Brief answers to common questions~~ ~~How do you best choose a therapist? Many people start by word of mouth, advertisements, or referrals from insurance plans or their MD’s. I encourage people to ask questions. Most therapists, myself included, are willing to spend a bit of time on the phone with you, so see how comfortable you feel in that conversation and if you feel your questions were understood. This won’t be--shouldn’t ethically be-- a ‘phone session.’ But you should feel that there is enough of a connection that you could begin talking to them in more detail in person. Sometimes you have a good feeling about someone right away, but some people choose to narrow their list down and schedule an appointment with a few before making a final decision. Since therapists charge for their time you should expect this, although sometimes new therapists building their practice might offer a free consultation. ~~How often do we meet? My preference especially with someone new is weekly; sessions run 45-50 minutes. It’s important to establish a solid relationship to develop a good understanding of what’s going on within the context of your life. Sometimes we can meet less often depending on individual circumstances. I can’t predict how long we will work together, its too individual. Generally speaking its best to plan for a regular investment in time for yourself if you really want to make lasting changes, whatever the issue. If you, your life and your concerns were really that simple (they’re not) you wouldn’t be reading web pages about therapy; you’d have read some self-help or talked with an acquaintance and be finished with it. I work with people who’ve realized quick fixes don’t last. ~~What are your hours? My routine availability is Monday thru Thursday 9am to 8pm.; sometimes I might flex my schedule into Friday although this varies. ~~Is what we talk about confidential? Under almost all circumstances yes, although if you have specific concerns we can talk about this in more detail than the short answer here. There is a longstanding professional ethic which I strongly support and which is covered by numerous court decisions that upholds your right to privacy and confidentiality. There are also ethical and legal constraints to provide for safety. This means that if there is evidence of clear and imminent intent to harm someone then steps need to be taken to ensure their safety and yours. The same logic applies to ensuring the immediate safety of those deemed to be unable to adequately protect themselves such as in cases of child or elder abuse. Beyond the immediate safety concerns, however, my position is in support of strict confidentiality. Finance can also be an issue, see below. ~~How much does therapy cost and how is it paid for? Again, issues to discuss in greater detail than here. There are too many variables to tell you what your individual cost might be without our meeting, generally I advise to plan for a regular bill in your budget. People pay in a variety of ways. Some people have ‘employee assistance plans’ through work which provide a few company pre-paid sessions to get you started. Many use insurance to pay part of their costs; there’s wide variety in how different companies work but generally there is a list of covered symptoms or problems (diagnosis) they utilize. Most often , as in any insurance process, you have to meet your policy deductible amount yourself and then they will pay a percentage up to a certain limit and you will also have some percentage or a copay. Generally they try to control the amounts paid out and there are various ways to do this; many plans only authorize a certain number of sessions at a time and require documentation to continue and so they do require disclosure of some personal and clinical information to make their determination. Most often what they want is symptom-specific (for example ‘what anxiety symptoms are they experiencing’) but this does require what would otherwise be confidential information to some degree. Its up to you if this type of information is something you want shared; but if this is their process they won’t help pay your bill otherwise. If you want to use insurance it is imperative that you have a clear understanding from them what they cover and what is yours to cover as well as any other requirements they may have. To avoid dealing with insurance limits or procedures, or to ensure greater confidentiality, or in some professions, many people simply elect to pay on their own. ~~How do I know when its time to start? Maybe you’re hearing suggestions from others in your life, maybe that’s been occurring for awhile. But mostly, I think you’ll know already when you’re tired enough of things being the way they are.

Brief answers to common questions~~

~~How do you best choose a therapist?

Many people start by word of mouth, advertisements, or referrals from insurance plans or their MD’s. I encourage people to ask questions. Most therapists, myself included, are willing to spend a bit of time on the phone with you, so see how comfortable you feel in that conversation and if you feel your questions were understood. This won’t be--shouldn’t ethically be-- a ‘phone session.’ But you should feel that there is enough of a connection that you could begin talking to them in more detail in person. Sometimes you have a good feeling about someone right away, but some people choose to narrow their list down and schedule an appointment with a few before making a final decision. Since therapists charge for their time you should expect this, although sometimes new therapists building their practice might offer a free consultation.

~~How often do we meet?

My preference especially with someone new is weekly; sessions run 45-50 minutes. It’s important to establish a solid relationship to develop a good understanding of what’s going on within the context of your life. Sometimes we can meet less often depending on individual circumstances. I can’t predict how long we will work together, its too individual. Generally speaking its best to plan for a regular investment in time for yourself if you really want to make lasting changes, whatever the issue. If you, your life and your concerns were really that simple (they’re not) you wouldn’t be reading web pages about therapy; you’d have read some self-help or talked with an acquaintance and be finished with it. I work with people who’ve realized quick fixes don’t last.

~~What are your hours?

My routine availability is Monday thru Thursday 9am to 8pm.; sometimes I might flex my schedule into Friday although this varies.

~~Is what we talk about confidential?

Under almost all circumstances yes, although if you have specific concerns we can talk about this in more detail than the short answer here. There is a longstanding professional ethic which I strongly support and which is covered by numerous court decisions that upholds your right to privacy and confidentiality. There are also ethical and legal constraints to provide for safety. This means that if there is evidence of clear and imminent intent to harm someone then steps need to be taken to ensure their safety and yours. The same logic applies to ensuring the immediate safety of those deemed to be unable to adequately protect themselves such as in cases of child or elder abuse. Beyond the immediate safety concerns, however, my position is in support of strict confidentiality. Finance can also be an issue, see below.

~~How much does therapy cost and how is it paid for?

Again, issues to discuss in greater detail than here. There are too many variables to tell you what your individual cost might be without our meeting, generally I advise to plan for a regular bill in your budget. People pay in a variety of ways. Some people have ‘employee assistance plans’ through work which provide a few company pre-paid sessions to get you started. Many use insurance to pay part of their costs; there’s wide variety in how different companies work but generally there is a list of covered symptoms or problems (diagnosis) they utilize. Most often , as in any insurance process, you have to meet your policy deductible amount yourself and then they will pay a percentage up to a certain limit and you will also have some percentage or a copay. Generally they try to control the amounts paid out and there are various ways to do this; many plans only authorize a certain number of sessions at a time and require documentation to continue and so they do require disclosure of some personal and clinical information to make their determination. Most often what they want is symptom-specific (for example ‘what anxiety symptoms are they experiencing’) but this does require what would otherwise be confidential information to some degree. Its up to you if this type of information is something you want shared; but if this is their process they won’t help pay your bill otherwise. If you want to use insurance it is imperative that you have a clear understanding from them what they cover and what is yours to cover as well as any other requirements they may have. To avoid dealing with insurance limits or procedures, or to ensure greater confidentiality, or in some professions, many people simply elect to pay on their own.

~~How do I know when its time to start?

Maybe you’re hearing suggestions from others in your life, maybe that’s been occurring for awhile. But mostly, I think you’ll know already when you’re tired enough of things being the way they are.