FAQ

I  meet with clients generally on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Occasionally, I have some availability (irregular) on Mondays and Fridays, but not regularly, due to my commitment to help teach Somatic Experiencing to other practitioners.

Sessions are 50 minutes long.

I do not take insurance unless it is a PPO plan that will reimburse out-of-network services.

It has been a difficult decision to leave insurance panels. Sadly, insurance companies pay therapists less per session than they did when I started my practice in 1998, while the CEOs of these companies have charged higher premiums to us all and systematically reduced payments to providers.

For example, BCBS paid me about $150 in 1998 for a 50-minute session, and now they pay about $135 for the same session. Furthermore, they do not allow providers to charge more than they pay, so you cannot balance the bill. This has forced many of us to get off insurance panels because the reimbursement rates have not kept pace with the rise in the cost of living.

To schedule an initial appointment, please call or text me at (413) 923-2445.

My cancellation policy requires a minimum of 48 hours’ notice, or the full rate will be charged, unless I can fill your time.

I have been in practice since 1995, following my graduation from the Smith College School of Social Work.

In 1998, I started supervising other therapists. I am certified in EMDR and Somatic Experiencing, and I began assisting in teaching Somatic Experiencing in 2020.

I have worked with individuals of all ages, but the focus of my current practice is individual therapy with adults (Non-binary, Men, and Women) aged 18 and over.

Of course, every client is unique, so this is a tricky question to answer! However, my sessions are not just talking; we will move, make sounds, track the sensations in your body, and explore the emotions that are present as we work.

Absolutely not! However, I will continue to ask you to bring it back to the body. For example, if you are talking about how a friend blew you off, I might ask you, “As you talk about that, what are you noticing in your body?” I think of it as talking is one channel – the meaning channel – and this is very important; however, we are often too stuck on this channel and have forgotten the other channels.

In Somatic Experiencing, we focus on the Meaning channel, as well as the sensations that arise in your body, the emotions, images, and behaviors that accompany them.

I usually do give homework, but with this caveat. This isn’t school, and it is a suggestion; you still get an “A” whether you do it or not.

I integrate Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, EMDR, Parts Work (IFS), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy when it seems to be the most suitable approach. Different situations, different people often require different things.

I think the best therapy doesn’t shove you into one way of practicing. I ask myself which approach would work best in this situation. When training other therapists (and myself), I emphasize that, first and foremost, we should be fully present and hear the person sitting across from us deeply and attentively, and then consider which modalities seem to be the best fit.

I feel picking the modality before the person is like giving someone a pair of shoes without knowing their shoe size!

It is essential to arrive on time and be in a private place with no interruptions, no phones, or other devices beeping, and a secure, stable internet connection.

I recall being a student of SE and feeling both excited and skeptical. I recall the trainer saying, “This will change your life.”  I remember thinking, “Yeah, right. I’ve been doing therapy for 20 years. We will see.”  

I also remember the teacher saying, “Don’t believe me; you will believe me when you feel it.” I felt it, not in a big way at first, but about three months in, when I was called up to be the client in the demonstration. I was asked to think of a ‘small’ traumatic situation, and I came up with being chased in the park while jogging. I don’t think I had ever brought this up in my regular talk therapy, because nothing bad had happened. I had been scared, but I had spat on him and told him off, and he had left me alone.

In the SE session, the instructor asked me what I really wanted to do, and I said I wanted to throw him off his moped and run him over. She had me stand up and imagine holding the moped, and then she had me hit him with it. I did this and sat back down thinking, “That was interesting and different,” but I didn’t feel that different. However, later in the day, I felt lighter, as if something had left my body in a good way – something I hadn’t even known I was carrying. After that, I was hooked!

No. Everyone has a different starting line. Some people start therapy with a more frozen system than others, for example. Think of it like this: some people have to start the marathon and run the whole thing, while others begin with only 2 miles left to go out of 26.

Obviously, that would be a very unfair marathon! Life is unjust, and some people have a lot more trauma than others. Also, if you have had trauma, but have done body work or had other therapy that has been helpful, that helps. If you decide to try me as a therapist, I will assess your nervous system and let you know my opinion on where you are and how long it might take.

I enjoy outdoor swimming, snowboarding and skiing, hiking, playing bridge, and Scrabble. I love animals, meditation, and yoga as well.