Your First Visit
1. Getting Started
Starting therapy can be exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. Here is some information to help give you an idea of what to expect during your first visit. First, in order to help me gather some information, it is important that you fill out some brief paperwork. I can either email it to you prior to our first session, or you can arrive 10-15 minutes early to complete it before our session begins. When you arrive to my office, please make yourself comfortable in my waiting room; I will come greet you at our appointment time and bring you back to my office.
2. Your First Session
Finding a therapist with whom you are comfortable can be a daunting task, but yet it is a critical piece to having a positive experience in therapy. For that reason, our first session will be focused largely on getting to know one another. For the client, it is an opportunity to ask questions and get a feel for me as a person and as a clinician. For me, it is an opportunity to gather background information and learn how I can be helpful and supportive of your therapeutic goals. Together we will collaborate to establish goals for therapy and a plan for achieving them.
3. What's Next?
Our first session will last about an hour and will end with payment being made and discussing our next steps. This includes scheduling a next session as well as discussing the frequency of our sessions. Typically, sessions are weekly in the beginning phase of therapy and gradually decrease in frequency at the point in which we feel it appropriate. I also leave time at the end of our session for follow up questions and questions regarding the process of therapy. And with that, you have survived your first session!