FAQ

Bill’s Availability: Mondays through Thursdays, 9 am until 4 pm as my last appointment start time. I reserve Fridays for Mini- and Daylong Intensives. I reserve Saturday and Sunday for my family.

Cost is always a consideration, as is the time commitment needed for experiencing a counseling session. Therapy, especially Couples Therapy, is a time, energy, and financial obligation.

In exchange for your commitments to therapy, you get an experienced and highly-trained professional who truly cares about everyone involved.

Every year, I attend expensive, ongoing training to make sure I have the best tools available to help Real People find Real Help.

I see clients for 60-minute sessions unless the client chooses longer times. Initial meetings are always longer because there must be an assessment, and I need to hear what is going on for you while making sure I understand your goals.

The Initial Appointment for individuals is 90 minutes and for Couples/Families, two hours. At the end of most Initial Sessions, I provide individuals or couples an idea about whether the issues seem to be minor, moderate, or significant, and if possible, will describe what type of commitment to the therapy process they will need to make.

Making the Initial Appointment requires a valid card on file and will be charged when setting the appointment. Please see my Cancellation Policies below.

It makes sense that one of the first questions people ask is, “What is your fee?”

I accept Health Savings Account Cards, Flexible Spending Accounts, Major Credit or Debit Cards, Cash, or Check.

My standard session fee is $200 per 60-Minute session. All payments are due when booking the appointment.

Usual session length, 60 minutes except for new clients. Although the number of couples’ sessions vary, research shows 10 to 28 sessions may be necessary to effect lasting couples change.

Individual counseling may need 8 to 16 sessions. More sessions may be necessary.

I hate the money side of what I do.

I naively believed that my primary role was that of a couple’s counselor. Within the first licensure year, it became abundantly clear that I’m a business owner who is a counseling professional. I did not foresee the number of dollars, time, and effort owning a private practice would require.

If I could, I would see people and charge them very little. Unfortunately, I can’t do that.

What I offer clients is my time. I’m in the business to help individuals and couples, and my presence is how I do that. When anyone makes an appointment with me, it is like buying a reserved seat at an event.

When someone buys an event ticket and does not show up, they don’t go to the venue and ask for a refund. The lost opportunity costs must be paid. My time could have gone to another client, but now that cannot happen.

Sessions are paid in advance to prevent lost time and money. I sense that, if a client prepays, they are likely going to show up on time and ready to go thereby respecting their own and my time.

My costs continue to rise, year-over-year so I periodically review and adjust my fee.

I raise my fees at least once a year, typically at the end of each December, but I reserve the right to make fee adjustments at any time.

I’m not upset when clients miss an appointment; it happens to all of us.

Scheduling with me is like buying advance tickets to a movie. If you miss it, it doesn’t matter why you missed it, or even if it was your first time, you can’t turn in your tickets for a refund.

• Cancellations 48 hours or more before your scheduled session: 90% Refund
• Cancellations between 24-48 hours before your scheduled session: 50% Refund
• Cancellations less than 24 hours before your scheduled session: No Refund
• Exceptions may occur for illness or emergencies, please ask.
• If the appointment is on Monday, we need to know before the same hour as your session, but on the previous Friday.

I help people and couples change as they begin to see themselves and their partners differently. I won’t take the time to explain how I do this, but this is part of the first stage of work couples do together.

Working together against the common enemy (the negative cycle) is the key.

Meeting with me more often usually yields more progress. Imagine the thought of coming in for 12 sessions. If a couple does 12 sessions in as many weeks, a lot more happens for them. If a couple does 12 sessions in 24 weeks, six months have passed instead of just three. Time can drag on in that place.

More couples’ distress usually means more sessions.

Health insurance offers enormous benefits. I get it. Unfortunately, I do not take insurance.

My portal can provide a Superbill which you can use to file for out-of-network reimbursement.

I cannot guarantee your insurance plan will accept my Superbill, but there is a chance they will. Two out of two of the clients who have used their Superbill reimbursed at 50% of billing.

There are good reasons not to use your health insurance to pay for mental health services.

Many plans only have limited or no coverage. Regardless, if you choose me as your therapist or not, I recommend you contact your employee benefit plan; they may cover services in full or in part.

Please contact your provider to verify how your plan compensates you for psychotherapy services.

Best Questions You May Ask Your Health Insurance Plan

I recommend asking your health insurance provider the following questions to help figure out your benefits:

• Call Date and Representative Name
• Does my health insurance plan include outpatient mental health benefits?
• When do benefits start and renew? What’s the effective date and renewal date?
• Is Pre-authorization needed? Yes or No? After how many visits?
• How many sessions per calendar year may I have?
• Is there a co-payment (flat fee)? Co-Insurance (percent)?
• Out-of-Pocket Maximum?
• Claims Form? HCFA or CMS-1500
• What is the Claims Address?
• If Couples Counseling: Is CPT Code 90847 (Couples/family therapy) covered? Yes / No
• Is an Arkansas Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) covered Out-of-Network?
• Out-of-Network Coverage?
• Is there a deductible? If so, what is it and have I met it yet? Yes / No
• Do I need written approval from my primary care physician?

[Source: Navigating the Insurance Maze, by Barbara C. Griswold, LMFT]

The Arkansas Board of Examiners in Counseling grants me two counseling licenses (http://www.abec.myarkansas.net/). I’m a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC).

My professional affiliation is with the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). They are at http://aamft.org/.

Ninety-plus percent of my clients are couples. My passion is for couples. If my first wife and I had found the right couples’ therapist, we might have had a different outcome. At the time, I didn’t know there was such a thing as someone specializing in couple’s therapy. But that was then, and this is now. Now I know better.

I believe there is hope for any couple, including highly distressed couples.

I practice Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) with most couples.

EFT Principles have changed my life, my marriage, and all my relationships. EFT Processes have saved many of my clients’ marriages.

I became aware of EFT in the Spring of 2014 while attending a continuing education seminar at Harding University. Dr. Ryan Rana (Fayetteville, AR) shared his passion for couples’ therapy. He hooked me from the beginning. As he shared, I saw myself and my relationships in a new light. After his presentation, Dr. Rana answered all my questions. In-depth EFT training is what I wanted. Dr. Rana walked away with a $500 check covering my first four-day training.

My Marriage and Family Therapy and Community Counseling graduate degree is from John Brown University. JBU gives advanced training in couples and family systems. From the beginning, I knew I wanted to specialize in saving marriages.

In 2014-2015, I attended my first set of three Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) Training weeks in Fayetteville. I repeated the training in 2015-2016, 2016-2017, and 2017-2018. In 2017-2018, I attended training as a small group facilitator. To belabor the point, I excited to say I have completed the training four times and again return this year.

Do you wonder why I make the sacrifice to close my office and attend added EFT couples training three weeks every year?

My passion is saving marriages and lowering the devastating Arkansas divorce rate. Every time I attend EFT Training, I find deeper insight and understanding. I get clearer concerning how best to help couples experience the kind of relationship and love for which they long.

I work with couples as couples, rarely individually.

My first meeting with the couple is a critical time for them to get a sense of me and how safe they feel with me. Can the client trust me? Does the new client believe me when I tell both, “I am 100% for each of them, no matter what?” I begin working with the couple in the first session.

If the couple wants to continue, I meet with them individually for one session each. The individual sessions provide me an opportunity to get to know them a little bit more and for them to get a more definite sense of who I am as a therapist and a person. Once the couple completes the individual sessions, I usually start working with the couple.

My answer may surprise you. While working with the couple, I focus on both strengthening and supporting the relationship. Focus is a great word. EFT Practitioners use a laser-sharp focus to help the couple lean into difficult conversations or situations. There is so much going on. Couple distress happens so fast.

Here’s an example: most couples initially complain about their lack of communication. I find they are communicating. Their problems do not stem from a lack of communication. Everything they are doing or not doing is communication. I believe the real problem is what is going on inside their heart when the relationship hurts. They may be fighting about a spouse who is not coming home on time, but it’s usually much more about how it leaves the one at home isolated and alone. So, I simultaneously hold both partner’s positions in their disconnection dance. I focus on what happens for each of them when the relationship hurts.

Emotion is vital in all relationships. Don’t believe me? Think back to the early days with your partner. See yourself with them. Where are you? What are you doing? Check your body? Are you smiling? Do you have warm feelings even after this much time has passed? What are those heartfelt emotions you are experiencing? Can you put your hand on your body where you feel warm?

Now imagine your relationship with this most important person in the world. What would your today with them be like if you had not experienced those warm, loving feelings of intoxication, infatuation, and exhilaration when you first got together? Would you be together? I doubt it.

When people are looking for a couple’s therapist, they say they can’t communicate. It’s been too hard for too long a time, and hope is almost gone. I know the route to relationship healing is in what is happening in the emotions.

Great question. It makes sense that one or both may be unsure about staying together. Right now, the relationship is hurting. One person may be leaning in and wants the relationship, or one may be leaning out and wants out. Maybe both partners want to stay in but have tried every strategy multiple times and do not know what else to do. In other relationships, both want out.

Regardless of their position in the dance, I can help them make sense of their current situation.

Clarity in distress is highly treasured and very difficult to grab. I will always advocate for the relationship. I want to see relationships healed and I’ve seen amazing restorations.

There is no pat answer to this tough question. Safety comes first. Partners need to be safe. Safe in every way: physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and sexually.

When I come to a professional opinion that one or both partners are unsafe, I lean into that situation.

Men and women often tell me I am helping them. One crucial sign is most couples continue in treatment.

Another significant mark comes from the frequency with which they quote me in and out of session. They’ll kindly poke fun at me, or each other, with the concepts and phrases I use. They have broad smiles at this point. They are sharing that their world has changed for the better and I had the joy of being part of the change process.

Please contact me with any added questions you may have. I look forward to hearing from you!
Call me at (501) 205-4570!