Why I Don’t Offer Free Therapy Consultations

I do not offer free therapy consultations. My preferred starting point is an initial assessment. If someone wants a shorter conversation first, I offer an optional 15-minute consultation for $50. I want that to be clear before anyone sets aside time or shares personal information.

This is a deliberate professional boundary. I believe the time, attention, and judgment involved in clinical work have value from the beginning. A first assessment is part of that work, including when the outcome is a recommendation to see someone else.

I am writing this for colleagues as well as people considering therapy at Balderman Wellness. People have good reasons to ask how care begins, what it costs, and whether a therapist can help. The question I want our profession to consider is why an unpaid preliminary appointment has become such a familiar expectation, and whether it is the right starting point for every practice.

An assessment is a clinical service

When I meet someone for an assessment, I am listening for more than whether we have an easy conversation. I need to understand what brought them to therapy, what they hope will change, what has helped before, and what else may affect treatment. That understanding begins with time and attention. It cannot be reduced to whether someone likes my voice on a brief call.

An assessment gives both of us a more useful starting point. The person seeking care can experience how I listen and ask questions. I can begin considering whether my skills, approach, and practice setting match their needs. We can discuss next steps without pretending that a short introduction has already answered the important clinical questions.

That does not mean one assessment reveals everything. Trust and understanding develop over time. It means we have started a clinical process in a setting intended for that purpose, rather than trying to squeeze the beginning of care into a preliminary conversation.

Sometimes the appropriate result is a referral. That does not make the assessment worthless. Recognizing that someone may need different expertise, a different format, or more support is part of responsible clinical work. I do not consider a first appointment unsuccessful simply because it does not lead to ongoing treatment with me.

People can read about my background and approach before reaching out. An assessment then creates room to consider their own needs rather than spending the appointment introducing a professional biography.

Clinical time has value before ongoing treatment begins

There is a business reality here, and I do not think clinicians need to apologize for naming it. Time reserved for a conversation is time that cannot also be used for another appointment. The work of scheduling, preparing, attending, and following up also belongs to the practice day.

A quarter of an hour may seem small in isolation. Repeated across a week, brief unpaid appointments can take a meaningful amount of time. Every practice has a finite number of hours and a finite amount of clinical attention. A schedule filled with preliminary calls leaves less time for assessments, treatment, documentation, and the other work that care requires.

I am uncomfortable with the expectation that a mental health professional should first demonstrate their value through an unpaid personal appointment. My time does not become professional only after someone decides to return. The first encounter deserves clear terms just as later encounters do.

Psychotherapy is health care. I do not approach the first appointment as a sales pitch or an audition. I approach it as professional time with a clear purpose. I do want colleagues to feel able to choose a paid first appointment without treating that choice as a failure of warmth or commitment.

Clear fees also let someone decide whether the service works for their budget before they attend. I would rather be direct about the cost than leave someone unsure whether they are having an informal conversation or beginning a paid professional service.

A brief conversation has limits

Fifteen minutes can be useful for focused questions. It cannot provide the same understanding as a full assessment. Someone may want to ask about my style, discuss a general concern, or clarify how I work. My optional paid consultation gives that conversation a defined length and fee.

It is not a full assessment, a treatment session, or a promise that I can determine every aspect of fit in that time. It also does not replace the assessment when someone wants to begin therapy. Those distinctions matter because a person seeking help may not know how clinicians use words such as consultation, intake, and assessment.

A warm conversation is encouraging. A difficult first conversation does not always mean the therapeutic relationship cannot develop. What matters is having enough information to decide what to try next, while leaving room to reconsider. I do not want either of us to mistake a brief first impression for a complete clinical picture.

The same principle matters when someone asks about a specific approach such as Progressive Counting. I can explain the approach, but explaining a method is different from determining whether it is appropriate for a particular person right now.

A free label does not settle ethical questions

My concern about preliminary consultations is also about clarity of responsibility. A conversation can become clinically significant quickly. Someone may disclose thoughts of suicide, abuse, or another serious concern. That possibility deserves planning before the encounter begins, whatever the fee.

Charging for an appointment does not create an ethical exemption, and offering a free call does not automatically establish the same obligations in every situation. The relevant law, jurisdiction, professional role, and facts matter. A blog post cannot determine a clinician’s legal duties in an individual encounter.

The NASW Code of Ethics, section 1.03 calls for understandable information about services, costs, risks, alternatives, and consent. For technology-based services, it also addresses identity and location. Those are practical reasons to define the encounter before inviting disclosure.

I want the person to understand why we are meeting and what the time can hold. I also want the clinician to have thought through privacy, documentation, safety concerns, and appropriate next steps. Calling a conversation a consultation is not a substitute for that preparation.

For colleagues with questions about specific duties, the appropriate next step is guidance from their licensing board, professional ethics consultation, or qualified legal counsel. My position here is a practice philosophy: clinical boundaries should be clear at the beginning, and the fee should never be used as a shortcut for deciding what responsibility exists.

Access matters, and so does an honest fee policy

Cost is a real barrier to care. Some people ask for a free consultation because they are worried about paying for another disappointing experience. Others have seen the offer so often that they assume every therapist provides it. Asking does not make someone demanding or disrespectful.

I can respect that concern and still hold my fee policy. A person should be able to find the terms before making an appointment, understand what is included, and decide whether to proceed. Clear information is more respectful than frustration directed at the person who asks.

For an initial assessment, insurance may help when the service is covered and the provider participates in the person’s plan. Coverage does not necessarily mean no out-of-pocket cost. Deductibles, copays, and other requirements can apply. I ask people to review insurance information and confirm their benefits rather than assume that any appointment will be free.

The optional 15-minute consultation has a $50 fee. The consultation is not insurance reimbursable. It is also separate from the terms for my virtual trauma therapy intensive package, which has its own assessment and service structure.

Pro bono care, publicly funded services, and community programs are important parts of access. My decision about free preliminary appointments is not an argument against those services. It is a decision about how people begin care within this private practice.

What I want colleagues to examine

I am not asking colleagues to defend every free consultation they offer. I am asking that we treat the choice as a choice, with clinical and business consequences, rather than something a caring therapist is automatically expected to provide.

The American Board of Clinical Social Work’s Ethics Code places fair fees and clear mutual obligations early in the professional relationship. That is a useful principle for this discussion. A fee policy should be understandable, connected to the service, and communicated before someone relies on an appointment.

If a clinician offers a brief introduction, I think they should be able to explain its actual purpose. Is it an administrative conversation about availability? An opportunity to ask about clinical approach? A screening? Those are different activities. Mixing them under a familiar label can leave both people with different expectations.

If a clinician charges from the first appointment, that also requires care. The fee should not be a surprise. The person should know whether a brief consultation is optional, whether an assessment is still required, and whether ongoing care is guaranteed. Payment does not guarantee a diagnosis, a particular treatment recommendation, or continued treatment.

My message to a prospective client is simple and courteous: this is how my practice begins, this is the fee, and this is what we can consider together. I can question an industry expectation while welcoming the person who asks about it. A clear boundary gives us a more honest place to start.

We talk about clear boundaries in many areas of life. Our own work deserves the same care: an honest limit, a clear explanation, and consistent follow-through.

How to begin at Balderman Wellness

My preferred starting point is an initial assessment. You do not need to commit to ongoing treatment before that appointment. We use the time to begin understanding your needs, consider whether working together makes sense, and discuss a plan.

If you prefer a brief conversation first, an optional 15-minute consultation costs $50. I do not offer free consultations. You can contact Balderman Wellness about the appropriate first appointment and provide your state and preferred contact method. Save detailed clinical information for a secure intake.

That is the boundary I want to make visible: a clear professional beginning, with room for questions and an honest decision about what comes next.

If you need immediate emotional or suicide crisis support in the United States, call or text 988. If there is an immediate medical emergency or danger, call 911. A consultation request is not a route to emergency care.