This page is current with summary info that can help you decide whether therapy with me is right for you.
Basics: I've been a mindfulness-based, trauma-focused psychotherapist working with adults since 2008, in private practice since 2014. I find the worst experiences, the things that shouldn't have happened or always seem to go wrong, the things we said we'd never do but did, and all the related symptoms of unease and disease to contain crucial information about our unrealized assumptions, what's really needed, and what can be let go. It's a common tragedy to have experienced the unthinkable and to have packed it well away. We unpack and resolve hard things here. From where I sit, clients leave this process on powerfully better terms with their entire selves and whole lives, including the bad parts, which they came to therapy to get rid of.
Testimonials: I don't entirely trust their use in this field. Generally, I can say satisfied clients have reported more joy, courage, confidence, possibility, and capacity for love and compassion as a result of this work. Dissatisfied clients are encouraged to share any frustrations with me at any time, even years later, which sharing could benefit us and by extension many others. Specifically, on the positive side, clients have said I am nonjudgmental, fearless, friendly, and insightful. On the neutral side, clients have said working with me is different and surprising. On the negative side, clients might say I can be complex on the way to clarity; challenging when it comes to internalized and projected blame, shame, aggression, and prejudice; cautious about employing trauma protocols without proper prep; and a stickler about cancellation, confidentiality, and payment policies.
Duration and Frequency: I don't aim to keep clients coming back once self-regulation and awareness/insight have been reasonably established. I typically meet with clients once weekly or every other week, and eventually once monthly, for anywhere from four months to two years. Some clients consider therapy part of their ongoing wellness and continue once or twice monthly for a longer time. It becomes clear to both of us when therapy is no longer useful. Clients aren't ever terminated; they can schedule as needed down the road.
Session Options: Clients typically schedule 60 minute appointments. Shorter 45 minute sessions can make sense for clients who have a clear agenda and can convey their feelings and expectations forthrightly and/or clients who prefer regular support. Some clients prefer longer appointments and schedule for 90 minutes. This option can be helpful for clients who aren't sure what's wrong, who have multiple symptoms and diagnoses, who need time to relax and open up about what's happening, and who are interested in and appropriate for certain protocols and practices, which are best not to rush through. Finally, some clients who come from a distance schedule a multiple hours session, either once in order to meet face to face and then transition to regular shorter telehealth sessions, or regularly in order to settle in deeply (with breaks) to what have become very complex concerns.
Cost: I did not raise rates in 2023 and will be catching up in 2024. In January, my rate increased from roughly $2.70 to $2.90 per minute which equates to: 45 minutes @ $130, 60 minutes @ $174, and 90 minutes @ $261. Please note that in this field, "hourly" usually means 45 or 50 minutes, not 60. A provider charging $150 per session might be meeting with you for 45 minutes ($3.33/min) or 50 minutes ($3/min). At first glance, that therapist's $150 "per hour" looks to be less than my $174 per literal hour, but is actually more. Don't hesitate to contact me if you want to work with me and think you can't afford to. I'm working on two initiatives that would facilitate lower cost therapy for motivated financially challenged clients.
Logistics and Modes: I work out of a home office. It is possible to enter the main office with no steps, but to access outside meeting spaces and one of the inside meeting spaces, there are five or six steps to navigate. I can meet with clients via secure video or in person, either inside (with dogs, or without them in a space free from their allergens) or outside (with or without dogs). It's also possible and can be generative to walk together during sessions -- onsite doing laps in a large uneven yard, or in a wooded area along a creek, or in a neighborhood, or on a public trail.
Referrals: I welcome permitted conversation with providers who have referred you to me and who are central to your care. I have a network of trauma informed psychiatry, ob/gynecology, dentistry, physical therapy, massage, and yoga providers I can refer you to for additional support if helpful. I also welcome your referrals to me of acquaintances, friends, and family who live in PA, FL, or VT where I'm licensed/registered -- with the caveat that depending on the relationship you have with the person you refer, I may not be able to see them.
Third Parties: I will inquire about your support and it is my hope that you have lots of it. That said, your participation in therapy is confidential and protected; I don't communicate with parents, partners, family, friends, or insurers who may inquire about or pay for your sessions. While contact from loved ones about you for emergency reasons is of course ok, calls and emails from curious or concerned others generally can't be returned unless permitted by you, and so will be initially discussed directly with you. While there may be times when my talking with others is warranted and useful, and you are encouraged to bring relevant supporters in for what is called a "collateral" session, calls and visits with others generally require planning and paperwork.
Meds and Complexities: Clients who take more than one or two psychiatric medications, have been diagnosed with personality or dissociative disorders, are in active addiction, and/or have suicidal or homicidal ideation or intent may not be right for outpatient therapy. While I can support clients in avoiding or decreasing psych meds, a psychiatrist must be on board if clients want to change or stop medications they currently take. Where clients who suffer extreme mental states, engage multiple medical treatments, and/or indulge harmful habits agree to targeted social/group support, and where they understand the limits of confidentiality in therapy -- I am a mandated reporter of abuse and imminent threats of harm -- I work really well with extreme suffering.
Faith: I practice and study in the buddhist tradition. I enjoy work with people of any faith or view who aspire to reconcile the apparent contradictions of heaven and earth (e.g, spirituality and psychology, divinity and sin, wisdom and neurosis, basic goodness and suffering). I can support the exploration of confusion and harms, ranging from bypassing to abuse, occurring in the search for transcendent security.
Psychedelics: I am supportive of outside-the-box approaches and have helped clients explore their motivation for and experience of these increasingly popular treatments. While I am not trained to formally prepare or guide clients during their application, I am connected with a psychiatry/therapy practice that offers them.