Frequently Asked Questions

In general, I see clients in person only. My office is located in the Cherry Creek neighborhood of Denver, Colorado.

The exception is the Relationship Checkup. Because this is a brief, two-session preventative checkup, rather than active couple therapy, I offer this service virtually. I offer virtual Relationship Checkups for clients located anywhere in Colorado or California.

In my experience, the most effective and long-lasting change happens in the personal, face-to-face environment of in-person therapy.

Telehealth and virtual therapy can be effective for many problems. But many of my clients have tried virtual therapy before, and found it unhelpful. I have too! Clients often seek me out specifically because they’re looking for in-person therapy (which can be hard to find these days!).

I believe in-person work is especially important for couples therapy. When couples make the hard decision to focus on their relationship, it is essential that they have a dedicated space outside of their regular lives (and screens) to engage in new ways of thinking, feeling, and connecting with partners in an environment designed for that connection.

Arches Psychology Denver is located in the Cherry Creek neighborhood of Denver, across from the Cherry Creek Mall.

The address is 50 South Steele St., Suite 950, Denver, CO 80209.

Free 2-hour visitor parking is available in the back of the building.

I am considered an out-of-network provider by insurance companies. My services are covered by most insurance plans that include out-of-network outpatient psychotherapy (like PPO plans).

I am happy to provide clients with a “superbill,” which you can submit to your insurance company for out-of-network reimbursement. I’m also happy to talk to you more about how this insurance stuff works.

My “out of pocket” rates (meaning before any insurance reimbursement you may receive) are:

Individual Therapy: $275 / 50 minute session

Couples Therapy: $325 / 50 minute session

Relationship Checkup: $325 / 50 minute session

I recognize that quality therapy is expensive. As part of my commitment to offer inclusive, accessible care, I reserve a limited number of low-fee slots for lower income, uninsured, or underinsured clients via the Open Path Collective, a nonprofit organization. For more information about their process and eligibility, visit their website, www.openpathcollective.org.

I have so much to say here! Check out my LGBTQ page, where I discuss LGBTQ-affirmative therapy more.

To begin, we will have brief, 10-minute phone consultation. This consultation is free, and is an opportunity for you and me to discuss whether I am an appropriate fit for your needs.

If so, we will first meet for one or two assessment sessions, during which I will get a better sense of you and what you’d like to work on, you’ll get a better sense of me, and we’ll develop a plan for treatment. After this assessment, therapy sessions are usually once per week for 45-50 minutes.

Take a look at my individual therapy page to see more about what we might focus on in therapy, and how I can help.

After you reach out, we will have brief, 10-minute phone consultation. This free consultation typically includes both partners, and is an opportunity for us to talk about my approach and discuss whether I am an appropriate fit for your needs.

If so, we’ll typically start with a thorough assessment. I’ll meet once with both partners together, once individually with each partner, and once again with both partners. This allows us to identify key issues and plan treatment around a clear understanding of each partner’s perspective as well as the two of you together.

Most couples find these assessment sessions to be very helpful even before treatment technically begins. After these sessions, couple therapy sessions are usually once per week for 45-50 minutes.

Take a look at my couple therapy page to see more information about how I help couples.

The length of therapy varies widely depending your preferences and the problems you seek to work on. Research shows that for both individuals and couples, CBT, IBCT, and similar treatments can be remarkably effective within 16-20 weeks, and this is the length of treatment for many of my clients.

You and I will work together early on to get a sense of how long treatment may last, and continue discussing this as treatment progresses. Some clients focus on a very specific issue and experience faster improvement; others require or prefer longer treatment.

In the case of the Relationship Checkup, this is meant to be completed in two sessions. If we determine that more formal couples therapy is needed, we can discuss next steps.

In terms of individual clients, I specialize in anxiety, depression, and relationship issues, especially with gay, queer, or LGBTQ folks.

The term “anxiety” captures a wide range of more specific issues. In diagnostic terms, I specialize in treating clients with panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), agoraphobia, and specific phobia, among others.

You don’t need to know in advance whether any of these apply to you. Most people don’t — that’s what the initial assessment is for!

I see clients with symptoms from the mild to severe range, and many of the techniques I use are helpful whether or not your distress is related to one of these particular disorder labels.

I see plenty of clients who have concerns that aren’t necessarily disorder-related — as a few recent examples, deciding how to come out to friends as gay, coping with a partner’s gender transition, overcoming perfectionism at work, difficulty using public restrooms, and coping with aging parents.

This can be awfully confusing!

I am a licensed clinical psychologist in both Colorado and California. This means I have a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from an accredited program, completed a dissertation and clinical internship, completed the postdoctoral clinical experience and national and state exams required for licensure in the states of Colorado and California, and stay up-to-date in the field by maintaining my continuing education requirements.

A doctoral degree is the highest degree in the field. Other mental health providers include licensed clinical social workers (LCSW), marriage and family therapists (MFT), and licensed professional counselors (LPC or LPCC). These are typically Masters-level clinicians with somewhat different areas of focus and training.

Psychiatrists are medical doctors (M.D.’s or D.O.’s) who have completed a residency in psychiatry. One major difference between psychiatrists and psychologists is that psychiatrists are able to prescribe medications, whereas in most states, psychologists are not. I often coordinate treatment with psychiatrists or primary care physicians if a client is currently taking medication or might benefit from it as part of treatment.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness has additional information about these various types of mental health professionals.

The term “empirically-supported” (I use “scientifically-supported” too) simply means that a particular therapy approach has been tested in a scientific way, and shows evidence of working for a specific problem.

The strongest type of empirical support is called a randomized controlled trial (RCT). This is when people with a particular diagnosis or problem (say, panic disorder) are randomly assigned to receive either the treatment of interest (say, CBT) or a comparison treatment (such as supportive therapy that doesn’t emphasize cognitive-behavioral elements, or a medication-based treatment). If the treatment of interest (in this case, CBT) outperforms the comparison treatments over multiple studies, we can say it is empirically supported for treating that problem.

All of the treatments I use in therapy are well-established and considered to be strongly supported by the science. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has decades of evidence behind it, especially for anxiety and mood problems, but also for many others. Integrative behavioral couple therapy (IBCT) also has substantial research evidence supporting its effectiveness for couples and relationship problems. The other treatments I often incorporate (dialectical behavior therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, emotion regulation therapy, and emotion-focused therapy) have also been extensively tested and shown to be effective for particular problems. The Relationship Checkup I offer has also been well-tested and shows evidence of long-term effects on relationship outcomes.

Think I might be a good fit for you? All you need to do to get started is reach out for a free phone consultation!

I’ll ask a few questions about your concerns, tell you a bit more about my approach, you can ask any questions you have, and we’ll discuss whether I might be a good fit for a first assessment session. I look forward to talking with you.