We'll start with a free brief phone consultation to determine if the services I offer are a good fit to address your concerns, answer any questions you might have, discuss a few of my policies, and confirm your insurance coverage or other payment details. If we decide to work together, our first appointment will be a 50-60-minute intake session during which I'll spend some time learning about your history and what you hope to gain from our work together.

Therapy is a very collaborative process. During our first few sessions, I’ll ask you to share specific things about yourself in order for me to learn more about your concerns and history, and then I'll share my diagnostic impressions. Beyond that, I prefer to approach sessions in a conversational, organic way. I tend to follow your lead as you discuss whatever feels most important to you instead of imposing a specific structure or agenda on our time together. Rather than giving directive advice to “fix” your concerns, I'll try to help you arrive at your own solutions by facilitating your exploration and insight, making gentle observations, identifying themes in what you share, offering my tentative ideas about what might be going on and what could be beneficial, and inviting you to try out new ways of thinking or approaching situations.

In general, information disclosed in sessions is confidential, but there are four main legal exceptions to confidentiality: (a) I believe there’s a substantial risk you may harm yourself or someone else; (b) I suspect a vulnerable population is being abused, neglected, or exploited by a caregiver; (c) I’m ordered by a court or must defend myself in legal proceedings; and (d) you give me written permission to share your information. See my Notice of Privacy Practices below for a full list of exceptions.

I am a generalist who has experience working with most concerns and adults of any age, and specific expertise in working with anxiety and stress management, relationship and communication difficulties, women’s issues, depression, stressful life events and transitions, family-of-origin issues, grief/loss, identity development, late-adolescents/young adults and college students, trauma, sexual assault, and mild-to-moderate eating concerns. I also have expertise working with identity and cultural concerns related to race/ethnicity, immigration history, economic status, gender, religion, and sexuality (to name a few).

My therapeutic style includes culturally-sensitive, person-centered, relational/interpersonal, trauma-informed, emotion-focused, psychodynamic, and cognitive-behavioral approaches.

A typical session lasts 50-55 minutes. Depending on your concerns and needs, sessions may occur weekly, every other week, or multiple times each week. The length of time we work together and frequency of our sessions depend on several factors that we'll discuss during your intake appointment. Complex, severe, and/or long-standing concerns are typically best addressed in a longer-term approach, whereas other concerns can be adequately addressed in a handful of sessions.

Clients can access my secure, HIPAA-compliant, HITRUST CSF® certified Simple Practice Client Portal via webpage or mobile app to complete paperwork, schedule sessions, message me, upload documents, view statements, and pay balances. If selected, Simple Practice will also send reminders about upcoming sessions. See the Simple Practice client portal guide below for more information.

For the occasional teletherapy session, you need access to the following equipment/technology: Tablet, smartphone, laptop, or desktop computer High-speed internet Built-in or external camera Built-in or external microphone Headphones or speakers

Log-in 5-10 minutes early to verify that everything is working properly and troubleshoot technical issues. Choose a place and time for your appointments that guarantees your privacy/confidentiality and reduces the likelihood of being overheard. Consider using headphones to ensure that we have a confidential conversation and minimize distractions. Confirm that your image is sharp and bright, you have a diffuse light source in front of you (not above, to the side, or behind) to avoid shadows on your face, your lens is at eye level, and your face is centered in the camera view. If you don't have a strong Wi-Fi connection, consider using your mobile phone as a hotspot If there is a technological failure while using teletherapy, ensure that your phone is nearby and will accept incoming calls. If you are unable to connect or get disconnected during an appointment, please try again. If problems continue, call me directly at (757) 899-4804. Check out the Simple Practice telehealth guide below for more information.