{"id":51,"date":"2014-06-04T01:01:06","date_gmt":"2014-06-04T01:01:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.drlegerski.com\/?page_id=51"},"modified":"2025-11-21T21:41:40","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T21:41:40","slug":"beginning-therapy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/?page_id=51","title":{"rendered":"Beginning Therapy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Starting therapy, especially if you have never seen a therapist before, can cause anxiety and apprehension.\u00a0 This page will guide you through the initial process and provide access to the required paperwork.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The first phone call<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Developing a therapeutic alliance is essential for finding a resolution to your problems.\u00a0 Because a good therapist\/client “fit” is so important to successful therapy I will spend 10-15 minutes with you on the phone as a free consultation.\u00a0 During that phone call I will want to get an initial understanding of your situation and primary concerns.\u00a0 This time is also a time for you to ask any initial questions you have about my background and experience so we can mutually determine if we should move forward with an initial appointment.<\/p>\n

The first appointment<\/strong><\/h5>\n

When you arrive at my office, please have a seat in the waiting room.\u00a0 You may help yourself to tea or water.\u00a0 I will be out to greet you shortly.<\/p>\n

During the first appointment, I want to hear about your most pressing concerns. I will also begin a diagnostic evaluation and gather a thorough history to help me understand you more fully. This usually takes 1-2 sessions. During this time, you can assess how comfortable you are with me.\u00a0 By the 3rd session we will be discussing treatment goals and what the therapy approach might look like, and we can both decide if I am the best person to help you meet your treatment goals.\u00a0 If we decide to continue to work together in therapy we will typically meet weekly, but depending on your situation and schedule we can meet more or less frequently.<\/p>\n

Initial Paperwork<\/h5>\n

The documents below include legal and “need to know” information that I would ask you to review prior to our first session.\u00a0 There are also four or five forms that you will need to fill out before the first session.\u00a0\u00a0 If we are meeting via Telehealth you will need to complete the Consent form for\u00a0 Telehealth sessions.\u00a0 Even if our plan is to meet in person, you may want to complete the Telehealth Consent form in the event we would need to change to Telehealth sessions due to weather, illness, or convenience.\u00a0 The Consent for In Person Sessions needs to be completed for meeting In Person during Covid-19.\u00a0 You will need to bring your insurance card and a photo ID along with the four forms.\u00a0 If you have questions after reading the initial materials, I encourage you to either call me with your concerns or bring them up when we meet.<\/p>\n

Need to Know Information<\/h5>\n

Patient and Therapist Agreement<\/a><\/p>\n

HIPPA Notice<\/a><\/p>\n

Forms for the First Session<\/h5>\n

Patient Insurance Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Background Questionnaire<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Fee Agreement & Consent Form<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Consent form for Telehealth<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

If you are unable to download or print the forms to bring, please contact me. I would be happy to mail or fax them to you. Alternatively, you can arrive 15-20 minutes early to complete the forms on the day of your appointment, but let me know in advance so I can leave them on a clipboard in the waiting room for you.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Starting therapy, especially if you have never seen a therapist before, can cause anxiety and apprehension.\u00a0 This page will guide you through the initial process and provide access to the required paperwork. \u00a0The first phone call Developing a therapeutic alliance is essential for finding a resolution to your problems.\u00a0 Because a good therapist\/client “fit” is … Continue reading Beginning Therapy<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-51","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/51","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=51"}],"version-history":[{"count":40,"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/51\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":687,"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/51\/revisions\/687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drlegerski.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=51"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}