> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.opentherapy.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Open Therapy help

> Find and book verified therapists, or take bookings as one. Start with the section that matches you.

Open Therapy is a directory and booking platform for verified therapists in Australia — psychologists, counsellors, speech pathologists, occupational therapists, dietitians and more. You can be seen online, at a clinic, or at home.

These pages explain how the platform works from both sides. Pick the one that fits.

<Columns cols={2}>
  <Card title="For clients" icon="heart" href="/clients/overview" horizontal>
    Find a therapist, book and pay for sessions, and manage your care.
  </Card>

  <Card title="For therapists" icon="stethoscope" href="/therapists/overview" horizontal>
    List your practice, take bookings, and get paid.
  </Card>
</Columns>

## What makes this different

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Matching is built on lived experience, not just modalities" icon="users">
    Most directories let you filter by therapy type and postcode. Open Therapy also asks what you're
    carrying — culture, identity, neurodivergence, grief, caring, faith — and asks therapists which of
    those they have lived through themselves rather than only worked with. A shared experience is the
    single heaviest factor in your shortlist. See [Find a therapist](/clients/find-a-therapist).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Clients pay the therapist's published price, and nothing more" icon="receipt">
    There is no booking fee and no surcharge. Open Therapy's fees come out of the therapist's payout,
    never out of your bill. See [Fees](/fees).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Cancellation terms belong to the practice, and are enforced" icon="calendar-x">
    Each therapist chooses one of four cancellation policies. Whatever they choose is what you see on
    their profile, at checkout and in your confirmation email — and it's what the system actually
    charges. See [Cancellations and refunds](/clients/cancellations-and-refunds).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Reviews describe the service, never the treatment" icon="star">
    Australian law prohibits testimonials about regulated health services. Reviews on Open Therapy can
    cover booking, admin, premises and manner, but not symptoms, treatment or whether therapy helped.
    Every review is screened before it appears. See [Reviews](/clients/reviews).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Common questions

<Columns cols={3}>
  <Card title="How it works" icon="route" href="/how-it-works">
    The path from searching to a first session, end to end.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Fees" icon="percent" href="/fees">
    What clients pay, what therapists pay, and who pays what to whom.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Safety and privacy" icon="shield" href="/safety-and-privacy">
    Verification, clinical records, and how your data is handled.
  </Card>
</Columns>

<Warning>
  Open Therapy is not an emergency service. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call **000**.
  For crisis support, call **Lifeline** on **13 11 14**. More numbers are on
  [Getting help](/getting-help#crisis-support).
</Warning>