What to expect during your first therapy visit.

We are in a secure, private setting where anything can be discussed. A few minutes are devoted to nuts-and-bolts items such as confidentiality, disclosure and consent. I will ask you to talk about your concerns and goals. We will talk about your expectations and any reservations you might have.

I will have quite a few questions initially, to get some of the starter information I will need. For instance, I will want know about your background and current circumstances, your strengths and the obstacles you face. I will ask about alcohol/drug use and will have you list the symptoms and problems you encounter. I will want to know about medications you are taking, questions you may have about psychoactive medications, and whether I should coordinate care with your physician. I'll be interested to know about your thoughts on what kind of therapy you think is most helpful, for instance, directive and concrete, or something of an unfolding process of exploration. I'll want to give time to all the initial questions you have.

We will formulate goals for therapy, so that we are in agreement on what the milestones will be as well as how to recognize when you are “there”. We should have a rough idea about how long the process will take so that you know what you are getting into.

It is my hope that when we wrap up, you will be feeling that you have just talked with someone who seems keenly able to understand what you experience and can begin to shed new light on how you become stymied and what you can do about it.