What should I expect my first therapy session?

During your first appointment, we will complete a thorough assessment including developmental history and current life stressors. This may include a variety of questions and/or assessments that review your symptoms, medical history, history of relationships, substance use, etc. Sometimes this can take an additional session in order to get a complete assessment and develop an appropriate treatment plan. This is important to identify appropriate intervention options, develop goals, and to ensure that my approach is a good fit for you and that I have the appropriate training/experience to effectively address your concerns.

What is a phone consultation?

In order to make sure that I am a good fit, I often encourage a brief phone consultation prior to scheduling an appointment. We can also do this by email, depending on your preference. This helps me to get a better idea of if I am the right therapist to meet your needs or if I should refer you on to a colleague who may be able to better meet your needs. This consultation will also allow me to get basic information to set you up in my health record system and send you necessary paperwork before we begin.

What paperwork do I need to fill out?

Prior to initiating therapy I will send you several documents to review and sign. These include my general policies (fees, cancellation, limits to confidentiality, how your health information will be used, etc). I will also possibly sent you a intake questionnaire along with appropriate assessment tools to help track our treatment progress. This is helpful for me to make sure we are on the right track but is also a great way for you to follow your progress as well.

I’m nervous about therapy. How do I know I need to go?

Well it all depends. I believe that we all could benefit from therapy at least one time in our life. You don’t have to have a history of trauma or depression to benefit. I have treated a wide variety of patients from adjustments to complex PTSD. If you’re currently not living up to your full potential and you feel that you could benefit from additional support and/or tools, then you will benefit from therapy.

How long does therapy take?

Well that is a great question which neither myself or anyone else will know. The more you are consistent with the interventions and open to feedback, the quicker it typically goes. It also depends on what brought you in and what your goals are. It also depends on what form or therapy we use, some take longer than others. This is something we can discuss more in detail once the assessment phase has been completed. It also depends on how frequently we meet.

What if I don’t know what I need or what my goals are?

This is fine. The treatment planning process is very collaborative. The assessment process will help me to pinpoint areas of intervention and offer a variety of interventions. You will always have say in what we work on and I will make sure you have a good understanding of the pro’s and con’s of your options. This is also something that can be changed throughout the process.

What is EMDR?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a form of therapy that can help you heal from the emotional distress. Research shows that the nervous system becomes damaged during traumatic events, wether they’re smaller traumas or big traumas. These events can leave you feel depressed, anxious, powerless, fearful or like you can’t keep yourself safe. EMDR therapy helps to heal these emotional wounds. It helps you live your life more fully by desensitizing the pain associated with these unresolved emotional wounds.

What is SAFE EMDR?

I am trained in a specific form of EMDR called Somatic and Attachment Focused EMDR (SAFE) which was developed by Deb Kennard, the founder of the Personal Transformation Institute (PTI). SAFE EMDR differs slightly from traditional EMDR in that we develop what we call the “Answer” prior to starting processing. When identify the “targets” (the memories) and start the processing phase, we approach it in a different order. We can focus on somatic symptoms even if there is no associated image/memory with them. We can also process attachment wounds because not every ‘trauma’ involves something that happened, but rather sometimes it is something that didn’t happen.

Do you take insurance?

No, at this time I am not contracted with any insurance companies and most of my clients prefer it this way. This can be a benefit as you can determine your own treatment rather than being dictated by your insurance company. This also means we can address issues not typically covered by insurance. Another benefit, none of your private health information is shared with a big corporation. If you do wish to use insurance, I can provide you with an invoice of your sessions to submit to your insurance for reimbursement directly to you. If you have a HSA/FSA card with a visa logo, I can also process payments with that card.

How long are the sessions?

Most sessions are 50 minutes. However, if we are doing EMDR processing, sometimes longer sessions are necessary. Also, sometimes I people prefer to process a few memories in one session or if there is a specific traumatic event that is anticipated to be difficult, we can process in several sessions or one longer session (80 minutes or even a double session). Typically we will meet weekly or bi-weekly depending on availability and your needs.

What are your fees?

• Initial 15 minute consultation - Free

• 50 minute session - $185

• 80 minute session - $275

• Intensive sessions (3+ hours ) - TBD