Session Details

What are sessions like?

I go into sessions assuming that the people who are willing to invest money, time, and emotional labor into doing psychological work are doing so because they want to learn and be challenged. Conversely, I find that the generic validation or comfort often associated with therapy to be patronizing and in direct conflict with this goal. For this reason, I do my best to show up as a fully active, honest, and intensely human partner in parsing through problems that are rarely straightforward. I work in parallel, not from a place of authority. In sessions, clients bring in problems, questions, fears, and theories, and we work to understand, notice patterns, and interpret the connections between emotions, behaviors, and past experiences together.

Format

I provide weekly or twice-weekly psychotherapy for individuals in California. I see clients virtually through a HIPAA-compliant video call platform and in-person in Berkeley, California. Sessions are 50 minutes.

Cost

I offer 50-minute individual sessions for $180. I do not accept most insurances directly and am considered an out-of-network provider for most insurance companies. Some insurance companies will provide coverage for out-of-network providers, usually at a 40-80% rate. I can provide you with a superbill to be reimbursed by your insurance. You can also use an HSA to pay for services at a before-tax rate.

If you are curious why I, like so many therapists, do not take insurance, the FAQ section at the bottom of this page has more information about why I choose to be an out-of-network provider.

Common topics

Mental health diagnoses can be incredibly loaded, overly complicated, and not necessarily what they appear to be on the surface.

It would be weird if only one thing on this list applied to a person. These are loose phrases the psychology world uses to narrow down pain, grief, and difficulty, but they often overlap, compound, and don't fully describe the full picture of someone's suffering.

  • Relational trauma

  • Identity development of all dimensions

  • Multiracial / mixed-immigration family dynamics 

  • Feelings of non-belonging 

  • Loneliness 

  • Boundaries (co-dependency, counter-dependency)

  • Children of emotionally immature parents

  • Personality disorders within families

  • Depression 

  • Anxiety

  • Spiralling, obsessive thoughts

  • Life transitions 

  • Perfectionism

  • Careers in the arts

Questions you might have

  • It's horrible isn't it? Sifting through hundreds of profiles while not fully understanding complicated jargon or being able to tell what's important. NPR created a guide for choosing a therapist which can be a good starting point in figuring out what you are looking for.  

    I hope I have shown you some of what I am about through this website, and I invite you to meet with me for a consultation and to ask me any questions about me, how I work, and how I might be able to help you.

  • Providing telehealth is nuanced, and does affect the therapeutic relationship, but doesn’t prevent it from being a genuine, intimate, connection between two real people. I have been a client in virtual therapy for years and would not provide it if I did not believe it was still valuable. It's also more accessible to join a video call than to commute to an office, and can make weekly sessions more doable.  

    That being said, virtual therapy is not for everyone and you get to ultimately decide what works for you. It requires a working understanding of video calls and a solid internet connection. There are also a few circumstances where meeting with a therapist virtually is not clinically appropriate. I’m happy to talk to you more about that during a consultation call.

  • GREED! Not really, but that's what I thought when I was looking for a therapist in my early 20s. It's unfortunately much more complicated than that. 

    If you have ever tried to file a medical claim with your insurance, you probably already know insurance companies are fraught with problems and appear to place your health and sanity very low on the priority list, and instead appear to be trying to pay as little as possible. They treat providers (therapists) the same way. When therapists are paid very little by insurance panels (or sometimes, paid late, or not at all) they need to take on more clients in order to do things like pay rent and sustain a practice. Taking on more clients means there is simply less space in your head to hold each client, and means you are more prone to burning out or slipping in the quality of services you can provide.

    Insurances also limit what they will cover by judging what they deem “medically necessary” and sometimes limit the number of sessions they are willing to pay for. As a provider, I have an ethical obligation to prioritize what is best for you, the client– not what is least expensive for insurances. 

    The bottom line is therapy has value, and therefore has a cost. This is the way that I have set up my practice so that I can be sure I'm giving every client I see the best of me as a clinician and as a person. You will always have the right to decide if this service is worth it to you, and can also decide it isn't right for you at any time. I’m happy to talk more about how I set my fees on a consultation call.