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The less aware we are of our thoughts, feelings, motives and behaviors, the more they control us. Psychotherapy helps clients understand their “stories” from the experiences that shaped them, the defenses that have helped protect them and the patterns or habits that are now preventing them from living a satisfying life. Psychotherapy is a dialogue. The client presents data, the therapist offers ideas about its meaning, the client responds with his/her interpretation, and so on. It is important that psychotherapy progresses at a pace that is comfortable and safe for the client. Change can feel frightening or overwhelming, and may not occur quickly.

Psychotherapy is a collaborative effort between a licensed clinician and client. The purpose of psychotherapy is to help people identify life values, goals and develop potential solutions to problems which cause emotional turmoil and promote behavior change and “optimal” mental health. The therapeutic relationship is unique: it is a highly personal, and there is no “one size fits all” approach to treatment.

Self-help books contain generalizations, based on someone else’s story, or on a combination of stories. While self-help books play an important role in our culture, they don’t offer the flexible, individualized approach that is often needed to bring about lasting life changes. In addition, books do not offer the therapeutic relationship that can encourage us and hold us to a greater level of accountability.

Many people can tell after an initial session whether they feel comfortable with a therapist’s style. Please feel free to speak up if you do not feel comfortable with the therapist, it will not offend us whatsoever. We want you to feel that you can develop an alliance of trust with your therapist – that is when therapy works best. We want to help you get to the right therapist.

Many people feel nervous and ambivalent before their first appointment, wondering how therapy works or what the therapist may ask; what they might reveal to their therapist. Your therapist will primarily want to hear the reasons you made the appointment, what you have already done to try and solve the problem, and what you hope to accomplish in therapy. To better understand you, your therapist will likely want to know how things are going in the important parts of your life (relationships, work, school, etc.) as well as information about your background. If you and your therapist decide to continue working together, you will begin developing goals for therapy. If you do not feel comfortable with your therapist for any reason, please say so, and your therapist will be happy to provide you with a referral to another therapist.

Dr. Kleinberg does not provide emergency sessions. If you find yourself in a mental health crisis, please call 911 or 988 (the national suicide hotline) or visit your nearest emergency room. If you leave a message for your therapist, he will call you back as soon as possible, usually within the same day or within 24 hours.

Some people begin to feel better as soon as they make their appointment or at the time of their first session. There can be a sense of relief when you make the commitment to address an issue that is problematic. More often, however, people do not feel better immediately. Therapy is sometimes emotionally painful, because it involves an active effort to look at yourself and your life situations in a very deep and honest way, and to make some difficult changes. If the problems that bring you to therapy were easy to solve, you would have solved them without the guidance of a professional. Though the short-term distress of addressing problems and making changes may feel challenging, keep in mind that the potential long-term gains can feel well worth it. When therapy is successful, the positive gains in self-esteem, improved relationships and coping skills will far outweigh the distress of making changes.

While insurance is accepted, Dr. Kleinberg has a number of clients who choose not to use insurance. Some clients have concerns about the degree of privacy that can be maintained once a claim makes its way to a huge managed care company. Others do not wish to be given the mental illness diagnosis that all providers must assign them if they are filing an insurance claim.

Often, a person enters therapy with some specific goals in mind. One of the things you will do with your therapist is periodically review, clarify and, if desired, adjust your goals. When your goals are met to your satisfaction, you can decide to discontinue treatment, remain in treatment to make sure you maintain your progress, or set new goals. Remaining in therapy is always your choice.

Although therapy training is designed to treat you using sound therapeutic skills, there are times when a medication referral is warranted. If your therapist thinks that medication might be helpful, he/she will discuss a referral to a health professional who is trained in working with emotional and behavioral issues – most often, a psychiatrist. At other times, there may be medical issues your therapist believes should be addressed, since feeling good requires being physically as well as emotionally healthy. As with other aspects of treatment, whether or not you choose to accept your therapist’s recommendation is ultimately your decision.

Session Cost is for private pay, HSA and FSA accounts.

Copays: Ask your insurance what your copay fee is for mental health services. Average copays range from $0-$35 but may be higher. Depending on the company, we won’t know how much a copay is until the first bill is sent. It is the responsibility of the patient to pay their copay at the time of treatment.

We offer a wide range of online therapy services in Escondido and all over California, including anxiety therapy, trauma therapy, individual counseling, and couples therapy. Each service is designed to provide support tailored to your specific needs, whether you're seeking help for managing anxiety, healing from trauma, or enhancing your relationships.