03/11/2026
My WASP ancestors don't want me to talk about money, so let's goooo!
I've been consulting with my supervisor, peers, my partner, and friends to bring my practice more into values alignment over the last 6 months. Equity is at the centre of this, for my clients and myself. And because I can't immediately control access to secure housing, UBI, and a comprehensive social safety net, I did this instead.
This approach isn't for everyone! I've been really assessing my tendency to under-value my work, commitment to provide equitable care to those who need it, the privilege I have to take on a bit more financial uncertainty, my own capacity and burnout prevention, and how to be satisfiable both in my efforts and finances.
I'm curious to know your thoughts!
Other counsellors/helping professionals:
Do you offer sliding scale?
Do you have a "generous" or "giving" tier to your services?
How do you structure it?
ID: Therapists deserve to be paid well in our work. Clients deserve financially accessible therapy. This tension takes time and care to navigate in private practice.
As of February, I no longer have a set fee for individual counselling.
I now operate on a full sliding scale, ranging from $100 - $250 per session, based on financial privilege and barriers. I provided my clients with my rational, history of how I’ve structured my fees, research, & asked each of them to set their new fee & explicitly asking them for no explanation.
I have offered lower sliding scale since the very early days of Selkie in 2022. I have been boundaried with it, offering lower fees where I can but still prioritizing my own financial sustainability.
(After all, therapists are the lowest paid professionals with advanced degrees 🙃)
Over time, offering discounted fees and a flat fee for everyone else felt more and more out of alignment with my values as the cost of living rises for all of us.
So I made the new sliding scale...
More in the comments 👇🏻
