Practical

• Cost and Insurance
  • Sessions are $150 an hour. I take Aetna & Cigna insurance or private pay. When I am able, I can offer a sliding scale rate. When you create your client profile during scheduling, you will save a credit card/HSA card/FSA card to keep on file, and your session will be charged to that card. If your insurance offers reimbursement for out-of-network providers, I am happy to provide you with billing invoices that you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement.
• Session Details
  • How long are sessions?
    • Sessions are 50 minutes long. If you have special circumstances (example you work in healthcare and only get a 30 minute lunch and that’s the only time you have for therapy) we can discuss altering the length of the sessions to meet your needs
  • How frequent are sessions?
    • I like for clients to be part of the process of planning how their therapy treatment would be most beneficial. In general, I do like to see people weekly for the first few sessions just to get therapy established. Session frequency can be altered at any time to provide the most benefit for each client.
  • How do we meet?
    • All my sessions are done over telehealth. I use doxy.me so the link you’re given for the first session will be the one you’ll use for each session. You’ll enter a virtual “waiting room” and when it’s time for your session I will let you into the session.

Therapist & Approach

• Background and Training
  • I have a Masters in Social Work from the University of Georgia. I have experience working with individuals who have experienced trauma. I am also working towards my certification in EMDR Treatment and offer this treatment modality. I have also worked in the healthcare field for many years, so I do understand the unique experience of healthcare workers and the related trauma that can come from working in the healthcare field. I work a lot with people who may have some dysfunctional patterns in their families, struggle with implementing boundaries and feeling overwhelmed by how much those in their lives rely on them.
• Approach
  • I believe that each person is an expert in their own life. What does that mean? You may tell me all about yourself and I may have ideas about what might be helpful, but if you’re struggling with a different issue that impacts your daily life, then that’s what we should focus on. I like to take my cues from clients as to what they’d like to focus on each session. I do believe that our early experiences in childhood but also our relationships, shape not only how we see the world but the choices we make, often for safety reasons. I believe that all of us can play a role in our own suffering because we might not see the links between our choices and the things that we wish were different. I really appreciate being able to join someone on their journey to have the life that they want.

The Therapy Experience

• Benefits
  • Therapy can offer many benefits. Understanding oneself can provide realizations about what you really want in life, areas where you don’t feel fulfilled or a greater appreciation for things you have taken for granted. Therapy can allow you to examine interactions to lead the way for more effective and healthier communication. Therapy can also lead the way to feeling more connected to yourself and feeling more grounded. Research shows that therapy can lead to reductions in symptoms of anxiety and depression as well.
• Confidentiality
  • Everything that we discuss in therapy is confidential, with just a few exceptions. If you disclose that you’re going to harm or yourself or someone else, those are things that have to be addressed. If you were to tell me about current child abuse or elder abuse, I’m required by law to report that information.
• Goals
  • You may be wondering if therapy is for you if you don’t have any specific “goals” that you want to work on. That’s okay! Do you feel like you just don’t feel like yourself? Or have you just been feeling like something isn’t right? You don’t have to know exactly what you want to focus on in therapy. Sometimes just starting with wanting to be happier or less stressed is the right focus. As we get deeper into therapy, you will naturally see where you want your focus to go.

Client and Therapist Fit

• How can you tell if a therapist is a good fit for you?
  • Knowing if you and your therapist are a good fit can be easy or it might not be as obvious. In general, if you feel seen, heard, and understood that’s a good place to start. You also want to feel free to say whatever is on your mind and not feel judged. Therapy is a relationship between you and your therapist. Like any other relationship, there has to be communication. If you begin therapy with me, I want you to communicate with me if something feels like it’s not working, or if you aren’t sure if it’s a good fit. Let’s talk about it! Not every person fits with every therapist. And that’s okay. My goal as a therapist is for each person that I work with to ultimately live the life that they want and to feel supported in that.
• Honesty
  • Is it an issue if you aren’t honest in therapy? Do people lie in therapy or try to paint themselves in the best light? Absolutely, it happens all the time. Is it the most helpful? Not really. We are all human. We all make choices that we may wish we hadn’t. The more honest you can be with your therapist, the more your therapist will be able to get to know the real you. A lot of us spend a lot of our lives hiding the real us from our relatives, our friends, maybe even our partners. In therapy, you should feel comfortable to be yourself, all parts of yourself. The more honest you can be the greater likelihood that you’ll feel better.