The first appointment is gonna be the longest, but there is a reason. We'll go through all the stuff you filled out before coming in and try to get the full story - not just how you're feeling now, but also what's happened in your life that might be important. It's a bit more official than usual, and we'll be asking a lot of questions to fill in any blanks.

We don't have a set time for each appointment - it can change based on things like lab results or if we need to adjust your meds. Usually, we block off about an hour and a half for that first visit, and anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes for check-ups after that. If we know an appointment's going to take longer, like for testing, we'll give you a heads up so you can plan your day.

We're definitely not your typical practice when it comes to scheduling. You can find traditional hours through the patient portal but if you reach out, we can usually accomodate apointments early in the morning or late at night because that's what fits their lives. Bottom line - we'll work with you to find times that suit us both.

We are telehealth only, so we can see patients throughout the states of Illinois, Oregon, & Washington. At this time, we do not have a physical office, so everything is done through your computer or phone.

All medical records are confidential, but psychiatric records are even more protected. Our patient records can only be accessed by you, people you authorize to have access, or through a warrant or other legal action.

Yes, we take insurance. Just click here to see which insurance companies we're currently working with. We update this list pretty often, so if you don't see your insurance there right now, keep checking back – we might add it soon.

We do take cash pay for those people that do not have insurance or are covered by the companies we work with. If you are worried about cost, we do use a sliding scale model for cash pay. If you are curious, you can reach out to us and we can send you the information.

We do not take Medicare or Medicaid at this time. We are actively looking into it, but for now, we are unable to see people under these plans.

Taking medications regularly and as prescribed is important for your stability, but the goal is not to stay on them forever if possible. We want to make sure you are feeling better and stable before we start to talk about weaning off medication.  But even if this is our goal, you may need to be on medicine for a long time but we will work to make sure that you are on the appropriate doses so that we increase your mental health and minimize side effects.

Therapy's good for pretty much everyone, but we know not everybody's ready to take that on.  Some people really thrive with therapy as part of their mental health plan, while others might not need it as much. The combo of medication plus therapy often creates results that surprise people who've only tried one approach. We're happy to help you find some therapists if you decide to give it a shot.

While therapists and PMHNPs can both offer therapy, therapists cannot prescribe medication. While we do offer a small amount of therapy every session, ultimately, we focus more on the biological aspects of mental health. Both can diagnose and treat conditions but approach them from different angles. Most people can benefit from using medication and therapy together.

Doing your own research is great, and we encourage it, but not all information is accurate or has enough evidence behind it.  We strive to use Evidence Based Practice to guide all of our clinical decisions but we realize that may not be enough.  Our Publications section has journal entries that we have pulled out and summarized for you.  You can either read our summary or download the article and read it yourself.