INITIAL DIAGNOSTIC SESSION
90-Minutes, $275
Client Intake
The first session is a 90-minute appointment called the intake interview. This is a longer appointment than individual therapy appointments (50-minutes) so that we have plenty of time to discuss what brings you to therapy and answer questions that you may have about your provider, the therapy process, or office policies.
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During this appointment you will provide information that will help the therapist develop a sense of what life has been like for you, and what is currently going on that brought you to therapy. Depending on your preference, this can be done by you leading and telling your story with the therapist asking questions along the way, or, the therapist can provide more structure to the session by asking questions that help guide the session. At the end, we will discuss the plan moving forward and the therapist will provide a recommendation for the frequency of sessions.
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Children
(Ages 10 and under)
As a family, you are encouraged to consider whether bringing your child to the intake session is in their best interest. Consider whether you want them to hear all of your concerns that may be shared during this time and whether they will be able to sit through the full 90-minutes.
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During the intake, we will touch on topics such as:
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Confidentiality and the legal limits of confidentiality
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Your child’s early development and relevant background information
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Current concerns
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Goals for therapy
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Treatment planning
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Teens/Tweens
We recommend considering your child’s individual needs and personality, as well as the content you wish to discuss with the therapist during the intake when deciding whether to include your tween or teen in the initial intake interview.
During the intake, we will touch on topics such as:
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Confidentiality and the legal limits of confidentiality
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The balance of privacy and confidentiality in the parent-child-therapist dynamic
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Your child’s early development and relevant background information
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Current concerns
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Goals for therapy
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Treatment planning
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Couples
​Dr. Allain utilizes the Gottman Method for Couples Therapy. In this method, the initial phase of treatment is the assessment phase. This is a detailed assessment of the couple’s relationship history, their current functioning as a couple and as individuals, as well as a screener for any underlying mental health considerations. This phase includes:
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a 90-minute couples intake,
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During the couples intake we will review, in detail, the history of your relationship.
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completion of an online couples assessment through The Gottman Institute,
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A unique email link will be sent to each partner. The results will not be sent to the provider until both partners have completed this assessment.
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a 50 or 90-minute individual intake for each partner, This session focuses on each partner’s personal, family, and relationship history. and a 90-minute feedback session.  The provider will discuss the findings from the assessment phase and outline the treatment plan moving forward. **This process may feel frustrating at first, as most couples have waited to start couples counseling for a long time and are really ready to start the therapy process. However, taking this time at the onset to gather this information helps the clinician and the couple have a much clearer sense of areas of growth and goals for therapy. This assessment period increases efficiency and effectiveness of the therapy.***
Follow-up Sessions
50-Minutes (Individual Therapy) $175
90-Minutes (Couples Therapy) $265
Once the assessment phase has been completed, the clinician and the couple will begin to work through identified goal areas by using various techniques, strategies, and exercises. Broadly, we will focus on improving friendship and intimacy, conflict communication, and making meaning of your lives together as a couple/family. In session, the clinician will facilitate discussions and guide the couple through exercises that the couple will also practice at home, as appropriate.
Many couples have concerns that the clinician will “pick a winner” at the end of each session and/or assign blame to one partner or the other. In reality, the clinician serves as a neutral party who helps facilitate exploration, understanding, and communication through techniques and strategies that are grounded in decades of research. The goal is to support couples in improving their ability to talk to each other in ways that help manage conflict, improve intimacy, and make meaning of your lives together.
The therapy work following the discovery of an affair involves specific phases, referred to as atonement, attunement, and attachment. Together, we work to begin rebuilding trust and transparency between partners. Over time, we will work toward mutual connectedness between partners. Through this work, the goal is to enable both partners to feel securely attached and emotionally safe within the relationship once more.
The time following the discovery of an affair is a devastating and confusing time. It is important to know that, in the beginning, affair recovery work focuses on clarifying questions the betrayed partner has and to rebuild trust through accountability and transparency. This can feel very one-sided, particularly in the early stages of this work. Without working toward clarity and accountability, the couple will struggle to feel safe in exploring other vulnerable parts of the relationship that may have existed before the affair occurred. The ultimate goal is to achieve a secure attachment in the relationship once more, and the road to this attachment must be paved brick-by-brick. This may be the most extreme “trust the process” experience you ever encounter. Nonetheless, both partners are treated with respect and dignity as we pave this road together.
Accepted Forms Of Payment
