Therapy may be helpful if:

• You are feeling down, depressed, or hopeless more often than not

• You have negative, worried, or stressful thoughts that you can’t control or stop

• You are struggle to pay attention, focus, or concentrate when you need to

• You can’t stop thinking about past failures, past mistakes, past hurts or disappointments

• You feel guilty and/or ashamed a lot of time, even when you don’t need to

• You feel angry and resentful more often than not

• You are having a hard time feeling connected or cared about or caring about others in your relationships

• You are consuming alcohol, marijuana or other drugs, food, or money more than usual

• You are feeling stagnant and stuck in your job, in your sport or craft, in your relationships or in life

• You are struggling to parent effectively, feeling like your kids don’t listen to you, you don’t know what to say to them or how to say it, and you feel stuck

• You are feeling burnt out, numbed out, disconnected from you job, from others, from life in general

• You are wanting to gain more insight and understanding about yourself, your thoughts and feelings, your relationships, and/or what drives you behaviors

You don’t! And neither does Dr. Sierra! At least, not yet. Dr. Sierra doesn’t start working with new clients until she has had a chance to learn more about their struggles, their needs, and their goals. She wants to make sure that she can meet your individual needs and make a connection that will help you feel safe and trusting in the relatonship.

Dr. Sierra offers a FREE 15 to 20-minute consult phone call or Zoom meeting with anyone interested in working with her for therapy. It will be a chance for her to ask you some questions and for your to ask her some questions. Some questions you can ask her:

• What is your education/training?

• What is your experience?

• What is your therapeutic approach?

• What is your therapeutic style?

• How long will therapy last?

• How much will it cost?

The relationship between you and Dr. Sierra will begin with that first contact, which is completely confidential. Even if you decide to not see her for therapy, this initial contact remains private.

Psychotherapy is a collaborative process that involves exploring an individuals thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. In the case of couple's therapy, we are exploring both the individual internal processes and. how those thoughts, feelings, and behaviors manifest in the relationship between both partners.

Through various therapeutic techniques and approaches, you will gain insight into your issues and learn how to make changes to improve how you feel internally and to improve your relationships and daily life externally. Sessions provide a safe, confidential environment where you can express yourself freely without judgment. Dr. Sierra guides the conversation to foster self-discovery, promote emotional healing, and encourage personal growth, while also teaching practical skills and strategies for navigating life's challenges.

After the initial consult call, if you and Dr. Sierra decide you might work well together, she will schedule the initial intake with you. During this intake, Dr. Sierra will gather more details about your current struggles, your goals for therapy, your family background, your medical history, your social relationships, your unique strengths and challenges, etc.

You and she will then determine how frequently you should meet for sessions (usually once per week to start but sometimes once every two weeks) and she will provide more details about how she can help you. She will explain what therapeutic modalities may work best and why, but most importantly, you and she will start the journey toward healing and change forward together.

Therapy is 100% CONFIDENTIAL. Dr. Sierra cannot tell anyone that you have even reached out to her and she is not allowed to disclose the details of your sessions to anyone without your permission. There are some legal exceptions to this that Dr. Sierra will review during the first session. Please ask about any concerns you may have about confidentiality when you reach out to her for the initial consultation.

Generally speaking, most folks begin to feel better after the first or second session? Why? Because research tells us that establishing a strong therapeutic alliance with a therapist is the single best predictor that someone will start to feel better as a result of therapy!

What is the therapeutic alliance? The therapeutic alliance is the degree to which the client and therapist build a relationship that is based on

• Mutual trust

• Mutual collaboration

• Safety

• Open and honest communication

If at any point in your work with Dr. Sierra (or any therapist), you don't feel safety, trust, or that it's okay to openly communicate that, then please let your therapist know so that it can be addressed in therapy!

The answer is that it depends....If you have medical insurance through Aetna or Medicare, then your out of pocket cost may be very little. If you have different insurance or no insurance, then your out of pocket cost may be more. Please visit our Fees page to learn more about cost.