The length of psychotherapy treatment varies widely, and depends on a number of factors. During the initial evaluation, I will share my impression on what length of treatment will be needed to achieve aims and why.

I believe it’s important to be working towards outcomes in therapy, and to monitor together whether movement towards those outcomes is being made (This is an important tenet of evidence-based psychotherapy). For a relatively straightforward issue, most protocols tested in clinical trials include at least 8-12 sessions to achieve outcomes. This would be considered a brief, targeted psychotherapy. Many of my patients require a length of treatment between 6-12 months, and others stay in therapy over multiple years.

I have no minimum or maximum number of sessions. Some patients prefer to have weekly sessions, while others prefer to meet biweekly after meeting weekly for 1-2 months.

No. I do not use AI for any professional purpose. Many psychologists use AI to assist with documentation. Clinical documentation is onerous and I respect why many clinicians in all areas of medicine are using AI for note-taking. Because this requires recording private psychotherapy sessions, and many of my clients would not feel comfortable with this, I choose not use AI products as an aid in my clinical practice.

If you have out-of-network benefits, it can be helpful to contact your health insurance company ahead of time to find out what they will cover. They may ask you for service codes (or CPT codes). There are the

• Initial evaluation session - 90791 (95)

• Therapy session - 90834 (95)

The 95 is a modifier code that is used to indicate the session is via telehealth.

When a patient requires treatment and no in-network provider is available to provide it, a gap or network exception request may be relevant. For every member, a health insurance company is required to cover appropriate care based on your health conditions. When a needed service is not available in-network, there may be a provision that fills this treatment gap. A “gap” or “network” exception agreement is requested in writing, usually by the healthcare provider. An approval means that the insurance agrees to provide the service as if it were in-network. Each health insurance has their own way of setting up the process to request one and of setting up reimbursement for services.

If your health insurance does not have an available behavioral health clinician with expertise in gastropsychology or pain psychology (as applies), you may be eligible for this kind of “gap exception” agreement, which results in a reimbursement rate on par with in-network coverage.

I use a teletherapy platform through Simple Practice. This is the practice management service that houses my client portal and that I use to securely manage client records. The software meets privacy standards and is HIPAA-compliant.
You can log into a session from your computer, tablet, or phone. You will receive email and/or text reminders with a link to click to log into the session. If you use a tablet or a phone, you will need to download an app first. You will be able to test your equipment before the session, and instructions will guide you to download the app if needed.