South OC Counseling

Piper Walsh, Ph.D. Clinical Psychologist
Call Now (949) 370-4726

Therapy for Children, Adolescents, Adults in South Orange County

Common Questions

common-therapy-questions

Is now the right time for therapy?

Most of us could use therapy at one point or another in our lives. Whether or not you’ll benefit from therapy depends both on your desire for change and your connection with your therapist. Therapy can provide the support and guidance necessary to help you persevere through a difficult chapter in your life, or it can help you uncover the next steps on the road to personal growth and development. The goal of any therapy is to help you become a more complete and fulfilled individual.

In some cases, therapy is needed as a response to a traumatic or painful incident. Perhaps you are going through a divorce or job loss, or a period of intense depression, anxiety, or self doubt. In these cases, therapy may offer a way out of a difficult situation, a way to resolve ongoing conflicts and overcome sometimes debilitating mental roadblocks.

What is a therapy session like?

Therapy is different for everyone, and your personal goals and needs will influence the structure and the content of your therapy sessions. Therapy is an opportunity for you to discuss the issues and concerns you face in your life. It is also an opportunity for you to discuss goals and plans for your future. You will likely meet with your therapist once per week at a regularly scheduled time. In some cases, if you are facing a particularly difficult challenge, your therapist may schedule sessions with you more frequently. Therapy can be short term or long term, depending on your needs and the issues you want to address.

Your therapist may ask you to perform certain activities outside of your scheduled therapy sessions. She may require you to read a specific book or keep a journal of your thoughts or monitor your behavior in a certain way. The most important thing you can do is apply what you have learned. Integrate the things you have gathered from your therapy sessions and put them into practice. Your active participation, both during and between sessions, is crucial to the success of your therapy.

How will I benefit from therapy?

Therapy may provide a variety of benefits. In many cases, therapy can give you the tools you need to overcome difficult mental, emotional, or social obstacles. It can help you adjust to an unfamiliar environment, such as life without a loved one in the wake of a death or divorce, or it can give you a new outlook that assists you in solving a painful conflict with your spouse or a coworker. But you don’t have to be struggling with depression or conflict to benefit from therapy.

Therapy can assist you in developing valuable insights about your life, personal and professional success, health and happiness, and much more. Therapy has been shown to increase the overall quality of life for participants while reducing levels of stress, anxiety, and conflict.

Therapy may benefit you in the following ways.

  • Gaining new problem-solving skills.
  • Addressing and lessening anxiety and stress in your life.
  • Ending unhealthy or destructive behaviors and habits.
  • Gaining a better understanding of self.
  • Increasing your confidence and self esteem.
  • Increasing your physical energy and vitality.
  • Giving you a sense of peace about past, current, or future events.
  • Helping you overcome anger and temperament problems.
  • Helping you overcome feelings of depression, loneliness, or hopelessness.
  • Teaching a skill set to listen and to communicate more effectively.
  • Improving your overall quality of life.

Is therapy covered by my insurance?

Dr. Walsh has chosen to be an out-of-network provider for insurance companies. After each therapy session, Dr. Walsh provides a receipt that contains all the information your insurance company needs in order to provide you with a direct reimbursement. If you have a PPO, you can call your insurance company and inquire as to their benefit structure for out-of-network mental health providers.

The questions below may assist you with this call.

  • Do I have mental health coverage?
  • Have I reached my deductible?
  • What amount will my plan cover for an out-of-network provider?
  • How much of the cost of each therapy or counseling session is covered?
  • How many therapy or counseling sessions will my plan cover per year?
  • Do I need approval from my primary care physician?

Please note that I am NOT a medical provider. Medical does not cover my services and should not be billed for services rendered. If you would prefer to see a medical provider, at any point, I am happy to assist you in locating a provider.

Therapy is fully confidential, right?

Under normal circumstance, yes. Everything shared in a therapy session between the client and the therapist will be kept strictly confidential in accordance with the law. No information can be disclosed without written permission from the client. Again, under normal circumstances, confidentiality is guaranteed. But there are a few exceptions in which the law requires the therapist to break this confidentiality agreement and contact the proper authorities. These exceptions are outlined below.

  • Suspected abuse. If the therapist suspects, or it is reported to her, that a child , a dependent adult or an elder may be being physically, emotionally, or sexually abused, the law requires that the therapist report her suspicions to the proper authorities immediately.
  • Physical threats. If the client makes a legitimate threat of physical violence or bodily harm toward another individual, the therapist is required by law to break confidentiality and warn the potential victim as well as the police.
  • Personal harm. If it appears that the client is in real danger of doing significant physical harm to himself or herself, the therapist will intervene in whatever way necessary to protect the client. Initially, the therapist will seek to work with the client to eliminate the threat of harm, but if the client is unwilling to cooperate, the therapist is obligated to take additional steps without the client’s approval to prevent injury.

Please call me today at 949-370-4726.