Frequently Asked Questions
What do all the letters mean after your name?
LPC means that I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in the State of Colorado. In order to obtain an LPC, therapists must have met educational standards, have a minimum of 2 years experience and 2,000 supervised clinical hours, and have passed the National Counselors Exam.
MA is a Masters of Arts. I received mine in 2009 from Naropa University in Somatic Counseling Psychology. I doubled in Body-Psychotherapy and Dance/Movement Therapy.
R-DMT stands for Registered Dance Movement Therapist. This means that I have met the educational and experiential requirements to be a Dance/Movement Therapist registered with the American Dance Therapy Association.
IFSCT stands for Internal Family Systems Certified Therapist. This means I have completed the Internal Family Systems level one training, have completed a designated number of clinical hours using this method, and have been recommended by both peers and supervisors of Internal Family Systems. Certification comes through The Center for Self Leadership.
CACII stands for Certified Addictions Counselor through the State of Colorado. It indicates I have met course requirements and clinical hours in addictions counseling.
RYT validates me as a Registered Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance.
RMT designates me as a Registered Massage Therapist with the State of Colorado. I did my primary massage training at IPSB and SHA in San Diego, and have continued my education throughout the years.
BA I also have a Bachelors degree in Sociology from San Francisco State University. I completed specialties in both Human Sexuality and Spanish.
What are your rates?
Psychotherapy rate is $95 for a 50-minute session, or $140 for an 80-minute session. I allow a certain number of sliding scale spots. Sliding scale is up to a $20 rate reduction. Sliding scale spots are not available during evening or weekend hours. I understand that it is difficult to chose a therapist before actually meeting them. This is why I provide a free 30-minute consultation to give you an opportunity to meet me, ask any questions you may have, and to get a feel for how we might fit together.
Do you take Insurance?
Unfortunately, most insurance companies do not reimburse at sustainable rates, so at this time I do not take insurance. I can however, provide you a receipt to submit to your insurance company.
If you have been in an automobile accident, yours or the at-fault person's insurance may cover for psychological conditions related to your accident.
If you have been a victim of a crime that has been reported, you may be eligible for counseling through Colorado Victim Compensation Program.
What happens if I'm in crisis and I need to talk to you right away?
I provide non-emergency psychotherapeutic services. This means that I am likely not going to be able to call back right away should you call me. I will usually call you back within 24-hours; however, I may not always be able to do so. I do not answer client calls while on vacation. Should you have an emergency that you feel is life-threatening, please call 911. For non-emergencies, please see this link to Boulder/Denver County Resources.
One of my goals for my clients is to help them be able to tolerate intense emotions so that they do not become overwhelmed by them. When we're able to tolerate intense experience, we can draw upon internal resources that help us to manage crisis, rather than be buried under the weight of them.
I don't want to be in therapy for years, like some people I know. How can you assure me that we're actually going to get somewhere in therapy?
You're right. Some people spend a lot of time in therapy. As I see it there are three reasons for this. The first is that they may have a very intense trauma history that just can't be worked through in six months. Another reason is that some people continue in therapy because, even though they may have worked through their major issues, therapy is a way to keep on track and have time where they can commit to their own growth. And third, because the therapist is not very effective. Like all fields and all jobs, there are going to be some people who are better at it than others. It's tricky with psychotherapy, because most people don't know what the characteristics of a good psychotherapist are.
What I can tell you about how I work is that I always start off with finding out what your goals are for therapy. I review those goals before each session to make sure that we stay on track and don't get side-tracked into the issue of the week. I'll review those goals with you about every three to six months so that you know we're making progress on your therapeutic goals.
Where are you located?
I am located in Lafayette, CO close to Public Road & Baseline. The great thing about Lafayette is that it's centrally located which means it's less than 25 minutes from many towns including Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Erie, Longmont, Louisville, Northglen, Superior, Thornton & Westminster. For detailed directions see the contact page.
Who do you work with?
I do individual counseling, marriage counseling, couples counseling for both traditional and nontraditional couples, and I also work with teens and families. A large focus of my practice is working with people with chronic issues - chronic illness, chronic pain, injury and other physical symptoms which may or may not have known causes. You can go to the issues page to see the type of problems I help people solve, and you can peek at the how i work page to get more information about the type of work I do.