FAQ
Where is your office located?
Wherever my computer is (in a private setting, of course).
And the same goes for you, as long as your in the state of California and in a private and safe setting.
What are your hours?
I generally work Monday to Thursday: 9am to 5pm (or 6pm occasionally).
How long are sessions?
Sessions are generally 53 minutes.
Do you see clients through insurance?
I am in-network with Aetna, United Health Care, Oscar Health, and Oxford Insurance. What your personal insurance plan covers can very so be sure to check with them about coverage.
If you have a PPO, I can also provide a superbill that can be submit to your insurance for reimbursement. Check with your insurance to verify what your co-insurance percent is (percent of sessions cost that you will be reimbursed for) and check to see if you have met your deductible.
How do I set up an initial appointment?
What is your cash rate per session?
What is your cancellation policy?
Please remember to cancel or reschedule 48 business hours in advance.
If you text, email, or leave a voicemail before the 48 business hour period, your appointment will be considered canceled and no cancellation fee will apply.
Be mindful that insurance companies do not reimburse cancellation fees. You will be responsible for the full cancellation fee $175 if cancellation occurs less than 48 business hours before your scheduled appointment or if you miss your scheduled appointment time.
This is necessary because a time commitment is made to you and is held exclusively for you. If you are late to a session, you will forfeit that session time. However, if your provider is late, you will receive your entire session time.
With what age ranges do you work?
I specialize in working with adults.
Are you an ally and sensitive toward gender, sexual, weight, ethnic, and racial minorities?
I consider myself: LGBTQIA+ allied, trans allied, BIPOC allied, ability allied, sex-positive allied, kink allied, body-positive, racial justice allied, and gender allied.
Inclusivity and humility are very important values of mine as a person and a therapist. I strive always to check my privilege and understanding when working with clients.
#BlackLivesMatter
#TransLivesMatter
Who wouldn’t be a good fit for telehealth?
For the safety of those seeking therapy and due to the physical limitations of telehealth, there are limits on who is best suited for therapy services online.
If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts with a plan or intention to harm yourself, have recently been hospitalized for mental health concerns, are experiencing psychosis (hearing voices, hallucinations, etc.), sever eating disability, sever substance use, or are in severe distress, I would not be the best fit for you via telehealth. In those cases, in-person therapy or specialized treatment may be better suited.
How can I tell if we’re a good fit?
A good way to tell is to jump onto a consultation call with me, and we can chat about your reasons for seeking therapy and what you hope to get out of therapy. This will give us an idea of how we would work together.
You can generally feel whether we are a good fit based on our 15-minute consultation call where you can ask any questions and get a feel for who I am as a person and therapist, and what it might be life to work together.
Also, of course, therapy is never mandatory and you can always choose to withdraw at any time. What’s most important to me is making sure you feel like you have the agancy to make the choices that feel right to you.
How often should I come to therapy?
This answer is really on a case-by-case basis.
The long answer is that generally, I will encourage meeting weekly for the first 4 to 6 sessions to set the foundation and create momentum. Some clients may move to every other week as they start to progress through treatment.
What should I expect in a first session?
Once we schedule the initial session, I’ll send you digital documents to sign, including my informed consent, privacy policy, telehealth policy, intake questionnaire, and credit card authorization form.
The intake questionnaire will help me gain a little more insight into your history and goals.
My goal in the first session is for us to get to know each other and discuss your goals for therapy. I may ask you some clarifying questions about what’s going on in your world right now and use that to plan and discuss what therapy might look like. You’ll have space to ask questions. I’m a new person to you, so I would want to make sure to give space for you to become more comfortable with me.
Is there homework?
If you want it, yes. I will make recommendations as to what I think could be beneficial to work on or think more about, but the choice is yours to do it or not.
Homework can be very beneficial. I’m with you for less than an hour once a week, and the challenges that we talk about in therapy persist throughout the week, so working on different topics discussed in therapy could yield better results.
What type of therapy do you do?
I practice EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), IFS (Internal Family Systems) and CBT (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy). For more info about these approaches feel free to navigate to my specialties tab at the top of this page.
What is your professional training and experience?
I am a licensed clinical social worker with a master’s degree in social work and a bachelor’s degree in sociology.
I’ve received a lot of training in different therapy techniques, such as IFS (Internal Family Systems), EMDR and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy.
I have a background working with many different populations, such as children, adults, and elders. I’ve worked with at-risk populations, the forensic population, and youth in need. Working with trauma has been the cornerstone of my career for the past 10 years. I’ve spent many hours with the inner workings of trauma and how it affects people’s lives on a emotional, physical, and cognitive level.
What are your pronouns?
Thanks for asking! My pronouns are she/her/hers. What are yours?
What are some fun facts about you?
Hmm, I’m basically obsessed with my dog. She’s my best friend, and she has a better life than I do.
I love to paint. I enjoy the tranquil process of making a painting come to life. Gardening also being a great sense of peace.
I’m a lifelong roller skater. I started skating in elementary school, and I just never stopped. I was an in-line speed skater and played roller derby for a short period.
Traveling gives me life. I like to go anywhere and everywhere I can get a new experience. Documentaries and some quality reality TV are big hits in my house. I like balance in my life – just a little about me.
I look forward to learning some of your fun facts!