Why don’t you take insurance?
Paneling with insurance companies means dealing with reduced privacy for my clients, limitations on the number of sessions, and outside input into the course of therapy. I prefer to be able to collaborate with you on your therapy without the interference of a third party. The less I have to hassle with the bureaucracy of insurance companies, the more time and energy I have to give you as much personalized attention as possible.
However, if your insurance plan offers out-of-network coverage for mental health benefits, you may be able to submit an invoice and receive partial reimbursement for the cost of our sessions. When looking into this with your insurance company, be sure to ask if there is a deductible you must meet, and if there is a copay or percentage of the cost that you will be responsible for.
Do you have a sliding scale?
I maintain a limited amount of sliding scale availability for clients wishing to attend weekly sessions but who can’t afford my full fee. Because of the popularity of these slots and how rarely they become available, I do not maintain a wait list for sliding scale openings. Please check my contact page to see if I have current availability for sliding scale.
What kind of therapy do you do? What is a session with you like?
My clinical work is primarily guided by the principles of interpersonal neurobiology, somatic psychology, and Internal Family Systems therapy (IFS.) You can expect me to guide you in observing the interplay of your emotions, physical sensations, and thought patterns in session, as well as to closely attend to the content of the interpersonal and cultural experiences that have shaped you. While we’ll be doing a lot of talking, therapy is (or should be) more than “just talking.” My intention is to engage you as a whole person so that we can successfully shift the stuck patterns you’re coming to therapy to address.
If you want to know more about the theories that inform my work and why I do what I do the way I do it, feel free to ask. I’d love to nerd out about it with you.
Why did you become a therapist?
As a third-generation therapist on my mother’s side, I like to say it’s in my blood. At the very least, I’ve been learning about how to look deeply at human behavior, and about the importance of using that skill to serve others, since I was a tiny kid.
As an adult, I’ve had my own transformative experiences with therapy and felt firsthand what an enormous difference it made in the trajectory of my life. I’m proud to bring not just what I’ve learned in academic settings, but also the depth of my personal experience and the wisdom of past generations into my work with you.
Be sure to check out my about me page if you’d like to learn more about my story!
Paneling with insurance companies means dealing with reduced privacy for my clients, limitations on the number of sessions, and outside input into the course of therapy. I prefer to be able to collaborate with you on your therapy without the interference of a third party. The less I have to hassle with the bureaucracy of insurance companies, the more time and energy I have to give you as much personalized attention as possible.
However, if your insurance plan offers out-of-network coverage for mental health benefits, you may be able to submit an invoice and receive partial reimbursement for the cost of our sessions. When looking into this with your insurance company, be sure to ask if there is a deductible you must meet, and if there is a copay or percentage of the cost that you will be responsible for.
Do you have a sliding scale?
I maintain a limited amount of sliding scale availability for clients wishing to attend weekly sessions but who can’t afford my full fee. Because of the popularity of these slots and how rarely they become available, I do not maintain a wait list for sliding scale openings. Please check my contact page to see if I have current availability for sliding scale.
What kind of therapy do you do? What is a session with you like?
My clinical work is primarily guided by the principles of interpersonal neurobiology, somatic psychology, and Internal Family Systems therapy (IFS.) You can expect me to guide you in observing the interplay of your emotions, physical sensations, and thought patterns in session, as well as to closely attend to the content of the interpersonal and cultural experiences that have shaped you. While we’ll be doing a lot of talking, therapy is (or should be) more than “just talking.” My intention is to engage you as a whole person so that we can successfully shift the stuck patterns you’re coming to therapy to address.
If you want to know more about the theories that inform my work and why I do what I do the way I do it, feel free to ask. I’d love to nerd out about it with you.
Why did you become a therapist?
As a third-generation therapist on my mother’s side, I like to say it’s in my blood. At the very least, I’ve been learning about how to look deeply at human behavior, and about the importance of using that skill to serve others, since I was a tiny kid.
As an adult, I’ve had my own transformative experiences with therapy and felt firsthand what an enormous difference it made in the trajectory of my life. I’m proud to bring not just what I’ve learned in academic settings, but also the depth of my personal experience and the wisdom of past generations into my work with you.
Be sure to check out my about me page if you’d like to learn more about my story!
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I had a not-so-great therapy experience in the past. How will this be different?
I can relate! It can be tough to find a therapist you click with. If you’ve had a negative past experience with therapy, I want to hear about it so that I can get a clear idea of your needs and figure out as quickly as possible whether working together feels like a good fit. Many of my clients say that they’ve had past experiences with therapists who seemed passive and disengaged. That’s not me. While giving you plenty of space to tell your story and be heard is an important component of therapy, listening and nodding isn’t all I’ll do. You’ll find me to be a warm, active and engaged presence during your sessions. Will I have to do homework? What kind and how much? I’m not a “worksheets therapist” - I won’t be handing you stacks of photocopied forms and surveys to fill out at home. (No disrespect, it’s just not my style.) The bulk of our therapeutic work will be done in session. There may be times when I make suggestions about things you can do outside of the therapy room that will enrich our work together and help you reach your goals more quickly. But you can interpret those as invitations, not demands. |
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Do you work with clients with my diagnosis?
You may have a diagnosis that carries a lot of stigma, and you’re worried that it will scare therapists off (or you’ve had a past experience where this has happened.) I don’t turn clients down on the basis of diagnosis, and would be happy to discuss it further if you’ve been told that your diagnosis precludes certain kinds of therapeutic work.
If you’re looking for targeted treatment for a particular diagnosis that is outside my area of expertise (for example, exposure and response prevention for OCD) then I will do my best to refer you to someone who specializes in treating that diagnosis.
Speaking of diagnosis, what are your views on diagnosis and the DSM?
I believe our diagnostic system is one way of looking at and thinking about mental health, and of identifying patterns that people sometimes tend to fall into. There are other, different ways that are just as valid. How we think about these things is influenced by our cultural and personal biases, the era we live in, and how we hear others talk about them.
Sometimes a diagnosis can be an incredibly helpful and validating way for someone to understand themselves better, have a form of shorthand to describe aspects of their experience, and find a sense of direction for how they want to move forward. Other times, someone might find that having a diagnosis makes them feel pathologized and limited. Either way, no diagnosis can fully capture the complexity of a person’s struggles (let alone their strengths.)
Because I do not work with insurance companies, I do not always give each client a diagnosis. If a particular diagnosis stands out to me that I believe would be helpful to include in our work together, or if you’re wondering about a diagnosis that feels like it might fit for you, I’m always open to talking about it.
You may have a diagnosis that carries a lot of stigma, and you’re worried that it will scare therapists off (or you’ve had a past experience where this has happened.) I don’t turn clients down on the basis of diagnosis, and would be happy to discuss it further if you’ve been told that your diagnosis precludes certain kinds of therapeutic work.
If you’re looking for targeted treatment for a particular diagnosis that is outside my area of expertise (for example, exposure and response prevention for OCD) then I will do my best to refer you to someone who specializes in treating that diagnosis.
Speaking of diagnosis, what are your views on diagnosis and the DSM?
I believe our diagnostic system is one way of looking at and thinking about mental health, and of identifying patterns that people sometimes tend to fall into. There are other, different ways that are just as valid. How we think about these things is influenced by our cultural and personal biases, the era we live in, and how we hear others talk about them.
Sometimes a diagnosis can be an incredibly helpful and validating way for someone to understand themselves better, have a form of shorthand to describe aspects of their experience, and find a sense of direction for how they want to move forward. Other times, someone might find that having a diagnosis makes them feel pathologized and limited. Either way, no diagnosis can fully capture the complexity of a person’s struggles (let alone their strengths.)
Because I do not work with insurance companies, I do not always give each client a diagnosis. If a particular diagnosis stands out to me that I believe would be helpful to include in our work together, or if you’re wondering about a diagnosis that feels like it might fit for you, I’m always open to talking about it.
Are you sex-positive, kink-aware, BDSM-friendly, and/or knowledgeable of polyamory?
Yup! I firmly believe that there is no one way of doing sex or relationships that is right for everybody - and sex and relationships can be complicated, no matter what style or configuration they take. These are topics that come up for most people in therapy at some point, and it’s important to not feel judged or shamed by your therapist. Whatever your sex and relationships look like, all I care about is that everyone involved is acting with good communication, consent, and integrity (and that includes the vanilla and monogamous folks too.)
Are you LGBTQIA+ friendly? Have you worked with queer, trans and gender-variant clients? Do you provide letters for gender-affirming medical treatment like hormones and surgery?
Yes, yes, and yes. A large percentage of my caseload at any given time is made up of queer and/or trans folks, and I have deep lifelong ties to the queer community in my personal life as well.
While I don’t offer assessments specifically for providing hormone and/or surgery letters, I do provide my trans clients who are seeking gender-affirming medical treatment with letters free of extra charge as a courtesy.
I’m a person of color and I’m apprehensive about working with a white therapist. How do you approach working with clients of a different race?
Your apprehension makes complete sense. I’ve heard horror stories from my POC clients and friends about white therapists who were dismissive of their experiences of racism, or worse - made outright racist comments themselves.
I know that people of color experience particular mental health impacts both from historical trauma and active present-day oppression, and I view deepening my understanding about this as a part of my continuing education that will never be finished. My learning process involves studying the works of mental health clinicians and researchers of color as well as real-life dynamic relational learning from POC.
I always invite dialogue about how differing identities may impact our clinical work together, and find that this can be a powerful part of the therapeutic process.
What are your views on substance use and addiction?
I subscribe to the principles of harm reduction, which center around the idea that substance use is a part of the human experience, and that the best thing we can do is accept that reality and minimize any harmful impacts of substances. Harm reduction is an individualized process, and it looks different for everyone based on their values, history and life circumstances. I will not judge or look down on you based on your substance use.
I don’t specialize in addictions counseling, so if you are seeking therapy primarily to address substance use, or if during the process of therapy we find that your substance use is continually keeping us from making progress in our work together, I will refer you to someone in that specialty who can better serve your needs.
Yup! I firmly believe that there is no one way of doing sex or relationships that is right for everybody - and sex and relationships can be complicated, no matter what style or configuration they take. These are topics that come up for most people in therapy at some point, and it’s important to not feel judged or shamed by your therapist. Whatever your sex and relationships look like, all I care about is that everyone involved is acting with good communication, consent, and integrity (and that includes the vanilla and monogamous folks too.)
Are you LGBTQIA+ friendly? Have you worked with queer, trans and gender-variant clients? Do you provide letters for gender-affirming medical treatment like hormones and surgery?
Yes, yes, and yes. A large percentage of my caseload at any given time is made up of queer and/or trans folks, and I have deep lifelong ties to the queer community in my personal life as well.
While I don’t offer assessments specifically for providing hormone and/or surgery letters, I do provide my trans clients who are seeking gender-affirming medical treatment with letters free of extra charge as a courtesy.
I’m a person of color and I’m apprehensive about working with a white therapist. How do you approach working with clients of a different race?
Your apprehension makes complete sense. I’ve heard horror stories from my POC clients and friends about white therapists who were dismissive of their experiences of racism, or worse - made outright racist comments themselves.
I know that people of color experience particular mental health impacts both from historical trauma and active present-day oppression, and I view deepening my understanding about this as a part of my continuing education that will never be finished. My learning process involves studying the works of mental health clinicians and researchers of color as well as real-life dynamic relational learning from POC.
I always invite dialogue about how differing identities may impact our clinical work together, and find that this can be a powerful part of the therapeutic process.
What are your views on substance use and addiction?
I subscribe to the principles of harm reduction, which center around the idea that substance use is a part of the human experience, and that the best thing we can do is accept that reality and minimize any harmful impacts of substances. Harm reduction is an individualized process, and it looks different for everyone based on their values, history and life circumstances. I will not judge or look down on you based on your substance use.
I don’t specialize in addictions counseling, so if you are seeking therapy primarily to address substance use, or if during the process of therapy we find that your substance use is continually keeping us from making progress in our work together, I will refer you to someone in that specialty who can better serve your needs.
...or join me on a little tour of my office.