Frequently Asked Questions

The first step in your session will be to come to terms with the fact that you are worthy in receiving treatment. We will spend time fundamentally learning about each other and whether we are a right fit. We will share information about our professional background, experience, your rights as a patient, fees/insurance claims, and what to expect from therapy. We will also ask you why you have elected to seek treatment at this time and will begin the intake evaluation if we decide to continue.

This will depend on whether you are coming to us because your primary care provider referred you for mental health treatment, whether you will be paying with your insurance, or whether your treatment will be covered by your company’s employee assistance program (EAP). In all other cases, you will not need a referral to see one of our outpatient treatment providers.

We use both terms interchangeably since the difference between the two are very subtle. Both terms generally refer to talk therapy as distinguished from pharmacological, surgical, or other medical treatments. However, psychotherapists may be inclined toward the exploration of past experiences and how those experiences contribute to your present-day issues. Whereas counselors may choose to work briefly on behaviors or targets specific symptoms or situations to offer guidance on how to deal with them.

Counselors practice what is known as talk therapy and have a master's degree in mental health. Counselors can provide mental health diagnoses and develop treatment plans. Psychologist study behaviors, emotions and mental processes, and hold a doctoral degree in psychology; and may provide treatment for chronic or acute mental health problems. In contrast, psychiatrists are medical doctors who specialize in studying, diagnosing, preventing, and treating emotional, mental, behavioral, and developmental issues. They are able to prescribe medication and diagnose medical illnesses.

Yes, we do. Most of our providers are credentialed by several commercial insurance companies, including: Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, United Healthcare (Optum Behavioral Health), Cigna, Aetna, Magellan Health, Humana Tricare, and many EAP organizations. For out-of-network treatment, we typically charge our standard fees at the time of service and ask that you contact your insurance company so that you can be reimbursed directly by them.

Please visit our Fees and Insurance page to verify whether your insurance/health benefit plan covers the service(s) you are needing. You may also call your insurance company to confirm that your benefit plan will cover behavioral health services with us.

Insurance companies often have the option to not include certain diagnoses in all policies. If you applied with your condition as a pre-existing condition, they may not cover anything related to that. Your insurance company will provide you with a list of covered and uncovered diagnoses.

It is not uncommon, based on your state and your plan, to have limits on mental health visits. Your plan may limit you to have a certain number of sessions with a psychotherapist each year and you will have to pay out of pocket if you exceed that number.

In network providers often are reimbursed less than "out of network" providers for services rendered. Bear in mind that your insurance company may not always have a flat difference.

In that case, your therapist will be considered a non-participating provider or “out of network”. This means that we do not have a contract with your insurance/health care benefit plan and have no obligation to bill your insurance/health benefit plan or accept the rates your insurance/health benefit plan offers.

If you choose to receive mental health care services from a non-participating WMH provider, you will be required to pay for the full amount of your care out of your own pocket. Depending on your payment allowance, your insurance may or may not reimburse you for such services.

Upon request, non-participating WMH providers may be able to print a copy of an itemized statement or "superbill" for all services you received during the time you attended treatment at WMH and the charges for those services. It is your own obligation to file a claim with your insurance/health benefit plan and follow up with them to receive your reimbursement.

Psychotherapists are bound by professional oath, personal ethics and legal licensure to uphold confidentiality. This means that any information that is shared within the protected patient-provider relationship is legally protected from disclosure. Anything that is shared in the therapy room is remains private except when we are required by law to break confidentiality. Such as in situation where there is risk of self-harm, threats of harm to others, evidence of child abuse or elder abuse, or when there is a subpoena by the court requesting specific information about your treatment. Your privacy is also limited to situations where information needs to be released to your insurance company or third parties.

It does. Research consistently shows that cognitive, emotional and behavioral work well in the treatment of depression, anxiety, and many other mental health disorders. In some cases, will be more effective than medication, and provides long-term solutions for several psychological conditions.

Psychotherapy is a treatment modality that offers you the opportunity to talk about your symptoms or anything that is affecting you with a mental health professional in private. It helps you by making you feel heard, empowered, and determined to make changes in your life that are productive to achieving mental health.

The length of treatment depends on many factors. Although we cannot make concrete promises about how long your treatment will last, we do know that your engagement, participation, effort, and commitment will have a significant impact on your progress. However, depending on the nature and severity of your symptoms, your support system, resilience, your openness, and the extent to which the treatment approach being used fits your unique circumstances, therapy may or may not be relatively quick.

Again, the amount of treatment needed for you to begin to show results is dependent upon your unique needs and situational circumstances. We ask that you keep an open minded outlook throughout your course of treatment, and also trust that our therapists want to see you succeed. If you have any concerns throughout your treatment, it is important to speak with your therapist and maintain a strong communication between the two of you. This way, they are able to address your concerns and work to fix them appropriately.

Simply put, treatment is considered to be completed when you witness considerable improvement in your symptoms. Statistically speaking, three out of four individuals who report improvement while in treatment will continue to do so a year after treatment has been completed. Nevertheless, one out of four of those who completed treatment for depression will return during the same year. Instead of focusing on finishing your treatment quickly, it is more crucial that you build self-efficacy and resilience, both of which are qualities you will need to maintain your progress over time.

When speaking about mental health remember to:

• Communicate when your loved one is feeling secure, and comfortable. You must speak on their terms, in order for them to participate in the conversation;
• Discuss your concerns directly;
• Speak at their developmental level/age;
• Pay attention to their reactions during the conversation and make sure to slow down or back track if they seem overwhelmed or upset.