Through Evergreen Counseling and Psychological Associates, I offer individual therapy via teletherapy (secure video) to adult clients who live in Pennsylvania. In-person appointments may be available at Evergreen’s office in the Chestnut Hill  neighborhood of Philadelphia. I may be able to see clients in other states (those participating in PSYPACT’s interstate teletherapy agreement), depending on insurance coverage.

I also provide individual therapy via secure video through the Alma network to adults of all ages who live in California or Pennsylvania with select insurance plans, or who wish to pay out of pocket.

See my Services page for more information.

Therapy,  also called psychotherapy or counseling,  involves meeting with a mental health professional to get help with your emotional, psychological, relational, and spiritual concerns. Deciding to start therapy can be a step toward a healthier version of yourself—no matter what challenges you are facing. The most common form of psychotherapy is “talk therapy,” meaning that most of what happens is talking. However, therapy can also  include somatic (body-oriented) techniques (e.g., deep breathing, physical relaxation), art or music exercises, and other activities. Your therapist may also suggest things to work on between sessions, such as practicing a new coping tool, writing in a journal, or takings steps toward a behavior change goal.

Therapy can provide a number of benefits, including feeling heard and understood, getting support, deepening insights about yourself and your patterns, improving communication and boundaries with others, clarifying your goals and values, improving your coping strategies, and changing patterns and behaviors that aren’t working for you. Because everyone is different, talk therapy may not be the ideal form of healing for all. That said, therapy does help many people lead better lives.

As a “generalist,” I don’t have one specialty area in my practice. I have a lot of experience helping people with the most common issues that bring folks to therapy, which are anxiety, stress, mood issues, and relationship problems. I also have experience helping people with life transitions, school and career issues, self-esteem, identity concerns, alcohol and other drug problems, discrimination, abuse, sexual assault, and trauma. My training and experience has been with adults. Before going into private practice, I worked for many years in university counseling, so I have had many young adult clients but now work with adults of all ages. I primarily provide “talk therapy,” sometimes incorporating somatic (e.g., grounding exercises, breathing) or creative arts modalities (e.g., journaling exercises, drawing).

Insurance Plans Taken and Out-of-Pocket Costs
Through Evergreen Counseling and Psychological Associates, with remote (secure video) services and limited in-person services in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Philadelphia, I can take a number of insurance plans. You can also pay out of pocket to see me through Evergreen if you are not using insurance. Learn more about Evergreen’s intake process, availability, insurance and payment policies, and out-of-pocket rates by calling 215-247-5400 during business hours. Note that due to high demand, Evergreen often has a waitlist for initial appointments.

Through the Alma network, I take Aetna, Cigna, Optum/UnitedHealthcare, and some additional sub-plans, or you can pay out of pocket. If you have insurance not accepted by Alma and your plan pays for out-of-network therapy, you can pay out of pocket and I can provide you with a monthly superbill for the cost of our appointments, which you would submit to your insurance company for partial reimbursement. Some insurance plans pay part of the cost of out-of-network providers and others don’t pay anything, so be sure to check with your insurance provider to learn more about your plan’s coverage.

If I don’t take your insurance plan or you choose not to use insurance for therapy, my out-of-pocket rate is $150 for a 50- to 55-minute individual therapy session. I charge a $75 fee if you cancel an appointment with less than 24 hours’ notice or don’t show up for a scheduled appointment.

General Considerations Regarding Insurance
If you wish to use insurance, be sure to check with your provider so you are aware of any deductible (an annual amount you pay out of pocket before your plan’s coverage kicks in) and/or any copays or percentage of the cost of appointments that you must pay. You should also check to see if you need a referral from your primary care provider and if there are any limits on what your plan covers. Finally, if your insurance plan is not one that I accept, find out if your provider pays for out-of-network therapy. If so, you will want to know what percentage of the cost your insurance plan will reimburse.

Note that most insurance plans will only pay for therapy that is considered “medically necessary”; this means that your insurance company will only cover sessions if you have a mental health diagnosis (such as anxiety, depression, etc.. Through asking about your concerns, symptoms, history, and functioning in our first appointment or two, I will determine what diagnosis fits (or will inform you if I feel you don’t have a diagnosis for which insurance covers therapy).

One reason clients sometimes choose to pay out of pocket for therapy is due to these limitations on what insurance will cover. For instance, some people would like to engage in therapy for personal growth, after a death or loss, to improve communication skills, or during a life transition, even if they do not have a diagnosed mental health condition. Others choose to decline using their insurance to give themselves more privacy (because when using insurance, the insurance company will know the client’s diagnosis).

Laws and ethical standards for mental health professionals require that your mental health information is kept confidential. This includes the fact that you are even being seen for therapy. There are some exceptions to confidentiality, such as when the therapist believes the client is at imminent risk for suicide, the client discloses a plan or intention to harm or kill a specific person or group of people, the client discloses information that indicates a child is being abused or is at likely risk of abuse by a known abuser, and the therapist is given a court order to release the client’s records for a legal proceeding. Also, some information (including diagnosis) is disclosed to your insurance company if you are using insurance to pay for therapy.

I earned a B.A. in communications from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.A. in communications from Temple University, both in Philadelphia. I worked for 15 years in Philadelphia doing editorial work for medical publishing companies, an environmental nonprofit, and a local magazine before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2005 to pursue a doctorate degree in psychology.

While completing my clinical psychology program at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco, I worked as a therapist-in-training at a low-fee clinic in San Francisco; a center for people with disabilities in Berkeley; and a university of the arts in Oakland and San Francisco. I completed my doctoral internship at the counseling center of University of San Francisco, where I did individual, crisis, group, and couples therapy with undergraduate and graduate students and provided education and wellness information to the university community. I graduated from CIIS in 2010.  From 2010 to 2012, I worked as a postdoctoral resident and a drug and alcohol specialist at the counseling center of Humboldt State University (now Cal Poly Humboldt) in Arcata, CA. I earned my California psychologist license (PSY 24930) in 2012.

After leaving Cal Poly Humboldt, I served as a drug and alcohol specialist and generalist psychologist for 7 years at the counseling center of  University of California, Santa Cruz, providing therapy services to students, supervision to postdoctoral residents, and education to the university community. After that, I returned to work at the counseling center at University of San Francisco for 3 years as a psychologist, providing therapy services to students, supervision to doctoral interns and postdoctoral residents, and education to the university community.

I got my Pennsylvania psychologist license (PS 019461) in 2021 and moved back to the Philadelphia area in 2022. I currently work as an independent contractor for a Philadelphia-area group practice and a teletherapy network, providing therapy to adult clients with a variety of concerns and identities. 

In 2023, I obtained Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology (APIT) and/or Temporary Authorization to Practice (TAP), granted by PSYPACT Commission, meaning I can provide teletherapy to clients located in states participating in PSYPACT, depending on insurance coverage.

I returned to the Philadelphia area in 2022 after living for 17 years in central and northern California. I am a licensed psychologist in both Pennsylvania (PS 019461) and California (PSY 24930) and have Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology (APIT) and/or Temporary Authorization to Practice (TAP), Granted by PSYPACT Commission 5/25/2023; APIT #14243.

Please note that by law, psychologists can only treat clients who are located in states in which the psychologist holds an active license or in states that are part of PSYPACT if the psychologist has Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology (APIT) and/or Temporary Authorization to Practice (TAP).

No. In most states, psychologists cannot prescribe medications. If you are seeking medication for a mental health condition, you will want to find a psychiatrist (a medical doctor who specializes in mental health) or a psychiatric nurse practitioner. Family doctors and general practitioners can also prescribe medications for some common mental health conditions, such as mild to moderate anxiety and depression.

Yes. While I am trained in handling mental health crises and can thus help my existing clients manage crises if they arise, I am not able to take on new clients who are in an unstable crisis state (e.g., are actively suicidal, have uncontrolled psychotic or manic symptoms), have severe or chronic mental health conditions, have conditions that require a specialized team approach (e.g., many forms of substance use disorder or eating disorders), or are at high and/or chronic risk of suicide or harming others. Severe and complex mental health conditions require a different level of treatment than can be provided via weekly or biweekly therapy appointments–the standard of care for these conditions is more frequent meetings, often combining individual and group therapy, with a team of mental health professionals who can provide therapy and medications. In some cases, clients with severe and complex diagnoses and high risk may require temporary hospitalization or inpatient treatment.

I do not provide letters documenting mental health needs for things such as a mental health leave from work or school or Emotional Support Animals as a stand-alone service to new clients. I may be able to provide such documentation for clients with whom I have already been providing therapy, as appropriate.

I am unable to provide comprehensive psychological or educational testing and assessment (e.g., testing for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder [ADHD], learning disorder assessment, psychological assessment for disability status). However, some of my colleagues at Evergreen do provide psychological assessment services.

I charge a $75 fee for appointments missed or cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice. This applies when a client “no shows” (does not show up for a scheduled appointment), cancels an appointment with less than 24 hours’ notice, or shows up more than 10 or 15 minutes late for an appointment without advance notice, unless there is a medical  emergency that prevented the client from cancelling ahead of time.