Faq

Pull through the driveway to the right of the building for access to the parking lot (which is behind the building). Street parking is also often available.

Please enter through the front door and have a seat in the small waiting area. I will come out to greet you shortly thereafter.

My hours are flexible and are not set in stone.

To best accommodate my clients, my office hours include morning, afternoon and evening time slots.

I typically do not have weekend hours.

Typically the first session is 60 to 75 minutes. This allows ample to time to better understand what brings you to therapy and to learn a bit about your background.

Subsequent individual sessions are about 50 minutes.

Couples sessions usually run from 50 to 60 minutes, typically.

My fee is $195 per session.

I have a limited number of sliding-scale fee slots. These are typically offered at non-peak hours and require completion of an income/expense form. There is, at times, a waitlist for these slots.

I accept cash, check, PayPal, and credit cards.

I am an out-of-network provider for insurance plans. Typically, clients pay for their services at each session.

If you have a PPO or POS type plan that allows for out-of-network benefits, I can provide a weekly or monthly “super bill” for you to submit to your carrier for your reimbursement.

Exception for public servants: If you are a public servant (e.g., teacher or police officer) with POS/PPO insurance, once your deductible is met, I typically charge only a copay at the time of service and will wait for reimbursement from the insurance company.

Yes. For clients who are not using insurance plans, I offer a reduced price for a bundle of sessions.

Just let me know if you are interested in learning more about this option.

No, I do not. I believe therapy works best when confidentiality can be fully preserved.

Yes. I ask that an appointment be cancelled with 24 hours’ notice. The cancellation fee is $50.

It is a 15-20 minute phone conversation where I can learn a bit more about what brings you to therapy at this time, learn what you are hoping to gain from treatment, and assess whether I am best suited to help you achieve your goals.

Speaking together over the phone is mutually helpful. It gives you a chance to get a sense of me and to ask any questions you might have about how therapy with me typically works.

If, after speaking, we agree that we are a good fit, we can schedule our first session. If the fit is not ideal, I will steer you in the direction of other resources, services, therapists, etc.

I do offer video sessions (through a HIPAA-compliant service) for situations where getting to the office is unrealistic.

Some of these circumstances include, for example, managing a newborn, impending inclement weather, or traveling long distances. I prefer to use this modality in conjunction with face-to-face office sessions when possible.

No, I do not. Only psychiatrists, physicians, or physician assistants can prescribe medications.

I do, however, work collaboratively with psychiatrists in the area to ensure there is cohesion between the medication and the therapy parts of a client’s treatment.

I am respectful of my client’s perspective and preferences.

Some of my clients begin work with me already on medications for issues such as depression, anxiety, OCD, or ADHD. Talk therapy in conjunction with medication can provide tremendous benefits.

Other clients I see are not on medications and/or are not interested in them. For many clients, troublesome symptoms are diminished solely through the therapeutic process.

I am comfortable seeing what relief therapeutic interventions can bring while revisiting the issue of medication, if appropriate.

Some of my most rewarding work is with clients who are overcoming addictions of all sorts.

I truly enjoy working with people who are in recovery, helping them identify and process feelings, strengthen communication and coping skills, reduce feelings of shame, make amends, make peace with themselves and others, and “live life on life’s terms.”

If a client struggles significantly with sustaining sobriety, I may refer her or him to an intensive outpatient or inpatient setting where their needs may better be served. After completing this program, I welcome these clients back to our therapeutic work together.

Sometimes I will give a client an article or handout, suggest specific tasks or challenges for them to tackle between sessions, or recommend a specific book to supplement our work together.

I value each client as unique and, because of this, I do not have a cookie-cutter approach to “homework.”

For clients who learn best through this type of intervention, I can gladly incorporate “assignments” into our sessions.

For those who dread the idea of this, no worries. All work is merely suggested and never graded, lol!

There are so many therapists out there, and each has his or her own style, training, and perspective.

You owe it to yourself to work with someone you feel you can trust—someone with whom you feel a growing sense of comfort—someone whom you feel “gets you.”

You may get some sense of me during our phone consultation, but you will definitely get a better feel over the first few sessions.

If you are not feeling more comfortable after a few visits, I may not be the right fit for you. I encourage clients to “try a therapist out” and then decide.

Both!

Sometimes it really is fun. It is exciting to observe positive change in yourself, to learn to laugh at yourself a bit, and to have a special time strictly devoted to you where you can share freely in a supportive, non-judgmental environment. You may find yourself genuinely looking forward to sessions.

At other times . . . well . . . it can feel a bit like a root canal. You are poking and digging through old, tender, and, at times, painful rawness in order to clear it out and achieve well-being.

Temporary discomfort can be in the service of your greater health. Sometimes that is not fun, but we will go at a pace set by you . . . and what is on the other side is so very worth it.

For some clients, therapy is time-limited and focused on resolving or coping with a particular issue or life event. Once clients “feel better,” they may choose to end therapy.

For the majority of clients, therapy is a more lengthy process and the focus is often broader. The frequency of therapy may change over the course of treatment.

Self-awareness can be like peeling an onion: one layer leads to the next. Old engrained patterns and thought processes usually take time to be re-written and re-learned.

Challenging or new situations take time to process, accept, and become equipped at handling. Resolving trauma takes trust and, very often, time.

When clients are living their best lives, they tend to spend less time in my office.

When I don’t hear from my clients, it usually means they are doing well. It is paradoxical that I see clients most frequently at their lowest points (not as often at their best). But it truly fills me with warmth to know that what they achieved in therapy prepared them to soar.

When I am no longer seeing a client, it is usually because they have hit their stride. They have built up a broad array of coping strategies, they have developed a sense of introspection, their self-talk has shifted in positive ways, and they have learned to self-correct. Curve balls still come their way and setbacks happen, but they are better equipped to manage them.

My door is always open to former clients.

The vast majority of clients come back in periodically for “tune-ups.”

Many schedule monthly or bi-monthly sessions as a way to consciously “hit the pause button” on their hectic daily rhythm and check-in with themselves to explore rough patches or to make sure they maintaining progress.

Yes. Cognitive behavioral therapy (or CBT) focuses on how a person’s thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes affect their feelings and behaviors.

It can be extremely helpful in assisting clients develop healthier thought patterns, increase awareness, learn new coping strategies, and improve their quality of life.

It is one of many tools/styles/techniques that I incorporate into my work with clients.

Yes. My clients come from diverse walks of life and from many different backgrounds.

To be an effective and empathic counselor, I must be able to approach our work together through the context of your world.

I am committed to lifelong learning of multicultural competence to continually expand my understanding of the world of my clients.

Absolutely!

My first goal for a client of any age is to create a welcoming and stress-reducing environment. I initially work on building familiarity, rapport, and trust.

With children, I typically use “play therapy” techniques: engaging in art activities, playing board games, or using puppet play—whatever your child gravitates towards.

Sessions feel informal—we may even sit on the floor. Whatever the setting, we can find an engaging activity as I get to know your child’s style.

Teens may be somewhat resistant initially but, as a rapport develops, they are usually very comfortable talking. Many like to talk while simultaneously playing chess, checkers, or a board game.

No. That old stereotype of the patient lying on a couch while the therapist mutely sits behind him or her, emitting the occasional “Hmmmm . . . tell me more” is not how therapy with me works.

It is much more conversational.

I do have a comfy couch, as well as a chair. Most people sit; some people grab a blanket and cozily settle in. But if you would like to stretch out on the couch, feel free!

Typically sessions are in my office, but I have clients who occasionally prefer to stroll around the block or sit out on the front porch or steps. I am open to all of the above!

Yes, not a problem. I completely understand the hectic, multi-tasking world we live in.

Absolutely!

Many moms come to session with their newborns so they can nurse/feed them and attend to them as needed. For some moms it is less stressful (and less costly) than finding childcare.

Anything shared by you in session is held by me in strict confidence. I do not share this information with other clients and will hold their information just as privately.