What happens in a free consultation?

You can ask me anything you like about how I work and what to expect. I’ll ask you some very general questions about what you’re interested in working on and whether or not you’ve been in therapy before.

We may decide to work together, we may decide we’re not the best fit. Or, you might decide that you need to think about it and/or interview other therapists before making the decision.

Can I use out of network insurance benefits to help pay for therapy?

Yes. Here is how this works. We agree that you are responsible for payment at the time of service, and that you are responsible for making sure that your benefits will cover our work. Then, I will provide you with a monthly document called a superbill, which includes dates of service, diagnosis codes, and charges. You’ll share this document with your insurance company and they’ll reimburse you directly. In the event that they pay me directly instead, we can decide together whether you’d like me to sign the check over to you or use the funds as credit for future sessions.

Perhaps the most important two words here are ‘diagnosis codes.’ When utilizing insurance, a diagnosis is required. It may be that you have a diagnosis and that you are comfortable using and documenting that diagnosis: If this is the case, the use of insurance should be pretty straightforward. Likewise, the use of insurance should be relatively easy if we arrive at a clear diagnosis together and you are comfortable with its documentation.

On the other hand, if your experience is not diagnosable, we cannot bill insurance. (This is partially why I’m not in network with insurance in the first place. See below for more.)

Does remote therapy work as well as in-person therapy?

In my experience, absolutely.

I was a therapist at the VA when COVID hit. When we were sent home to work exclusively via tele-health, I was convinced that the loss of human-to-human contact would lead to less effective therapy. However, it didn’t take long before my doubts were assuaged: People were healing before me just as they had in person.

I understand that tele-health is not for everyone. I’m certainly not trying to convince anyone who feels strongly about seeing someone in person to do remote therapy . You should do what’s right for you.

That said, I think there are some ulterior benefits to remote therapy versus in-person. First, there is a savings on time and money by not having to commute and park. Second, there are some advantages to doing such personal work in the safety and comfort of your own home.

What modality or style of therapy do you practice?

While I incorporate aspects of multiple modalities depending on the moment, my modality would best be described as a combination of client-centered, psychodynamic, and mindful practices.