FAQ

I have offices in Ventura at 212 S. Dunning St. and in Westlake Village at 32107 Lindero Canyon Rd., Suite 124.

For individuals, my fee is $150 for a 50-minute session. Sometimes clients find that a longer session works better for them, and I am open to discussing a longer session at higher fee when there is time in my schedule.

For couples and families, my fee is $185 for a 50-minute session. I strongly recommend 90-minute sessions to be sure that each person has time to be heard. My fee for a 90-minute couple or family session is $225.

I accept checks, cash, and credit cards and ask for payment at the beginning of each session.

I am considered an out-of-network provider, which means that I do not work with insurance companies and am not paid by them.

Depending on your particular plan and company, you may be able to be reimbursed for some of the costs of your therapy. I can give you a Superbill at the end of each month, which will show how many times you’ve seen me, what you’ve paid, and a medical diagnosis (insurance companies require a diagnosis). I encourage you to check with your insurance company to be clear on what benefits they offer for out-of-network providers.

I ask that you give me 24-hours notice if you cannot come to your scheduled session. If you miss a session without 24-hours notice, I will charge you the full fee for the missed session.

As long as you want to be. I’m not trying to be clever or vague in answering that question. It’s what almost everyone who goes into therapy wonders. The truth is, it depends on you. If you come with a specific problem, we identify a solution, and you make it happen, then you’ve reached your therapy goal – and you’re done.

Often what occurs in therapy is that you discover that the issue that brought you to therapy is like an envelope that contains a letter. (Remember those?!) Pretty soon you get past the envelope and see what’s inside, and the work begins there. Sometimes new issues emerge along the way. Then it takes as long as it takes.

What I can tell you definitively is that I will do all I can to help you reach the resolution you seek when you come to therapy. If I feel I am not the right person to do that, I will let you know. I will not try to keep you in therapy when you’re ready to stop. And I will welcome you back should you ever want to return.

Sadly, this is still a valid question in our culture. My answer is an unqualified “yes.” Not simply friendly, but welcoming.

In fact, I am welcoming to whomever walks through my door. Our backgrounds, faith practices, varying abilities, and all sources of identity have considerable bearing on how we see ourselves. Yet we all feel love and need love; have needs and want to be needed; have conflicts and seek resolution; know grief and loss as well as anxiety and despair and want to find peace.

Each person I work with is a complex mix of influences and identities, a unique combination of the qualities that make us human. If you choose to work with me, it will be my honor to learn about what makes you you and to help you be the version of yourself that you aspire to be.

Technically, this question doesn’t belong on this page because it is the least asked question I’ve ever gotten. But it’s one of the best.

A new client asked me this question on her first visit. I’d expected questions about credentials, where I went to school, how long I’ve been a therapist, maybe something about theoretical perspective, or “Do you do hypnosis?” (No, I don’t.)

Instead, she asked the question that told her exactly what she needed to know to feel comfortable working with me. I hope you’ll do the same.

Oh, and the answer is “yes.” I have had pets all my life. Or they have had me, to be more precise. I had to say good-bye to our dog a few months ago; so right now I’m down to one generously proportioned, very handsome, black cat. When he is ready for the animal population in our home to grow again, I trust he’ll let me know; and then the right animal will make her or his way to my door. It’s never failed.