FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Do you take my insurance?
I currently accept Aetna, Optum, and United for individual therapy only. I no longer accept Kaiser. For all others, I am out of network and I no longer provide superbills. If you are a Healthnet/MHN Medi-Cal member, you can see any therapist in my group practice LBC Wellness. I do not accept any insurance for couples, even if it's one of the insurances I accept for individual.
Do you work with kids?
I love kids! And now that I am back in an office setting, I am able to see kids again, starting at age 7. For children 13 and older, please note that their sessions will remain confidential. I'll only communicate with parents if a teen is a risk to self or others. Parents must be very clear of this confidentiality before putting their teenager into treatment. Additionally, I do not work with children/teens who engage in self-harming behavior, those who express suicidal ideation frequently, or any child/family with an open DCFS case.
What are your rates?
My 50-min session fee is as follows: $140 individual, $160 for couples or families. No sliding scale provided.
What are your hours?
Mon through Fri: 10 am - 4 pm. If you need sessions beyond 4 pm or you're looking for weekend availability, please consider seeing one of the therapists in my group practice LBC Wellness.
When will you start taking new clients?
If I am currently not accepting clients, I will update both my homepage and voicemail to reflect when that changes.
Can you help me?
I hope so. It's what I aim to do. But with that being said, therapy is an interactive process that involves your ongoing participation. It's a process you have to trust, to continuously work at and not be resistant to. It requires you being active in your treatment. I give you the tools in the session; you use those tools in the real world. Therapy will only work if you are willing and motivated to help yourself.
Will you work with my issue?
Depends. Please know that I do not work with clients with the following issues: major depressive disorder, suicidality, bipolar disorder, personality disorder, eating disorder, current substance abuse disorder, or clients with less than one year of sobriety. I also won't take on couples who have domestic violence issues or couples who are trying couples therapy as their very last option.
How long will therapy take?
This is a question that cannot be answered with any finite date. I cannot say 6 sessions, or 6 months. Therapy, healing, growth all happen at different speeds for different people who come in for different issues. My ongoing goal for all clients is to get you out of therapy, not keep you in it. If you do the homework I give you, you will be more successful in therapy. With that being said, I do not believe in life-long therapy. I believe successful treatment is when we resolve your initial issue(s) and any other issues that arise during treatment and you are able to cope well outside of therapy using the skills you learned. I want you to become empowered by me, not dependent on me.
What kind of homework do you give?
I'm different from the majority of therapists in that I'm more involved with a clients' treatment, using more of an active approach than a passive one. I give homework at the end of each session that's specifically tailored for each individual client or couple to teach and reinforce healthier behaviors in order to avoid using former behaviors that have been unsuccessful, unhealthy, or damaging.