FAQs
Answers to some things you may want to know (and some you may not)
How does the therapy process work for new clients?
Give me a call or send an e-mail, and we'll figure out the logistics together. Typically, people will come in for an initial session in which you can get a "feel" for therapy with me. In this session, we'll fill out some paperwork and get into what's been happening for you. For one or two sessions afterwards, we'll keep working together on a mutual understanding of your difficulties, and this may involve some questionnaires to fill out or structured interviews. Then we discuss what diagnoses you may meet criteria for and how everything fits together. With this mutual understanding, we move towards your individualized treatment plan. Then we get started reducing your symptoms, improving your life, and getting you what you need!
We will never start treatment based just on a diagnosis. You're much more than that! You and I work together to understand what you've been experiencing, as well as where you want to be at the end of treatment. Treatment starts when we fully understand where we can intervene to make changes, but also when we know what life would look like when things are going right.
How long does each therapy session last?
Standard session times range between 50-60 minutes. Ideally, these would occur weekly, but I do have a small number of every-other-week times available.
Non-standard session times are also possible, pending availability and need. If it makes sense for us, we could set up sessions for 30-240 minutes in length.
What types of therapy can we do?
I typically do Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) which involves identifying and modifying your thoughts and behaviors to help make changes to improve whatever needs improving. While we can't directly change emotions, modifying how we think and what we do can be an incredibly powerful way to change the way we feel.
As an extension of CBT, I also conduct Mindfulness-Based Therapy (to help be more present), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT, to stop fighting and start working towards your values), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT, to help regulate emotions), and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT, to reduce PTSD symptoms).
What are your rates for therapy?
Therapy rates are $125-150 per 50-60 minute session, based on a sliding scale. If we want to do shorter therapy sessions, the fee would be adjusted accordingly.
Do you accept insurance?
I cannot accept or bill insurance directly. However, once or twice monthly (depending on your needs), I will provide you with an invoice that contains all of the information your insurance company needs to directly reimburse you.
Essentially, you pay for each session of therapy, I provide an invoice for those payments, you submit that directly to your insurance company, and your insurance company will reimburse you according to your coverage.
Are you able to do Teletherapy?
Absolutely! And I also have a small number of in-person session times available each week as well.
I plan to provide both in-person and teletherapy sessions for the foreseeable future.
How long will I need therapy?
That's up to you! We can discuss your needs and collaboratively make a plan together. However, the nice thing about CBT is that it's "time-limited," so each treatment lasts anywhere from 8-16 sessions. Some clients choose to end treatment earlier or later, depending on their needs and progress. You're never forced into staying in therapy longer than you want/need, and you get to choose when and how to terminate treatment.
What about Assessments?
I also provide Psychodiagnostic, ADHD, and Learning Disability assessments.
Psychodiagnostic Assessments are designed to figure out what disorders you may meet criteria for, and are particularly useful when an individual has a history of several different, complicated concerns.
ADHD and Learning Disability Assessments will help us understand whether or not you meet criteria for ADHD or a Learning Disability (Math, Reading, Written Expression). Frequently, these assessments can be used to get accommodations at schools, colleges, and universities for exams and coursework when those disabilities get in the way of task completion.
Assessments last anywhere from 4-8 hours (likely across multiple sessions), and reports are completed within 3 weeks of testing completion. You will get a feedback session where the report is explained in detail. The report will be yours to take home and keep.
All Assessments are $1500.
What Science Fiction books should I read?
Great Question! If you like the older stuff, the Foundation Trilogy is a great place to start. If you want something a bit more modern, you cannot go wrong with The Expanse (9 book series)! The Hyperion Cantos is also quite fun (3 book series, expanded into 6 books with the Endymion series). Neal Stephenson writes extremely long books with an intense amount of unnecessary detail, but I still very much enjoy them - Seveneves is one of my favorite books (and really, it's two books in one). For realistic science fiction, you can't go wrong with Kim Stanley Robinson! I particularly liked Aurora, which detailed the long-term difficulties of interstellar travel.
If you want a book series that's easy to read with non-stop action, you can go with nearly anything by Brent Weeks or Brandon Sanderson, who also do quite a bit of cool world-building. Some of their books are less sci-fi and more straight fiction, but very entertaining reads! I'll end this with the Red Rising series by Pierce Brown, as it's also mostly just action in a very cool science fiction jacket, and it's very easy to read.