Are you ready to get started, but not sure what to expect? Here’s an overview:

First things first, we want you to feel comfortable and confident in choosing our practice.  Some people have lots of questions before getting started.  Others want to get it booked and talk later.  We provide two options for scheduling to meet those needs:

Call us to schedule.

We will answer any questions you may have, and get you scheduled if you decide you want to proceed, or…

Schedule online.

If you are ready to book now, you can access the scheduling portal 24/7 and book an initial appointment that’s most convenient for you.

When we meet for that initial appointment, we will spend a lot of time talking about you: your life, your relationships, what makes you tick, the reasons you are seeking therapy, and what you hope to get from our work together.   Through this evaluation, which generally requires one meeting but sometimes takes two, we’ll work together to make sure we have a mutual understanding of what you really want to get out of our work together.  For some people, that’s clear change (“I want to feel more confident”, “I want to feel less anxious”, “I want to have better skills for handling stress”).  Others are less focused on change, but are looking for the support and listening that comes with the therapeutic relationship.  And some of us don’t yet have clarity on what we want from therapy, we just know that the way things are now isn’t working, and that’s okay too.  Because whatever your needs are, we will do the planning together.

Your treatment plan may include the following components of cognitive-behavioral therapy:

Education.  An opportunity to learn about the nature of the problems you are experiencing, including how our thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors drive our emotional state.

Exposure Therapy.  One of the most effective treatments for anxiety, exposure therapy guides you to confront those things that you have been avoiding as a result of your anxiety.  In exposure therapy, your psychologist would accompany you or otherwise help you to approach situations, places, and thoughts that trigger your anxiety, while providing structure, support, and reassurance.

Cognitive Restructuring.  In a cognitive approach, you learn to identify and then change those unhelpful automatic thoughts and beliefs related to the problems you are experiencing.

Skills Building.  You may be encouraged to learn and practice specific, direct skills (for example, breathing retraining) that may help you to manage sources of stress in your life or reduce your anxiety and related problems.

Family/Couples Therapy.  Provides an opportunity for parents, spouses, or other loved ones to participate in the therapy process to better understand your diagnosis, treatment plan, and ways they can support you for optimal outcome in treatment.

We will also work together to evaluate your progress, including the use of repeated assessments to carefully monitor your progress in treatment and make adjustments to our plan as needed.