FAQs
How can I tell if I need to ask for help?
It isn’t always easy to know when you need to ask for help rather than to continue trying to make things better on your own. Unfortunately, some people wait until problems are severe before they ask for help. You don’t have to struggle through these things alone. Here are some signs that it might be time to see a psychologist, a psychiatrist, or a therapist.
When your behaviors or feelings are starting to affect one or more areas of your life, such as eating habits, sleep, job, relationships, happiness, or ability to function.
When you’re worrying and things just don’t seem to get better.
When you feel trapped and don’t know where to turn.
When you have tried other things and they just don’t seem to work.
When you begin to think about or have been using negative ways to cope.
How does therapy help?
In general, therapy is a cooperative process by which an individual can find resolution to problems and underlying patterns that keep him or her from enjoying certain aspects of life, achieving overall satisfaction, or simply “being himself or herself.” Often, people are struggling with issues of depression, flashbacks, anxiety, or other common issues that present obstacles to satisfying relationships, connected emotional lives, academic success, fulfilling careers, and other psychological wants and needs. Through therapy, people learn to recognize and resolve problematic patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving that are related to the difficulties they are currently experiencing.
Therapy is an effective way to better understand human emotions and, consequently, to enrich the understanding of one’s self. Individuals can learn to develop deeper, more fulfilling relationships with family and friends and can often become more successful in their careers and other life pursuits. In addition, as emotional functioning is closely related to physical functioning, psychotherapy can help individuals deal with medical issues such as chronic pain, high blood pressure, stomach ulcers, and many others.
Therapeutic approaches differ in many basic ways, but they all include work with a trained psychologist or a therapist who helps the client, through seeing himself or herself in a variety of new ways and from ever-shifting viewpoints, to facilitate change and personal growth.
How long does therapy take?
That depends upon you and your therapist. Typically, the first session would involve an intake session where background information and the concerns that brought you to therapy are discussed. Based upon this information, a treatment plan is developed, and the estimated number of sessions is discussed. You and your therapist would work together to develop your plan of treatment, which determines your number of counseling sessions. This plan may be adjusted and reviewed throughout the course of your treatment, depending upon your needs and circumstances.
Do you prescribe medication?
If necessary, the therapist may refer you to a psychiatrist or to your primary care physician to determine if medication may be helpful in alleviating your symptoms. If you know you have a condition that requires medication management rather than therapy, you may complete a referral to the psychiatrist.
Do you accept insurance?
We accept most commercial insurances including Blue Cross-Blue Shield, Medicare, PPOM, Magellan, United Behavioral Health, CIGNA, Value Options, Atena, and Connect Care Alliance. If you have an insurance not listed, please give us a call.