FAQ

Therapy is a scientifically informed method of treatment for people who may be feeling overwhelmed or dissatisfied with their current quality of life.  You may be struggling with feelings of anxiety or depression, the challenges of managing a stressful life event, alcohol or substance abuse, roadblocks to achieving goals/personal growth, or other matters that may have a debilitating effect on your life.  A psychologist will work together with you to develop a collaborative plan for how to best treat such issues and help you find relief from your more challenging symptoms.

While the majority of my clinical training involves working with children and families, I also have a great deal of experience working with young adults in therapy, particularly as they manage the transition from adolescence into adulthood.

No. Many of the patients that I see in therapy are not taking medication, while others may find it helpful.  If we determine that you may benefit from medication support in addition to seeing me in therapy, you and I can talk about arranging for an adjunctive consultation with a psychiatrist.

Therapy starts with something called the “intake process.”  This means that I will meet with you over the course of 1-2 sessions and ask you a series of questions about what brought you to therapy, your medical and mental health history, your current quality of social, familial, and occupational functioning, as well as what goals you would like to accomplish in our work together.  At the conclusion of the intake process, we will determine a meeting schedule that takes into consideration your availability, your presenting issues and concerns, as well as your stated objectives for treatment.  The length of how long you need to attend therapy varies with each patient.  Some patients notice their symptoms subsiding after only 4-5 sessions, while other patients may wish to meet with me for longer.  You may decide to stop meeting with me regularly and shift to an “as needed” basis, not unlike what you would do with your general medical provider. You and I will decide together when is the best time for you to bring the therapy process to an end.

Living in the hustling, bustling Southern California community provides its own unique challenges for children and adults alike.  Many of the issues that I treat in therapy for children include academic struggles, feelings of sadness/frustration that can come with managing peer relationships, depression, anxiety, familial discord, as well as issues surrounding cultural identity and acceptance.  Meanwhile, issues that I treat in therapy for adults include depression, anxiety, personal growth/stage of life questions, managing difficult relationships, familial discord, and occupational stress.

Many times patients will wonder if their psychologist has been in therapy himself.  I’ve always found it important to “practice what I preach,” meaning that I too have been a patient in therapy.  I feel like this benefits me in my role as a psychologist by helping me to maintain a clearer focus on the issues that my patients are bringing up in their own therapy, while also providing me with some insight and perspective into what it feels like to be a patient in therapy.

Every child will experience some degree of challenges or conflicts, as we know that to be an inevitable part of growing up.  It is when those challenges and conflicts become more pervasive or significantly interfere with a child’s day-to-day functioning that it may be time to consider enrolling in therapy.  If you feel as though your efforts as a parent are not enough in helping to resolve your child’s issues, or other forms of support (teachers, coaches, clergy, school counselors, etc.) are only treating part of the problem, then perhaps a referral to a psychologist would be helpful.

You know how you would go to see a medical doctor if you got the flu or had a fever? Well sometimes kids may be feeling sad, angry, lonely, confused, or have other strong feelings that they are struggling to manage. This is where psychologists can help. Psychologists are special kinds of doctors who help kids and families understand their feelings and find safe and healthy ways to deal with them. Psychologists use talking strategies as well as structured and unstructured play activities to help kids with identifying and expressing their feelings, enhancing their self-esteem, as well as helping to improve relationships with family members, friends, and other important people in a child’s life.

Nope. In fact, most of the children that I see in therapy are not taking medication. There are some instances when I have met with kids who could benefit from taking medication in addition to seeing me for therapy, in which case I would talk to you and your parents about meeting with a psychiatrist. A psychiatrist is another kind of medical doctor who works together with psychologists to help treat issues that come up in therapy.

Therapy starts with something called the “intake process.” This usually means I will meet with you and your parents and ask you questions about yourself, why you and/or your parents thought it would be a good idea to meet with me, how you have been feeling lately, how things are going at school and at home, as well as what goals you would like to accomplish in our work together.  Usually I meet with you for an hour and your parents for an hour, and then I would create a treatment plan that everyone agrees to before we start with regularly scheduled therapy appointments.

This is a good question, but a hard one to answer because every child I meet with is so different.  Some kids notice that they are feeling better after 4-5 sessions, while other kids may decide to come meet with me for longer. You and your parents may decide to stop meeting with me regularly and shift to an “as needed” basis, not unlike what you would do with your general medical provider.  You, your parents, and I will decide as a group when is the best time for you to stop therapy.

Just like the grown-ups that I see, children deserve to have “confidentiality” in therapy, which means that what you say in our sessions stays between the two of us.  There are exceptions to this though.  If I feel like you or another child may be in harm’s way, I would be sure to talk to your parents and/or other supportive adults to help keep everyone safe.  If I feel like it would be helpful to talk with your parents about what you share with me in our private sessions, you and I would discuss this first and figure out a way to talk about it with your parents together.

Nope!  I can promise you that I’ve met plenty of different kids and families from plenty of different schools who have decided to come to meet with me for therapy.  Everyone needs someone they can talk to when things aren’t going their best.  Deciding to go to therapy and talking with a trained professional shows just how brave you are in deciding to get the support that you deserve.