What Real Progress Looks Like Between Sessions
For many people, therapy can feel like a weekly island in the middle of a very busy ocean. You meet with your therapist, talk about your feelings, maybe cry, maybe laugh, and leave feeling a little lighter. Then life happens. Work, kids, stress, relationships, and a long list of responsibilities all rush back in.
It is very common to wonder, “Am I actually making progress, or am I just talking once a week”
Real mental health progress does not always look dramatic. It does not always mean huge breakthroughs or instant relief from anxiety or low mood. Often, the most meaningful change shows up quietly in the days between counseling sessions, in moments you might overlook if you are only watching for big shifts.
This kind of progress deserves to be seen.
Therapy support aimed at improving emotional health and long-term wellbeing
Noticing progress that is smaller than a “transformation”
When people think about healing, they often imagine a clear before and after.
Before therapy: panic attacks, depression, constant stress.
After therapy: peace, confidence, perfect boundaries.
In real life, growth is usually more gradual and layered. It looks like:
Slightly less intense anxiety when something stressful happens
Feeling sad, but not collapsing the way you used to
Remembering to use one coping skill instead of shutting down
If you only count change when everything is fixed, you will miss the progress that is already happening.
You might be making real progress if:
You notice your feelings sooner, instead of realizing weeks later that you have been burned out
You catch an unhelpful thought and question it, even if you still feel shaky
You speak up once in a conversation where you would have stayed silent before
These moments may not feel big, but they are signs that your brain and nervous system are starting to respond differently.
Safe therapy environment encouraging emotional expression and healing
Progress in awareness: seeing your patterns more clearly
One of the first kinds of progress many people experience in therapy is self awareness. You start to see patterns that were invisible before.
For example, you might notice:
“I minimize my own needs when someone else seems upset.”
“I feel most anxious after I scroll social media late at night.”
At first, this awareness can feel uncomfortable. When you see more, you may also feel more. That does not mean you are getting worse. It often means therapy is working at a deep level.
Awareness is progress because you cannot change what you cannot see. Even if your behavior has not fully shifted yet, the fact that you can name your patterns is a powerful step forward in your mental health journey.
Between sessions, you might feel progress when you catch yourself thinking, “Oh, this is that people pleasing pattern we talked about,” or “This is me bracing for criticism again.” That moment of naming is not small. It is your mind building new connections.
Tracking progress in improving emotional health and long-term wellbeing.
Progress in regulation: coming back to center a little sooner
Another sign of progress between sessions is how you move through emotional waves.
You may still:
Feel anxious before a hard conversation
Get triggered by reminders of past experiences
The difference is in what happens next.
Real progress might look like:
Taking a few slow breaths instead of snapping or shutting down immediately
Using a grounding exercise you practiced in therapy to steady yourself
Feeling intense emotion, but noticing it passes a bit sooner than before
You might still have bad days. You may still feel overwhelmed at times. Yet if you are able to return to your baseline more quickly, that is meaningful change in how your nervous system regulates.
Between sessions, you can ask yourself:
“How long does it take me to feel somewhat steady again after a tough moment”
“Am I using any of the coping tools we talked about, even once”
If the answer is yes, that is progress.
You may request a free consultation and find what best options are available for you.
Safe therapy environment encouraging emotional expression and healing
Progress in choices: responding, not just reacting
Therapy and counseling often create a little more space between feeling and action. That space is where choice lives.
Progress between sessions can look like:
Pausing before sending that angry text and choosing different words
Deciding to leave a social event early when you realize you are overwhelmed
Saying, “I need a minute,” instead of pretending you are fine
You may still react in old ways sometimes. The goal is not perfection. The goal is to increase the number of moments where you can respond in a way that aligns with your values instead of feeling driven only by fear, shame, or habit.
Even one different choice in a week can represent a lot of inner work. It means you noticed, you cared, and you tried something new.
Progress in boundaries and self compassion
Another form of progress that often shows up between therapy sessions is how you treat yourself and how you relate to boundaries.
You might notice that you:
Say no once, even if your voice shakes
Ask for clarification instead of assuming you are at fault
Give yourself a kinder internal response after a mistake
For many people, especially those used to people pleasing or perfectionism, these shifts are huge. They may not look impressive on the outside, but internally they can feel like a major reorientation.
Progress in self compassion can sound like:
“I had a hard day, that does not mean I am a failure.”
“Of course I feel anxious right now, this situation is stressful.”
“I am learning, I do not have to have it all figured out.”
When you extend a little more grace to yourself between sessions, you are building a different kind of relationship with your own mind and heart.
A calm counseling setting that encourages reflection and mental wellness
Progress you might not feel, but your therapist can see
Sometimes you do not feel any different, but your therapist notices progress. They might see that:
You share more honestly than you did at first
You are willing to sit with uncomfortable feelings a bit longer
You are more curious about your reactions, less purely judgmental
There may be weeks when you walk into counseling saying, “Nothing has changed, I am stuck,” and your therapist gently reflects places where you have grown. That can be hard to believe, especially if anxiety or depression tells you that you are not improving.
In those moments, it can help to borrow your therapist’s perspective for a while. Progress is not only measured by how good you feel. It is also measured by how willing you are to keep showing up, even when you feel discouraged.
How to track your progress between sessions
Because progress can be quiet and gradual, it can be helpful to track it in simple ways.
You might:
Keep a brief weekly note called “What felt different this week” and list even very small changes
Notice and write down any time you use a skill from therapy
Ask a trusted friend or partner if they have seen any changes in how you cope or communicate
You can bring these observations to your next counseling session and talk them through. Sometimes putting words to them out loud helps you recognize the progress you were tempted to dismiss.
It can also be helpful to remember that setbacks do not erase growth. A hard week does not mean all your work is gone. Just like physical health, mental health naturally has ups and downs. The goal is not a perfectly straight line. The goal is a general movement toward greater stability, understanding, and self kindness over time.
You may schedule a free therapy consultation to know how to track progress.
Giving yourself credit for the work you are doing
If you are in therapy or considering it, you are already engaging in meaningful work. Showing up, being honest, and looking at hard things inside yourself is not easy. It takes courage, energy, and a willingness to grow.
Real progress between sessions often looks like:
Trying one new thing, even when it feels awkward
Being a tiny bit more honest with yourself about what you feel
Choosing not to give up on the process when it feels slow
You deserve to give yourself credit for these shifts. They may not feel big enough, but they matter. Over time, they accumulate into the kind of change that really can transform your inner life.
If you find yourself doubting your progress, you might gently ask, “Would I talk this harshly about a friend who was doing this work” The answer is almost always no. You would see their effort and honor it. You deserve that same compassion from yourself.
You are not supposed to do all of this alone. Therapy is one place where you can bring your questions about progress, celebrate small wins, grieve hard weeks, and keep moving forward at a pace that respects your nervous system and your story. What you do between sessions is part of the work, and it already counts. Schedule a free therapy consultation today.