443-499-4047
Frequenty Asked Questions
What is counseling?
Counseling is another word for psychotherapy or therapy. It can help you to identify the causes of your symptoms or problems to support you in developing strategies to prevent many emotional problems from continuing at their current severity.
How do I get started?
Contact us by phone, email, or the calendar link to set up your first interaction with the clinical team. A free 15-minute video consultation will be provided to determine if we are a good fit for your services for you.
You will be sent intake paperwork via our personal portal to complete before we will be able to schedule.
After that, we will schedule a 45-90 minute initial intake or evaluation appointment to review your personal, psychosocial, medical, and mental health history. This appointment may involve a genogram to get a visual representation of your family dynamics and history.
Once the evaluation is completed the next appointment will be an individual treatment plan to collaborate and set your personal goals for counseling. This is an imperative part of the evidence-based treatment process.
Initially, all clients will be seen weekly.
Couples and Family Sessions are an additional service added on to support clients within their unique life experiences
How long does each therapy session take?
Sessions are approximately 45 min in length. Usually meeting weekly at the onset
Is counseling confidential?
Anything that is discussed in the counseling session is strictly confidential. Counselors are legally obligated to hold your information shared in counseling as your private health information.
With your written consent, the Allow Health team will communicate with your doctors and/or family about your progress in counseling.
What is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC)?
There are many different types of mental health professionals that offer counseling services. Mental health professionals can be counselors, social workers, family therapists, psychologists, or psychologists.
People often are unsure of the difference between psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychotherapists (counselors).
A psychologist has a doctoral degree in psychology and is independently licensed to counsel patients.
A psychiatrist is a physician who can prescribe medication.
A psychotherapist is generally a clinical social worker, family therapist, or counselor who holds a master's or doctoral degree in their field. The difference is the focus of the practitioner's training program. All can provide counseling.
A Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) is the designation in Maryland for professional counselors.
What is telehealth?
Telehealth is a virtual or remote way to access care from where you are located. Usually, you are at home on your computer, tablet, or smartphone on a video call with the counselor for your session. No other individuals are permitted to be in the same room/space as you during your counseling telehealth session to keep it confidential. This means you may be in a room alone or sometimes creating a private space away from your family in a larger closet or den.
What to expect when your doctor recommends counseling?
Your doctor is concerned about your complete health including; physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental well-being. You may have noticed something off for a while, dismissed it thinking this will pass or it's only.....
Maybe someone close to you has been asking if you are okay a lot, or recommended you see your doctor or mental health professional.
You thought its no biggie. However, stress, anxiety, loss, life balance, or depression related to your job, relationships, a medical condition, or the loss of a loved one, including a pet, may leave you feeling that you are not coping well.
Anxiety, or problems with “nerves,” causes many people to go to their doctor because they experience shortness of breath, become light-headed, or pain in the body.
Chronic irritability, increased levels of frustration, and struggles with eating or sleep can be symptoms of anxiety, depression, or stress. Stress can also cause physical symptoms such as rapid heart rate, stomach pain, and fatigue.
When doctors recommend counseling it is not because they think you are “crazy.” Doctors know that whatever affects our emotional health can have an impact on our bodies or physical health and wellbeing.
Depression is the fourth most significant cause of suffering and disability worldwide. Over twenty million Americans currently experience clinical depression. Depression affects all genders and is nearly double in women.
Depression sometimes occurs as a side effect of many prescription medications. Your doctor recommended medication but it is not agreeing with your system.
It is important to remember that your brain is an organ just like your kidneys, lungs, and heart. We do not think of people with high blood pressure to be weak because they take medication. Individuals who take medication for any mental health need are not weak but rather are experiencing symptoms in an organ of the body which affects emotions.
Research shows that the combination of medication and counseling has better outcomes for the health of the whole person. This could be the reason your doctor has recommended counseling for you.