life.

Suggested fees are based on self-reported household income. (Per-session charges hover around $10, but can be as low as $1 or as much as $40). Together we will come up with an amount that you can manage from week to week.

What are “Soundings?”

In navigating a tricky river channel, sailors take depth measurements (or "soundings") to gauge the shape of the underwater terrain and get to their destination safety. Likewise, therapy can help us figure out where we are, where we want to be, and how to get there.

High-quality, research-informed mental health care

The Women’s Center is a teaching facility, which means that we stay up-to-date with the latest therapy research and modalities. Weekly supervised trainings keep our therapists informed of the issues that affect our clients.

Our diverse clinical team is well-versed in culturally-sensitive, best practices in trauma treatment.  

Who will be my therapist?

Soundings therapists are graduate students in counseling and social work. Counseling experience is part of their education. Similar to the way that medical interns and residents work under the supervision of an attending physician, each therapist-intern works closely with a supervising clinician who has years of practical and teaching expertise.

As openings become available, therapist-interns connect with clients on a first-call, first-appointment basis. We do our best to match your schedule and requests. The first 3 sessions give you the opportunity to determine whether the two of you are a good match.

Therapist-interns can be as young as 22 or as old as 65. Some are still in school and will be for several months. Others have already finished their coursework. It is important for you to know how long your particular therapist will be available. If you do not finish what you want to work on, you may complete another request form and begin work with another therapist-intern.