Frequently Asked Questions
What makes The Anxiety and Depression Center unique?
Our clinicians are experienced, results oriented, and rigorously trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. This means that you will receive state of the art, evidence-based treatment that is proven, powerful and effective. Through our compassionate, patient-centered approach, we hope that you will learn to make meaningful, long-term changes in your life and begin to feel better in a short period of time. LEARN MORE about our practice.
What is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)?
Cognitive is simply a fancy word that means thoughts. Cognitive behavior therapy, known as CBT, is a form of psychological treatment that focuses on the thoughts and behaviors that accompany psychological distress. Research has demonstrated that when thoughts and/or behaviors change, your mood and other psychological problems improve. Cognitive behavior therapy is an active, structured form of psychotherapy that has been shown to be very effective for a wide variety of problems. LEARN MORE about Cognitive Behavior Therapy.
Is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) effective?
CBT is devoted to helping you feel better as quickly and completely as possible. In CBT we help you develop new thinking and behavioral skills that you will be able to use throughout your life, enabling you to feel better and approach situations in a more helpful, positive way. Extensive research shows that CBT is the most effective form of psychological treatment for anxiety disorders, depression and a host of other psychological problems.
Which therapist will I see?
Upon your initial call to the center you’ll speak directly to a member of our intake team, who will collaborate with our clinicians to help determine which therapist is most appropriate for you. We take into consideration your needs, symptoms, and schedule, and match you with the clinician who offers the best fit. You can always speak directly to the therapist prior to your first appointment to make sure that you feel comfortable. LEARN MORE about our therapists.
Do you offer evening or weekend appointments?
We are open Monday through Saturday. Some clinicians offer evening and weekend hours.
What can I expect at my first appointment – (for Adults)
During the first session, your therapist will conduct a comprehensive assessment to help understand what brought you into our office and learn about your goals for therapy. We pride ourselves on a comprehensive and thorough assessment. We will discuss a personalized treatment plan tailored to your needs and your situation. In the first session or two we also want to teach you about CBT and how it may be helpful for you.
We anticipate that you will leave the first session with a sense of hope that our center is a place where you can get better and that the planned treatment can be beneficial for you. We will also provide you with at least one tool, method or strategy that you can begin to incorporate into your life to start the process of positive change.
What can I expect at my first appointment – (for Children & Teens)
During the first session, the therapist will want to get an understanding of the challenges that your child is facing. Depending upon your child’s age and situation, the parent may meet independently with the clinician, or the parent and child may be seen together. It is important to get a thorough history and to understand your child’s strengths and vulnerabilities. We want to be clear about the treatment goals and what you, as parents, are hoping to achieve in therapy. After the first session or two, you should have an understanding of how the therapy may help your child, and can expect to bring home at least one new idea or strategy of how to assist your child or what your child can do to help themselves. Our goal is to provide you with the support and strategies you need so you can best help your child. LEARN MORE about our services for children and adolescents.
How do you monitor progress?
We provide weekly assessment for clients, so together we can visibly track improvement. We monitor the frequency and severity of your symptoms on an ongoing basis. Each week you and your clinician can discuss how your symptoms have changed. This facilitates improvement and allows you and your therapist to make adjustments to ensure that you can feel better as quickly as possible.
Are you an inpatient hospital?
We are an outpatient center, offering assessment and cognitive behavioral therapy in our offices in Newport Beach (Orange County). Most patients begin treatment with weekly appointments, which become less frequent as they get better. If during your assessment we determine that you need more intensive treatment, such as partial hospitalization or inpatient care, we will refer you to a more appropriate setting. When indicated, some of our patients participate in both individual and group therapy.
What are your fees? Do you accept health insurance?
Our fee is $325 per session. Sessions are generally 50 minutes long. We are an out of network provider for insurance companies and managed care plans. Most of our patients submit a receipt for our services to their insurance company. If you would like to get reimbursement from your insurance company, we will provide you with paperwork to submit to your carrier to request reimbursement. If you have a PPO you are likely to get reimbursement for a portion of the fee.
How long does treatment last?
The average length of treatment in our office is approximately 12-20 sessions. The length of treatment will vary as some people respond rapidly and others take longer. Your therapist will develop a personalized treatment plan and discuss expectations for the length of treatment during your initial assessment. After the first session or two we should be able to give you an estimate of how long your treatment will last, and you should have a sense that this is the right treatment for you.
What forms of payment do you take?
We accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, debit cards, and checks. You can also use funds from your Health Savings account or Flexible Spending accounts toward payment.