FAQs

The first session is a full working session, not a consultation. We'll talk about what's bringing you in, your history, and what you're hoping to get out of therapy. I'll also start paying attention to what's happening in your body as we talk, which will give you a feel for how I work. By the end of the hour, we'll both have a good sense of whether this is the right fit.

No, I don’t offer free consultation calls or phone consultations due to my scheduling demands and limited administrative time.

Instead, I offer a paid initial session so we both get a real sense of what it’s like to work together. I’ve found that I can offer more assessment, referrals, resources, and feedback in one hour than I can in a 15-minute phone call, whether we continue treatment together or not. A full session gives us the information needed to make a good decision.

The pages about my approach to couples therapy for faith deconstruction, couples therapy for conflict, chronic pain therapy, and religious trauma describe what working with me looks like, and the dedicated FAQ page covers fees, scheduling, telehealth, and insurance. If you’ve read through and feel like we might be a good fit, the next step is to book an intake directly, which you can do on the contact page.

If you have a specific question that isn’t answered on the site, you can reach me through the contact form on the contact page and I’ll get back to you within 1-2 business days.

If you've read through my service pages and something resonated, that's usually a strong indicator. I work best with people who are dealing with layered situations: chronic pain alongside trauma, a faith transition affecting a marriage, or relationship conflicts that feel driven by something deeper than miscommunication. If your life doesn't fit neatly into one category and you're looking for a therapist who can work with the whole picture, we're likely a good match.

Couples therapy starts with a three-part intake. We'll meet together for the first session, and then I'll meet with each of you individually for an attachment interview. This gives me a fuller picture of what each of you brings to the relationship and helps me understand the dynamic between you from the inside out, not just from what I observe when you're together.

From there, I ask that couples commit to weekly sessions for at least three months. That's the minimum amount of time and consistency the work needs to start creating real change. After three months, if we're making progress, we can talk about shifting to every other week.

I see the couple as a unit. Both of you need to be present for sessions and have a voice in setting goals. I won't take sides, hold secrets, or work around one partner to benefit the other. If there's ever a reason to meet with one of you individually, that happens with both partners' knowledge and consent.

Many of my clients have done therapy before, and a lot of what they learned was genuinely helpful. Coping skills and communication tools have real value. But for some people, there's a layer that talking alone doesn't quite reach, and that's where my approach goes.

I'm paying attention to your body, your nervous system, and the way your history shows up in your present-day life and relationships, not just the content of what you're telling me. For a lot of my clients, that body-level work is what finally let the other pieces click, the things you could see and understand but hadn't been able to actually feel shift.

You can book directly through my online scheduling tool or fill out my contact form and I'll get back to you personally. No consultation call needed. My website is designed to give you a clear picture of who I am and how I work, but nothing replaces being in the room together.

Click here to contact me or self-schedule.

I work somatically, which means I'm tracking what's happening in your body throughout every session, not just listening to the story you're telling me. A lot of therapy stays at the level of talking about problems. In our work together, I'm paying attention to when your shoulders tighten, when your breathing shifts, when your voice gets quieter. Those signals tell me something important about where we need to go.

I also give you practices and resources to engage with outside of sessions, things like videos, books, and specific exercises. We won't spend all of our session time on these, but I'll give you an experience of doing them so you know what they feel like in your body. My clients who make the most progress are the ones who stay engaged with this material between sessions. Therapy is one hour a week. What you do with the other hours matters, and I want to set you up to keep things moving even when we're not together.

For individual clients, sessions are active and engaged. We'll check in about what's been happening, and then we'll work with whatever is most alive for you that day. I'll often ask you to slow down and notice what's happening in your body as you talk, which might feel different from therapy you've done before. We might work with a specific memory, a physical sensation, a pattern in your relationships, or something that came up while you were practicing between sessions.

With couples, I'll slow you and your partner down and track what's happening between you and within each of you individually. I'm paying attention to tone, body language, the moments one of you shuts down or the other leans forward. If we've built enough safety together, I may have you turn toward each other and practice sharing something vulnerable, or even something as simple as holding hands or making eye contact. A lot of the cues that tell your nervous system "I'm safe with this person" are nonverbal, and I'll point those out as they happen so you both start recognizing them on your own. The goal is that you leave the session with a different experience of each other, something you can draw on when things get hard during the week.

Yes. I often share specific practices, videos, book recommendations, or exercises that support the work we're doing in session. I'll give you an experience of doing them during our time together so you understand what they feel like, and then I'll ask you to continue engaging with them on your own. The clients who get the most out of therapy are the ones who bring that work into their daily life, even in small ways.

No. I'm a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, not a psychiatrist, so I don't prescribe medication. If medication might be helpful alongside our work, I can refer you to someone I trust. Some of my clients work with a prescriber at the same time they're working with me, and I'm happy to coordinate care when that's the case.

Once we establish a good fit, we'll determine the right cadence together. I recommend starting with weekly sessions for at least the first three visits so we can build a therapeutic relationship, complete a thorough assessment, and get clear on your goals. After that, treatment typically continues on a weekly or every-other-week basis.

I check in about once every three months to reassess where the work is going and how much time we anticipate needing. The average course of treatment is about a year, though some people need more or less depending on what they're working through.

I ask for at least 72 hours' notice if you need to cancel, and cancellations need to come through on a weekday (Monday through Friday). Because I see clients Monday through Wednesday, a late cancellation often means that slot stays empty for the week, which is why I hold to this policy.

If you cancel with less notice or on a weekend, we'll try to reschedule within that same week. If we can't find a time that works, the full session fee applies. I do make exceptions for illness and major medical emergencies for you or your immediate family.

Yes. When you book a regular time slot, I hold that spot for you each week or every other week. Occasional cancellations or schedule changes are completely normal, and I get that life doesn't always cooperate with a standing appointment.

Where it starts to matter is when cancellations become a pattern, because the work genuinely needs consistent rhythm to gain traction. If that happens, I'd rather have an honest conversation about what's getting in the way than just quietly let the momentum drop. Sometimes the thing making it hard to show up is actually worth bringing into the room. And if the timing just isn't right, I'd rather name that together than let sessions trail off.

If something significant comes up and you need support before our next session, you're welcome to reach out. For quick things, a 10-minute phone call works well and there's no charge. If you need more time, I offer 10- to 30-minute mini sessions at a prorated hourly rate.

I keep therapeutic conversations to phone or telehealth rather than email, so if you need actual support, a call or short session is the best route. Email works great for scheduling and billing. If a phone or email exchange goes beyond 10 minutes, I'll bill it at the prorated hourly rate so you always know what to expect.

Individual therapy sessions are $300 and couples sessions are $350. Sessions are 50 minutes.

I don't accept insurance directly. This allows me to keep our work focused on what you actually need rather than what an insurance company approves, and it means your therapy records stay private.

A note for couples: couples therapy uses a relational diagnosis code that most insurance plans won't cover, even out of network. This is because the diagnosis applies to the relationship dynamic between you, not to either individual. All couples session fees come directly out of pocket. If you have an HSA or FSA account, those funds can typically be used, but I recommend checking with your plan administrator first to confirm.

If you're seeing me for individual treatment and your health coverage includes mental health benefits, your insurance company may reimburse a portion of my fee as an out-of-network provider. In this process, you pay my full fee at the time of the session, and then submit a superbill (which I provide) to your insurance for reimbursement.

To find out whether your plan covers out-of-network therapy and how much you can expect to be reimbursed, I recommend calling the customer service number on the back of your insurance card. Here are the questions to ask:

• Does my plan include out-of-network mental health benefits?

• What is my out-of-network deductible, and how much of it have I met?

• What percentage of the session fee will be reimbursed after the deductible is met?

• Is there a limit on the number of sessions covered per year?

• Do I need a referral or prior authorization for out-of-network mental health care?

• What is the process for submitting a superbill, and how long does reimbursement typically take?

Having this information upfront will give you a clear picture of what your actual out-of-pocket cost will be.