Is therapy right for me?
Seeking out therapy is an individual choice. There are many reasons why people come to therapy. Sometimes it is to deal with long-standing psychological issues or problems with anxiety or depression. Other times it is in response to unexpected changes in one's life such as a divorce or work transition. Many seek the advice of a therapist as they pursue their own personal exploration and growth. Working with a therapist can help provide insight, support, and new strategies for all types of life challenges. Therapy can help address many types of issues including depression, anxiety, conflict, grief, stress management, body-image issues, performance anxiety, health crisis, learning disorders, behavioral problems, and general life transitions. Therapy is right for anyone who is interested in getting the most out of their life by taking responsibility, creating greater self-awareness, and working towards change in their lives.
What can I expect in a therapy session?
Every therapy session is unique and caters to each individual's specific goals. During therapy sessions, it is standard to talk about the primary issues and concerns in your life. It is common to schedule a series of weekly sessions, where each session typically lasts 50 minutes. Sometimes individuals who are going through a particularly difficult challenge may request more time per session or more than one session per week. Therapy can be short-term, focusing on a specific issue, or longer-term, addressing more complex issues or ongoing personal growth. Common to TEAM CBT is actively participating in homework assignments, such as practicing skills learned in session, keeping a daily mood log, tracking progress, reading a relevant book or tracking and rating certain behaviors. Between sessions, it is important to process what has been discussed and integrate new skills into your life. For therapy to be most effective you must be an active participant, both during and between sessions.
What benefits can I expect from working with a therapist?
Therapy can provide insight and new perspectives into life's challenges and can help create solutions to difficult problems. Many people find that working with a therapist can enhance personal development, improve relationships and family dynamics, and can ease the challenges of daily life. Sometimes, just having someone there to listen is helpful. Overall, people in therapy tend to have lower levels of anxiety and stress, decreased conflict, and improved quality of life.
Some of the benefits available from therapy include:
- Attaining insight into personal thought patterns and the connection with feelings, physical reactions and behaviors
- Developing new skills for handling work, family or relationship stress
- Improving ways to manage anger, depression, and anxiety
- Modifying unhealthy behavior
- Increasing confidence, happiness, relationship satisfaction, peace, vitality, and well-being
- Discovering new ways to solve problems
- Navigating life’s obstacles more effectively
- Improving listening, communication skills, and conflict resolution
- Enhancing the overall quality of life
Do you accept insurance? How does insurance work?
Dr. Tamargo will bill your insurance on your behalf; however, she is an out-of-network provider except for TRICARE.
You are required by law to pay your mental health deductible, co-pay, and/or coinsurance directly to the provider, at the time of service.
To determine if you have mental health coverage, the first thing you should do is check with your insurance carrier. Check your coverage carefully and find the answers to the following questions:
- Do I have mental health benefits?
- What is my deductible and has it been met?
- What period of time is covered by the deductible?
- How many sessions per calendar year does my plan cover?
- How much does my plan cover for an out-of-network provider?
- What is the coverage amount per therapy session?
- What is my copy and/or coinsurance for an out-of-network provider?
- Is a referral or approval required from my primary care physician?
Please understand that some insurance companies do not apply the full session fee to the deductible. In order to avoid surprises, please ask your insurance how much of the fee they will apply to your deductible. You will be responsible for the difference. Insurances will ofter refer to this difference as "co-insurance."
Is therapy confidential?
In general, the law protects the confidentiality of all communications between a client and a psychologist. Information is not disclosed without written permission. However, there are a number of exceptions to this rule. Exceptions include:
- Suspected child abuse or dependent adult or elder abuse. The therapist is required by law to report this to the appropriate authorities immediately.
- Threatening serious bodily harm or death to others. The therapist must notify the police and inform the intended victim.
- If determined to be a danger to harm or kill oneself. The therapist will make every effort to enlist their cooperation in ensuring their safety. If they do not cooperate, further measures may be taken without their permission in order to ensure their safety.
- If the client is an active duty service member, this provider is required to submit session notes to the referring Military Treatment Facility. It is this provider's policy to provide the records to the service member to deliver to their PCP or medical records department.
