frequently asked questions

Are you accepting new clients?
Check the rainbow bar at the top of this website - this is updated regularly.

Note that when I'm not accepting new clients "officially," I occasionally have shifts in my schedule that allow me to take on one new client at a time. If you'd like to get on my waitlist, I am booking intro calls for prospective clients and can also support you in finding a therapist with availability in the meantime if you'd like to share any relevant information in an email. 

 

Do you offer in-person therapy? 

I am limited to seeing clients in California and Pennsylvania via telehealth only. I am physically located in Pittsburgh, PA and on a case-by-case basis I will meet for walk-and-talk or meal support sessions with local clients.

Do you offer sliding scale?
I do! At least 30 percent of my caseload at a time is dedicated to reduced fee slots to increase accessibility for multiply marginalized neurodivergent folks. There are a set number of slots at low ($100-140), medium (under $180), and high ($200) levels, and as they become available they are offered to new or existing clients on a waitlist. Feel free to ask about what is available or how long the waitlist is prior to setting up a consultation if this is a must for you. However, I cannot typically predict length of treatment accurately enough to give a precise timeframe if an opening is not immediately available and will recommend seeking out another provider if you are in need of therapy ASAP (see resources). 

If you’re interested in working together in another capacity, consider a one-time case management consultation for personalized referrals and discussion of what goals you might benefit from working on with another provider. Or, if you’re seeking support with an eating disorder and are either autistic or an ADHDer, sign up here for the monthly free peer support group I facilitate via Zoom for adults located anywhere.

 

Do you take insurance?

I am an out-of-network provider and do not take or interact with insurance directly. Click here if you're interested in learning about why. 
If you have a PPO plan with out-of-network benefits, I can provide a super bill that you can submit to your insurance for partial reimbursement. Please contact your insurance company for information about your deductible, out-of-pocket maximum, and percentage of reimbursement, as I am not able to talk to your insurance company or answer any questions about their process. This blog does a decent job outlining questions to ask.

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I'm  pre-licensed clinician in California looking to do similar work to yours - do you offer clinical supervision? 

I am excited to be able to supervise ASWs, AMFTs, and APCCs in California who are specifically interested in specializing in neurodiversity-affirming eating disorder care. I can do so via informal consultation (either an occasional or one-time meeting about a specific case or on a regular basis) or formally through the BBS, depending on your employment situation. Please reach out to connect and determine whether we would be a good fit.

What is your availability like?
I see clients Monday through Friday between the hours of 10am and 5pm PST. I see the majority of my clients in a pre-scheduled weekly or biweekly time-slot, so when I have an opening, it will be because one of those slots has opened up, and I don’t have much flexibility beyond that. I will do my best to work with prospective clients to make your ideal time work, but to protect my own energetic boundaries, I can’t meet every specific request. If your schedule is very limited, please specify in your inquiry when you would be available to meet so I can check it against my own schedule.

What if I have to cancel last-minute?
As a courtesy to both me and other clients who may be waiting on an opening, I ask that whenever possible, you inform me 24 hours ahead of our scheduled session time that you won’t be able to make it. Late cancellation and no shows will be charged the full session fee, barring an unforeseeable emergency. As a fellow ADHDer, I know that sometimes appointment times just slip our minds, and it can be frustrating to encounter this kind of “ADHD tax,” so let’s work together ahead of time to discuss what individualized support I can provide to help you remember, whether that’s additional reminds beyond the standard automated emails, a call 10 minutes into the hour if you’re not there, or another creative solution. This kind of planning can be really beneficial in other areas of our lives, too!

What modalities and evidence-based practices are you trained in?
When forced to label my modality of choice, I call it Rogerian, which is clinical-ese for the client-centered, non-directive approach based in the belief that people are inherently motivated toward optimal psychological functioning. In other words, I prioritize your needs and let you take the lead while providing guidance via curiosity and pattern observations to whatever extent feels supportive for each individual. 

I have never felt drawn to one type of therapy in particular - there are so many limitations to each, and there is no possible way that any manualized approach (“cure your whatever in three easy steps”) is going to perfectly meet any individual’s needs, so instead I pick pieces of what might be helpful in the moment. I have experience doing this with dialectical behavior therapy, internal family systems, acceptance and commitment therapy, cognitive processing therapy, exposure response prevention, and collaborative and proactive solutions, but I do not follow any one of these modalities to fidelity, so if you’ve heard good things about one of them and want to try it out, I recommend working with someone who considers it their specialty. I avoid the “gold standard” cognitive behavior therapy because so many of my neurodivergent clients have spoken out and shared that it feels dismissive and is not trauma-informed. The majority of my work is informed by theory rather than a formal approach. That means I use certain clinical skills and ideas that blend seamlessly into our conversation and build our therapeutic relationship rather than stopping to say, “Okay, now we’re entering phase three of this treatment.” The downside of this is that there won’t be a clear number of sessions this will take; it’s not something we “get through,” and there isn't necessarily a clear destination we can define from the get-go. The upside is that it will feel more natural and may have more implications outside the therapy hour. Some of the other theoretical orientations I most commonly draw from are: psychodynamic; interpersonal; feminist; and existential.

You specialize in autism, so do you do ABA?
I take a strong stance against applied behavioral analysis, including what’s considered “new ABA.” I feel similarly about ABA-adjacent therapies that use rewards and consequences to modify behavior, as both research and lived experience shows us that these “therapies” are large contributors to complex trauma symptoms - especially related to attachment - in neurodivergent adults, even when they enjoyed participating as children. I have supported many autistic adults through healing from trauma that stemmed from participation in ABA "therapy." While ABA is the only “evidence-based treatment" for autism, the neurodiversity paradigm tells us that autism is not something to be treated in the first place. See the Great ABA Opposition Resource List for more information.

If not ABA, then what?
The same therapy we’d do for anyone else. If you’re asking this question, then probably with a focus on unpacking internalized ableism and understanding the ways in which you’ve inadvertently learned to mask your authentic self. I align with the pillars of Naureen Hunani's Neurodiversity Affirming Model®: anti-oppressive and anti-ableist, leadership of those most impacted, acceptance-based, trauma-informed (including sensory and compliance trauma), and bodymind liberation.
 

What do you mean when you say you’re “anti-carceral”?

I prioritize my client’s autonomy over all else and do not believe it is morally acceptable to utilize the power dynamic of my professional role to determine without my client’s consent that they are in need of a higher level of care. Alternatively, I invite my clients at the start of therapy to take the lead on creating a proactive crisis plan, which may include accessing external supports within their community and/or drafting a psychiatric advance directive. See IDHA for more information on decarcerating care.

Can you write me an emotional support animal letter?
I don’t gatekeep necessary accommodations, so yes. However, according to the California Board of Behavioral Sciences, we must have an established and ongoing therapeutic relationship before I’m able to write this letter.

Can you write me a letter for gender-affirming care?
See above. However, if we’re not able to work together or your need is time-sensitive, I’m happy to refer you to some wonderful colleagues who can see you for a one-time meeting for this purpose.

Do you text with clients?
I invite my clients to info-dump or drop bullet points (and memes) for their therapy session agenda to whatever extent is beneficial to them via text message on the HIPAA-compliant platform I use. However, I am not able to respond to any clinical updates or provide any feedback between sessions, so my response will be limited to a “thumbs up” to indicate I received your message and will make sure to review it before session. The benefit of this kind of communication is to support you in getting the most out of your therapy hour - if there are tedious details to a story you don’t want to spend time on or you simply expect to forget what happened during the week even though it felt really important in the moment (happens to my ADHD brain all the time!), this can be a great accommodation. Texting is for non-emergencies only.

Why haven’t you returned my call?
As I mention in my voicemail greeting, I struggle with immediate auditory processing around logistics and prefer to discuss matters like scheduling, availability, and billing via email whenever possible as an accommodation for myself. However, if you a more of an auditory processor and need to be accommodated yourself, I can make that happen on a limited basis, so please text or email me to set up a time for a call. I do not generally answer phone calls without an arranged time to talk.