Counseling Services: Los Angeles

Counseling services are provided in person by me in my Los Angeles office.  Individual and couples counseling is available to address an urgent crisis situation, as well as for long-term issues.

Couples Counseling:

People enter couples counseling for a number of purposes, based upon the condition of their relationship and their willingness to deal with their issues. Below are some of the major categories I have noticed in couples that I have treated successfully:

1. Massive Overhaul: the relationship is a “disaster” and the couple wants to improve the relationship.
2. Tune up: the relationship is in fairly good shape and the couple just needs to deal with a few relatively minor issues.
3. Prevention: the relationship is relatively new and the couple wishes to avoid problems in the future. Another example of this might be Premarital Counseling, which is also preventative.
4. Commitment Assessment/Reassessment: the relationship is stagnant, perhaps there are problems, perhaps it is more like a “roommate” situation. Or, the couple is quite volatile and hurting themselves emotionally. Or the couple have been dating for an extended period of time, yet still haven’t fully committed to the relationship. The couple wants to find out if they really “should” be together.
5. Repair: there has been some disruption to the relationship which has caused distance between the partners. Sometimes this is even a positive event, such as the birth of a child. Sometimes, it is something more traumatic, such as an emotional or sexual affair. Whatever the event, the couple desires support in healing and moving back into connection and intimacy.
6. Sex Therapy: the couple have sexual issues that appear to be the dominant issue in treatment. These may be physical and/or emotional issues, and may be connected to early childhood or adult sexual trauma. They may manifest as sexual desire, sexual performance, sexual addiction issues or in some other manner.
7. Divorce Therapy: the couple, married or unmarried has decided that they no longer wish to remain together and wish to “unwind” the relationship in a loving way that will honor their time together.
8. Co-Parenting Therapy: the couple, whether currently in a relationship or not, want support in co-parenting their children together.

This is not to say that the couple necessarily knows specifically why they are entering counseling or that they even agree upon what they want to achieve. My job is to help you determine your goals and to help you to accomplish them.

Session Structure:

The sessions are generally either 50 minutes or 75 minutes in length, although we can have longer sessions if desired. We may meet weekly or we may meet bi-weekly, depending upon what we agree makes sense for your progress. We may meet more frequently, if the situation necessitates it. We will generally meet together as a couple and not individually, as I am treating you as a couple, not as two individuals.

Couples generally make the most progress when they commit to working on their issues in counseling for a certain minimum period of time, usually at least eight to twelve weeks. Your issues took time to develop and it will certainly take time to improve. Again, I don’t require a time commitment from you, but I do notice that couples that commit to the work seem have a better track record of improving their relationship.

My fee for the Couples Counseling Sessions are $175 for a 50 minute session and $260 for a 75 minute session. I do reserve two reduced fee counseling sessions each week in my schedule to support those who find these fees challenging.

Insurance:

While I expect you to pay my fees in full for each counseling session, I am happy to prepare a Super Bill for you to submit to your insurance company at the end of each month. As I am not on any insurance panels, I would recommend that you verify with your insurance provider what percent of reimbursement they will provide for outpatient mental health benefits from an out-of-network provider who is a licensed Clinical Psychologist. While many insurance companies will reimburse you for individual treatment, very few reimburse for couples counseling. And please consider that to be eligible for insurance reimbursement, you will need to be given a psychiatric diagnosis, which will be entered into your medical record. Many of my clients prefer to pay with cash to protect their privacy.

Contact Information:

If what you’ve read seems relevant to you, please contact me so that we can set up a telephone appointment.  At that time, we can discuss your needs and find out how I might help you to achieve the results that you are looking for.  Please call me at my office telephone number:

310-968-1526

Or, please contact me by filling out the form below:

Singles Counseling:

In addition to treating the patients suffering from mood and anxiety disorders and other life issues, I also have many individuals who enter my practice for “singles counseling.” These are not psychiatric patients, but “regular” people who may have a history of unhappy relationships or a pattern of one or two year relationships that all seem to end for the same reasons. Some people have never fully mourned a previous love, and can’t seem to move forward into a new relationship. Some may have difficulties expressing their sexuality in relationships in a healthy way. Some may have sexual identity issues that challenge them.

Is this a relationship pattern that you have experienced before?

1. We meet. We have great chemistry. Everything is perfect.
2. We become a couple, things are still good. We’re very compatible.
3. We get “serious” and consider a long-term commitment.
4. We start to argue and fight about things.
5. Conflict increases even more. We wonder what we ever saw in each other?
6. We breakup.
7. A little time goes by, and the pattern repeats with someone new (or maybe even, the same person!).

In “singles counseling” we work together to understand why previous relationships didn’t last and why current relationships might be having problems. We identify old destructive patterns and learn to let go and heal old relationship pains and frustrations. The end result is to be a happier, healthier person who can create satisfying and fulfilling relationships in the future.

Session Structure:

The sessions are generally 50 minutes in length, although we can have longer sessions if desired. We will usually meet weekly although we may meet more frequently, if the situation necessitates it.

Couples generally make the most progress when they commit to working on their issues in counseling for a certain minimum period of time, usually at least eight to twelve weeks. Your issues took time to develop and it will certainly take time to improve. Again, I don’t require a time commitment from you, but I do notice that couples that commit to the work seem have a better track record of improving their relationship.

My fee for the Individual Counseling Sessions are $175 for a 50 minute session. I do reserve two reduced fee counseling sessions each week in my schedule to support those who find these fees challenging.

Insurance:

While I expect you to pay my fees in full for each counseling session, I am happy to prepare a Super Bill for you to submit to your insurance company at the end of each month. As I am not on any insurance panels, I would recommend that you verify with your insurance provider what percent of reimbursement they will provide for outpatient mental health benefits from an out-of-network provider who is a licensed Clinical Psychologist. While many insurance companies will reimburse you for individual treatment, please consider that to be eligible for insurance reimbursement, you will need to be given a psychiatric diagnosis, which will be entered into your medical record. Many of my clients prefer to pay in cash to protect their privacy.

Contact Information:

If what you’ve read seems relevant to you, please contact me so that we can set up a telephone appointment.  At that time, we can discuss your needs and find out how I might help you to achieve the results that you are looking for.  Please call me at my office telephone number:

310-968-1526

Or, please contact me by filling out the form below: