Do you have openings right now and how do I set up a first session?

To inquire about my availability and set up an initial appointment please call me at 615-473-4815 or email me here. I return calls and emails within 12 to 24 hours and will connect you with the care you are seeking as quickly as possible.

Please note that I always maintain a waiting list. Even if I do not have an opening I can add you to that waiting list so we can set up a first session as soon as one becomes available. 

What is your fee?

My fee for 50 minute individual therapy sessions is $200. I never want finances to be an obstacle to someone getting the care they need and, in an effort to create an accessible and responsible practice, I have given the subject of fee a lot of thought. I ultimately set my fee at a rate that is, hopefully, at least a little more affordable than other therapists at my level of training and experience. Nonetheless, I am aware that therapy can be really expensive and that my fee could still be unsustainable for some folks. I thus work with some people on what is called a “sliding scale” basis which means that I adjust my fee based on their financial need. I view my practice as a system where those who pay my full fee help support others who may benefit from therapy, but lack the financial resources. I open additional “sliding scale” slots whenever possible so if you are in need please don’t hesitate to inquire when you contact me. If I do not currently have a sliding scale opening or my fee remains unworkable, I will work with you to find another therapist who does have sliding scale openings.

In terms of forms of payment, I accept cash, check, credit/debit cards, and HSA cards and my fee is due at the time of your appointment.

For more details about the fees for the other psychotherapy services I provide, please click here.

Do you take insurance?

I do not directly bill insurance companies and am what is called an “out-of-network service provider.” At your request, I can generate monthly statements of services that will list all the information you will need to be able to submit for reimbursement with an insurance company.

Many people prefer working with an “out-of-network” provider for a variety of reasons (for example, it more fully protects their privacy and confidentiality as their personal information is never recorded by an insurance company).

Please do not let hesitate to let me know if you have questions about insurance or if there is any way I can be helpful in navigating how to receive reimbursement. I can provide you a list of some helpful questions to ask an insurance company about your benefits.

What is your cancellation policy?

I ask for 48 hours notice that you need to cancel or reschedule your session. Without that 48 hours notice, I do have to charge for the session. People who are on a waiting list for an open session often do not have time to rearrange their schedule to make a new opening work for them without sufficient notice. 

Do you prescribe medication?

No. As a counselor I do not prescribe medication, but I can refer you to a psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner who provides medication management. If you become interested in trying medication, I will help match you with a provider who is a good fit for your needs. That provider and I will then work together to coordinate your care holistically.

Where are you located?

My office is located in the Kinnard Building on the corner of Blair Blvd and 21st Ave across from the Kroger grocery store and next to Hillsboro Hardware. The address is  2200 21st Ave S, Suite 227 Nashville, TN 37212.  

You will find my office centrally located near Hillsboro Village and Green Hills; as well as Vanderbilt, Belmont and David Lipscomb campuses.

The Kinnard Building is fully ADA accessible and please do not hesitate to let me know if you have any questions about accessibility.

Parking: There are two options for complimentary parking for the building. The first is a covered garage with entrance on Blair, but there is also an additional lot with an entrance that cuts between the building and Hillsboro Hardware next door on 21st. (The uncovered  lot tends to have more open spaces than the covered garage so if you are in a rush you might try parking here first.)

My office is on the second floor. When you come off the elevator make a right, then a right down a short  hall and my office door is on the right. I have a waiting room so do make yourself at home there if you arrive early for your appointment.

How long are your sessions?

All sessions are 50 minutes. I use the remainder of the "therapy hour" to write notes on our session, return phone calls, etc. On occasion, either because it is requested or because it seems like it could be clinically beneficial, we will meet for longer sessions. For the most part, I schedule my sessions to start at the top of the hour and end at :50. This means that if you ever want to get a hold of me during the work day, if you call at :50 of an hour (1:50, 2:50, etc.) you'll have a better chance of reaching me directly. 

What happens in therapy sessions?

Beginning therapy can sometimes be intimidating and it can be helpful to know what to expect. Before we meet for our first session I will email you some basic paperwork. In that paperwork, you will find a couple of brief forms for you to fill out as well as more information about my practice (a lot of that information is also on this FAQ page). You'll bring that paperwork with you to our first therapy session.

All of my sessions begin with "getting the practical stuff out of the way" which means taking care of fee, scheduling, and, in a first session, discussing any questions you might have about the paperwork. 

In a first session, after we've gotten the practical out of the way, we will usually spend some time exploring the issues that brought you to therapy. We may start to think about your goals for counseling and we'll begin considering some possible paths we could take to help you achieve them. The first few sessions are also often about just getting to know each other, giving you a chance to feel like what it's like simply siting in the room together. One of my main goals will be to try to create a sense of safety so that you can feel comfortable asking any questions you have about, among other things, how therapy works and what we will do in sessions. In my approach to counseling, I do my best to "let you see the man behind the curtain" and am transparent about what I think could or could not be helpful moving forward. 

How often will we meet?

Most people come for individual therapy sessions on a weekly basis. Some request to meet more than once a week when we first start working together because they are feeling in crisis or are looking to get a jump-start on their work. Others will shift down to meeting every other week after some time in therapy. Our goal will be to find the right rhythm that works for you and to remain in communication about frequency of sessions as we move forward.

How long will I be in therapy?

The length of psychotherapy can vary widely depending on the issues we are working on and what approach we are taking to those issues. In our first sessions, we will talk about your goals and different approaches we can take to achieving them. Some people have very specific issues they are hoping to resolve quickly and request that we work in a "short term solution focused" way. Most people who come for therapy have already tried short term solutions and intuitively know that it will take deeper, longer term exploration to be able to make real change. But counseling is also a place where we can not only "solve problems," but flourish fully, find greater purpose, and become our best selves. Whether it be to maintain progress without slipping backwards or to continue to enrich our day-day-lives, many people regularly attend therapy sessions over long periods of time. Regardless of what approach you are seeking, shorter or longer term therapy, we will work together to find the right path for you. 

What is your confidentiality policy?

Counseling can only really be effective if you feel safe that everything you share about in sessions will be held confidentially. Confidentiality ensures that people feel comfortable to talk about even those things that can be difficult to look at on their own. I am legally and ethically obligated to protect your confidentiality and not confirm to anyone else that you are even coming to see me for therapy unless you give me a release of information to do so. There are only a few exceptions to confidentiality that are listed in the paperwork I will send you before our first session and you can read further about here.

As minors, adolescents do not legally have the same confidentiality with their therapists as adults. Parents are legally entitled to information about their teen's therapy. I work intently with the whole family so that parents feel assured that they will know if their teen is at risk while the teen has as much confidentiality as possible so that their therapy can be truly productive. We will talk more about this balance in detail in our initial sessions.

I also work a great deal with college students and college-aged people many of whom receive support from their family (oftentimes their family is actually paying for their therapy). As adults, college students are entitled to the same confidentiality as anyone else that comes to see me for therapy, but, where requested, I will again work to find the right balance here for folks in this very specific phase of life.