Will what I say during counselling be kept confidential?

Generally, what you say during counselling sessions is kept confidential between you and the therapist. This means that the therapist will not share any information you discuss in therapy with anyone else without your consent, except in certain legal and ethical exceptions.

However, there are certain situations in which a therapist is required by law to break confidentiality, such as legal limitations, when there is a risk of harm to yourself or others, if there is suspicion of child abuse or elder abuse, or if a court subpoena is issued for the therapist's records.

It is important to discuss confidentiality and any exceptions with your therapist at the start of therapy. It is important that you fully understand and agree to all of the applicable limitations of confidentiality from the outset of your therapy. The therapist will provide you with detailed information about their confidentiality policy, including what information they are legally required to report, and what situations may require them to break confidentiality.

When children are the client, partial confidentiality and safeguarding issues will be discussed with the child and their caregiver. Partial confidentiality is where there are limitations to confidentiality, such as if the child plans to hurt themselves or another this would be shared with the child’s caregiver. Ethically and legally, a therapist is required to breach confidentiality if the child indicates that someone is hurting them.

It is also important to note that if you are using insurance to pay for therapy, the insurance company will require certain information to process the claim, such as the diagnosis, which may be recorded in the therapist's notes.