Most adults start weekly. Some go fortnightly. A few do two sessions in a hot phase. The right pace depends on urgency, money, support, and how your days run. Here is how I think about it.
Short answer. Most people start with weekly sessions. Some choose fortnightly, and a few do twice a week for a short spell when life is loud. The right pace depends on what your days look like, how urgent things feel, what support you already have, and what you can realistically afford.
In short:
Start with weekly sessions. It gives us a steady rhythm to build a working relationship, keep the thread of your week, and notice what shifts between meetings without everything evaporating in the gap because work, family, deadlines, and fatigue push in. If that pace strains money or time, we can say so openly and choose something that you can actually keep.
I prefer clean agreements that we can test. In the first few meetings we learn how you work and how I work, then we adjust the spacing to match your energy, your diary, the kind of thinking you want to do here, and the season you are in. People often try one pace, pause, and then change it once life moves.
Match it to life. If your days are heavy and your head keeps spinning, a weekly rhythm helps us stay with what is happening rather than rehearsing it alone for too long between meetings, while a quieter patch can carry a wider gap without losing the thread. Write down what you can carry without dread.
If you are still deciding whether to start at all, you may like this piece: Do I need therapy?. I wrote it for adults who are hovering near the door and want a clear, plain way to think about whether this room is the right one for now.
Twice a week, sometimes. If you are in the thick of a breakup, a loss, a conflict at home, or a work situation that hijacks your whole system by lunchtime, a second meeting can keep momentum, give you more practice saying things out loud, and shorten the time you spend circling on your own between sessions.
It is also a bigger spend and a bigger ask on your week. We will decide it together for a short stretch and review it with care, so urgency does not end up setting the whole pattern for months when a steadier, simpler rhythm might serve.
Fortnightly can be steady. If your life is organised and you like time to try things between meetings, the wider spacing can help you notice what holds and what falls apart in real weeks, while we use the room to make sense of the patterns you observe and decide what to test next.
If travel or childcare make weekly trips impossible, video can protect the rhythm when you would otherwise skip. I work in English and Hindi, over video and in person in Bengaluru; this piece on formats may help: Video or in person?. Pick the format that you can actually keep showing up for.
Safety comes before scheduling. If you are at risk of harming yourself or someone else, please use Tele-MANAS on 14416 right now, or local emergency services. After that immediate support, you can come back to the question of frequency with clearer ground under your feet and a bit more breath in your body.
I do not diagnose. As a counsellor, I am not a doctor and cannot prescribe; if medication seems worth considering, I will refer you to a psychiatrist who can evaluate options, explain side effects, and decide whether a prescription makes sense for you. If you need a formal diagnosis report for work, university, court, or other formal reasons, please see a psychiatrist or a clinical psychologist who offers assessment.
Review it with me. We can set a clear check-in point, talk about what felt crowded or too thin, and move the spacing up or down accordingly, keeping one eye on money and the other on whether the work felt alive or like going through motions only to tick a box.
For some, a simple experiment helps: try weekly for a short span, then check what differed between sessions and what you carried forward on your own. Others find fortnightly with a standing diary slot works, because the predictability itself lowers friction and frees energy for the real work, with fewer fights about logistics. I am a counsellor in Bengaluru, practising since 2015, and I work with adults roughly 25 to 45.
Is weekly therapy the standard?
Many adults start weekly because it gives a stable rhythm and makes it easier to track what shifts between meetings. It is not a rule. We can begin weekly or we can choose fortnightly, and in a hot phase we may add a second meeting for a short spell, then review what your budget, energy, diary, and sleep can carry.
When would twice a week be wise?
In a hot phase of life — a breakup, a loss, high-stakes work pressure, or a health scare — a second session can keep focus and reduce the long, lonely spin between appointments. It is a bigger spend and a bigger ask on time, so we decide it together for a short stretch and check how it felt.
Can I change frequency if work explodes?
Yes. Frequency is an agreement we can renegotiate over time. If travel, deadlines, childcare, or illness make weekly impossible for a while, we can use video, shift to fortnightly, or return to weekly when the crunch settles. Aim for a rhythm you can keep.
Will more sessions make things move faster?
More contact can keep attention on what matters and reduce the time you spend circling alone, but there is no guarantee. Results do not follow a clock. Choose the most frequent rhythm you can sustain with money, time, health, and sleep, then review it honestly with me after a short, agreed run.
What if I can only afford monthly?
We can meet monthly if that is what your budget allows. It is harder to keep the thread, and sessions can feel like starting over, so we can find small ways to hold your work between meetings. Notes and five quiet minutes after each session can help.
Written by Satlaj Sachan, a counsellor in Bengaluru working Book a first conversation.