FAQs

FAQs

What will happen during our first session?

The first session is a great opportunity to see if we might work well together to meet your therapeutic needs. If we mesh well, a regular time will be scheduled for the following sessions and you will be charged for the fee we agreed upon. If we are not a fit, I will offer you a referral and you will be charged at a discounted rate for the consultation.

How long are sessions?

Sessions last 50 minutes and are usually held at a regular time each week.

What is your policy about cancellations?

Clients can cancel or reschedule an appointment anytime, as long as they provide 24 hours notice. If you cancel an appointment with less than 24 hours notice, or fail to show up, you will be responsible for the fee and charged for the full session rate.

Do you accept insurance?

I currently do not accept insurance plans. However, my services may be covered in full or in part by your health insurance or employee benefit plan. I would be happy to provide you a monthly invoice (i.e. superbill) to submit to your insurance plan.

Please check your coverage carefully by asking the following questions to your insurance or employee benefit plan,

• Do I have mental health insurance benefits?
• What is my deductible and has it been met?
• How many sessions per year does my health insurance cover?
• What is the coverage amount per therapy session?
• Is approval required from my primary care physician?

How long will it take until I get better?

This is a very complex question. And my response to this is another question. What do you mean by getting better? Mental health is more than just being sick or healthy.

But if we're going to stick with this question the best answer I can give is...it depends. The length of time it takes for anyone to get “better” at mental health really depends on what kind of goals we will work on during our sessions. What I can tell you is if you're willing to read this entire FAQ section, that tells me you’ve taken a necessary step to start the healing process.

I’m nervous about starting therapy. Is that normal?

It’s totally normal to be nervous about starting therapy. It can be scary to think of opening up or crying in front of someone new, perhaps fearing that it will be awkward and uncomfortable. The fear around that can feel overwhelming. It takes courage to start going to therapy. The fact that you are on this website, looking for help, and reading this right now shows that you are brave and seeking help.

Therapy is a space where you can be yourself and come just as you are, including feeling nervous. I’m committed to finding a way to care for your nervousness and ensure sessions are as comfortable as possible.

I’m here if you want to talk about it during a free phone consultation.

How do I know if you are the right therapist for me?

Take your time to read through my website. If you sense that I may be a good fit based on what you are reading, you can schedule yourself in my online scheduler.

During a free phone consultation, you can ask me what a typical session with me is like, ask how I work as a therapist, or any other questions you may have that are specific-to-you. You’ll also be able to discuss what's on your mind and we can decide together how I can help.

I think of the first few times that I meet with someone as a trial run. During the sessions, you’ll be able to see how you feel working with me. My approach is not going to work for everyone. What’s most important to me is that you find someone who you feel is the right fit for you. We can explore that together.

What if I don't want to talk about something?

If something feels overwhelming or even terrifying to discuss, that's actually very normal. It can often feel difficult to talk about some things… During our sessions, if you don't want to talk about something, you don't have to. We will collaborate on understanding what you feel ready to open up about. Together we will work through the difficult stuff.

You can also share with me that you are nervous to open up about something and we can talk about that too. Whatever is present for you. Whatever you are going through. Bring that to the session and we can explore that together.

I’m scared that if I open up, you will think I’m crazy.

If you open up to me, I will not think you are crazy, I will think you are courageous and human. Many of my clients have had the same fear (that people would think they are crazy).

Through my own life journey and working with my clients, I know how ‘normal’ your experience is.

You're not being dramatic or "too much." Nothing you can say will cause me to judge you.

I know nobody's perfect, we all struggle, and we may have normal reactions to abnormally challenging experiences.

Whatever it is you're going through, I provide a safe space where you can feel heard and supported without judgment.

Does what we talk about in therapy remain confidential?

It can be concerning to feel like things you say or do in therapy could "get out." So you should know that unless you are suicidal, harming yourself, or someone else, what you say in sessions stays between you and me.

I highly respect your privacy and value your trust.

You can rest assured that you can talk about anything without fear of that information getting out.

If you have specific questions about how confidentiality works, you can ask during your during the free phone consultation or anytime during our work together.

How long will therapy take?

You might be asking about how long therapy will take because therapy is hard to fit into your busy schedule.

If this is true for you, I want you to know that on average, my new clients start seeing progress after the first 3-5 sessions.

By that point, they feel like they have learned some ways to manage challenging stuff in their lives a bit better

The total duration of therapy varies from client to client. Some of my clients find 6-12 weeks to be enough to resolve immediate challenges. While other clients feel more supported by longer-term therapy.

We will work together to find the length of time that works for you.

What can I expect during the first session?

Overall, you can think of the first session as a free-flowing conversation through which we start getting to know each other. I’ll invite you to share more about yourself and we can also talk about what’s worked or not worked for your mental health in the past.

Some questions that I like to ask during a first session include:

• What brought you to therapy?
• What goals would you like to reach by going to therapy?
• What do I need to know about you to understand your current challenges?

You can ask me questions as well. You might be curious about my experience or how future sessions work.

The most important part of a first session is that you see if you feel I’m a good fit for you. If you feel safe, accepted, and comfortable with me, we can discuss if you’d like to meet again.

How can I get started?

I'm here to talk during a free phone consultation where you can discuss what's on your mind and we can decide together how I can help.

Schedule yourself in my online scheduler today to get your free phone consultation.