Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mary LaHood - no insurance but a very reasonable rate. Virtual sessions. She did change my life and helped me process a terrible and life changing event.

Don’t know your situation, OP, but Mary is best for women dealing with motherhood challenges (terrible birth, kids born with medical diagnosis etc).

I know it’s very hard to find a good therapist - good luck!

No insurance? Why? This feels like a huge red flag, to be honest. And virtual sessions only? I mean, I’m glad it helped, I guess, but what are her qualifications? Why can’t she get insurance companies to accept her?

NP here. I am finding that those who have the option, tend not to take insurance.

Apparently, they can make much more without it.

Weaver and Associates
Women Therapy and Wellness
MJ Harford Counselling
Sunstone

Don't hang your hat on finding a really great therapist.

The truth is, the really great therapy is going to happen when YOU are ready to have it, and do that work on yourself.

I worked with the only available therapist covered under my insurance for a few months last year, to try to manage a really bad anxiety and panic disorder. It was so bad at the time that I wasn't sleeping and had multiple panic attacks a day, every day. The therapist was not the most intelligent, or knowledgeable person. He didn't need to be. What he pushed me to do was force me into introspection. Any therapist can do that, OP. I emerged with a much lower frequency of anxious episodes, which for me is success. My baseline is always going to be anxious.

99.99% of the work you do in therapy will be on the patient.

Is Mind Balance sport therapy? PP also looking.

Matthew Levine in Arlington. I've been in and out of therapy for years and he is hands down the best therapist I've ever worked with. It has been life changing. He does not take insurance.

https://www.summitcounselingservices.com/

Bumping this thread as I’m looking for an amazing therapist in NoVa or DC

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm a therapist and here's what I recommend to people looking for a new therapist:

Step 1:
Do you know anyone who has a therapist they like? If so ask them to get recs from their therapist for you.

OR
Go to Psychology Today, read through profiles and find a couple of people whose style you like.

Step 2:
Interview at least three people. They should offer a free intro call (20 min-ish). Given your bad experiences, you might even want to pay for a full session with a couple different people. Tell them what didn't work in the past and ask them how they would prevent/address any issues.

Good luck! I know how hard it is to find a great therapist!

Another therapist here and this is great advice!

I got the one and only therapist who was on my health insurance and was still taking new patients. He wasn't great, but I was so desperate that he was still a big help. Now I don't need him anymore.

I strongly advise you, OP, to just start therapy with someone ASAP. Most therapists are not lawbreakers, and are ethical people. The biggest factor in therapy success is whether the patient truly wants to change their mindset. Not whether the therapist is "great" - because the heavy lifting is done by the patient, not the therapist.

Keep in mind there is no way to know if a therapist comes on here and recommends her/himself. I have used word of mouth and just cold called people on my insurance and it has worked out. I have done it a handful of times during major life stressors. Nobody is perfect, but I usually find I get some relief and a new nugget or 2. I personally stick to those who take my insurance just because I found when I show up someone who charges a lot out of pocket the things that turn me off get magnified and the little bit I got out of the session doesn't feel worth the amount I spent.

Mind Balance in McLean

Jean Gearon was life changing for me when I was her patient 15 years ago. My husband and I still talk about her. She really helped me through some childhood stuff that I never dealt with that was majorly affecting me as an adult and I was plummeting into a pretty bad depression because of it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm a therapist and here's what I recommend to people looking for a new therapist:

Step 1:
Do you know anyone who has a therapist they like? If so ask them to get recs from their therapist for you.

OR
Go to Psychology Today, read through profiles and find a couple of people whose style you like.

Step 2:
Interview at least three people. They should offer a free intro call (20 min-ish). Given your bad experiences, you might even want to pay for a full session with a couple different people. Tell them what didn't work in the past and ask them how they would prevent/address any issues.

Good luck! I know how hard it is to find a great therapist!

I am not a therapist, but I am someone who tried therapist pp's advice.
1. My friends said tgey would ask their therapists for recs (I asked 3 friends) none of them followed through. Their therapy appts are for them and my request is small potatoes.
2 I emailed and followed up with calls on PT to 15! therapists and not one response.

I ended up returning to my last online therapist who wasn't great. This time, though, I am making a stronger effort to come prepared and to stay focused. So far so good. Instead of searching for a unicorn, call the patient coordinators at 3 practices which are near your home or work and which take your insurance. Tell them what you want to work on and let them match you. Good luck!

I'm sorry people didn't call you back. I am the poster you're referencing and I had this problem too. I respond to every inquiry (even if it's just to say that I don't have an opening, and then I will provide some names to try) because I get how frustrating that is.

Calling larger practices can be a good strategy and I'm so glad it worked for you! That said, many of the best therapists I know work for themselves. Ultimately, the most important thing is to find someone who you can connect with. That can happen in a variety of ways.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm a therapist and here's what I recommend to people looking for a new therapist:

Step 1:
Do you know anyone who has a therapist they like? If so ask them to get recs from their therapist for you.

OR
Go to Psychology Today, read through profiles and find a couple of people whose style you like.

Step 2:
Interview at least three people. They should offer a free intro call (20 min-ish). Given your bad experiences, you might even want to pay for a full session with a couple different people. Tell them what didn't work in the past and ask them how they would prevent/address any issues.

Good luck! I know how hard it is to find a great therapist!

I am not a therapist, but I am someone who tried therapist pp's advice.
1. My friends said tgey would ask their therapists for recs (I asked 3 friends) none of them followed through. Their therapy appts are for them and my request is small potatoes.
2 I emailed and followed up with calls on PT to 15! therapists and not one response.

I ended up returning to my last online therapist who wasn't great. This time, though, I am making a stronger effort to come prepared and to stay focused. So far so good. Instead of searching for a unicorn, call the patient coordinators at 3 practices which are near your home or work and which take your insurance. Tell them what you want to work on and let them match you. Good luck!

I had good luck with this; I called a pretty big/popular local counseling place hoping to see counselor A, and the patient coordinator told me they didn't have any openings but then asked what was I looking for and set up a meet-n-greet with counselor B who turned out to be great.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mary LaHood - no insurance but a very reasonable rate. Virtual sessions. She did change my life and helped me process a terrible and life changing event.

Don’t know your situation, OP, but Mary is best for women dealing with motherhood challenges (terrible birth, kids born with medical diagnosis etc).

I know it’s very hard to find a good therapist - good luck!

No insurance? Why? This feels like a huge red flag, to be honest. And virtual sessions only? I mean, I’m glad it helped, I guess, but what are her qualifications? Why can’t she get insurance companies to accept her?

Most top therapists don't take insurance. Many psychiatrists don't either. It's not that the insurance won't "accept" them, it's that they are successful enough that they don't need to mess with the paperwork nightmare and underpayment of insurance in order to have enough clients. DP

Therapist here, for sure this is true. Anyone with a license to practice can get paneled with insurance companies, meaning I have to file paperwork and wait a few weeks to finally get paid half my quoted rate. That means I have to see twice the number of clients per week just to make my budget work (also why we don't immediately get back to inquiries sometimes.) Don't feel bad doing a few sessions and saying it's not a good fit for you, any respectable therapist understands that. Just do know that even the most amazing therapist isn't going to undo years of trauma in a few sessions..Good luck to you, OP!