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What do all the letters behind your name mean?
Great question! Those are the credentials therapist have received from their schooling and their license designation. In the end, we all do the same work but our foundations of knowledge might look a little bit different. Here are a few of the license designations spelled out:
LCSW- Licensed Clinical Social Worker
LMSW- Licensed Master Social Worker
LPC- Licensed Professional Counselor
LMFT- Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
LCDC- Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (Unable to do psychotherapy. They are not a therapist. Only able to counsel on drug/alcohol behavioral problems)
All therapist have had to have go to school for a minimum of 6 years and earn a masters degree. Then they have multiple hours of continuing education hours and certification trainings to advance their practice skills. Upon completion of their degree, they have to practice under the supervision of an advanced practitioner for 3000 work hours over a 2 -3 year period, have 100 hours of supervision and pass a state licensing exam.
Why is therapy so expensive? And you only take certain insurances?
Therapy should be considered an investment in yourself and in me as your therapist. I have also made several investments in order to earn your trust as a client. These investments include my schooling, trainings, internships, continuing education, and license maintenance. They also include the space (both in person and virtual) that I create for each and every client to feel safe, secure, and inspired. My rates ensure that I am able to financially continue providing the level of clinical care needed while covering these investments. They also allow me to currently accept a small caseload of sliding scale clients. My hope is that mental health will continue to be increasingly valued and appropriately supported in the coming years and as we continue to remove the stigmas for asking for help. We are also working tirelessly behind the scenes to change how insurance is both billed and used for mental health. I have chosen to panel with only certain insurance companies based on policies or insurance reimbursement. I will continue to evaluate credentialing with other insurance companies in the future.