Therapy is seems to be a mysterious thing. We may imagine something like this:

Or, a cute cartoon like this: 

Therapy has become a joke to many. Actually, it is a really effective tool to help ourselves when there is a problem or during a big life change. 

When you come to therapy - here's what you might encounter:

1. You enter the therapy office. Many times you will have your first interaction with a receptionist or front desk staff. They will ask you to complete a set of forms. The forms often include:       
        Registration Form: You write down your name, address, date of birth, insurance information.
        Intake Form: It could ask for information about your family history, the reason(s) you are 
        seeking therapy, medical conditions, your occupation/education, relationships, drug/alcohol 
        history, legal history.
        Consent Forms: You look over the Patient Rights and Responsibilities, Health Information 
        Privacy Accountability Act, Financial Policy of the provider or clinic.
        Scales and Questionnaires: You may be asked to complete some questionnaires that 
        appear to be more like tests or quizzes. It is important to be as truthful as possible as
         you complete these forms. They are the PHQ-9, CAGE-AID, GAD-7, etc. These 
        questionnaires look at your level of depression, anxiety and/or your substance use.

2. When you have completed all of these forms (are your hands tired from writing yet?!?), the therapist will meet you in the lobby, introduce themselves and invite you to come back to their office. 

3. You are in the office and the therapist will ask you some general questions, like: What brings you in today? How long has this problem been going on? The clinician may ask you some clarifying questions. 

4. During the appointment, the clinician will review the consent forms and explain them. One of the most important things that the clinician will review is regarding privacy. Almost everything is confidential. What isn't confidential? If there is abuse/neglect of a minor (under the age of 18), if you are going kill yourself and plan to complete suicide, if you are planning on killing someone else and have a plan to complete the homicide. 

5. Toward the end of the appointment, the therapist will talk with you about how often you would like to attend therapy. Sometimes people come to therapy once a week and when the problem starts to resolve, the client may want to come in less often. 

At the next session the therapist may talk with you about your diagnosis and talk about what might help you. 

Everything can change in an instant. I've been watching ABC's show, In An Instant. The first show was about a plane crash in Alaska, this episode showed amazing resilience. But, I thought that the pace was slow so I did not want to watch the show again. 

When they previewed the next show, In An Instant: Rush Hour Disaster, it was about the Minneapolis 35W Bridge Collapse. I felt like I had to watch, then, it showed my former co-worker, Lindsay Walz, and I felt even more compelled to watch. I would guess that the majority of Minnesotans were watching and reliving this. Most of us know where we were on that day and how the collapse affected us. 

Therapists talk a lot about exposure therapy and I feel that this blog describes it well. Check out Lindsay Walz's blog. She is a change maker and survivor of the bridge collapse. She has a non-profit called Courageous HeARTS, an arts-based nonprofit youth center which helps young people use creativity to build courage. 

Health insurance can be confusing. When it comes to therapy,  you might need to call you insurance company and find out what is covered. Make sure  you get the answers you need by following this example: (Download this Worksheet)

"My name is ____. I'm interested in going to River City Clinic for help with my mental health and I am calling to verify my benefits. First, I would like some general information."

Policy Effective Date: _______
Office Visit Co Pay: ____
Deductible: ____
Out of Pocket Max: ____
Do my deductibles, co-pays and co-insurance apply toward my out of pocket max? ____
How much of my deductible have I spent this year? ____
Do I need a referral to see a mental health/behavioral health therapist? ____
If yes, who needs to refer me? ____
Is River City Clinic (Clinic Director: Mark Hansen) and/or Heather Holt in-network? ____
If not, how does my insurance work if River City Clinic and Heather Holt is out of network? ____

Individual Therapy
River City Clinic usually uses CPT codes 90834 and 90837 for these services. 
What's my co-pay/co-insurance? ____
Is there a limit on the number of sessions per year? ____
If so, how many individual therapy sessions per year? ____
Is authorization required for individual therapy? ____

Lastly, ask for the representative's name: ____