Frequently Asked Questions

Below are some of the most frequently asked questions I receive.

With over a decade of experience as a licensed mental health professional, board-approved supervisor, and adjunct professor at UT Austin’s Graduate School of Social Work, I bring both enthusiastic passion and real-world application to every audience I stand in front of.


“Sam spoke to my women’s fitness ministry Facebook group about “Loving Our Bodies through every step of the journey” and it was completely amazing- her speaking style was fun and engaging...The content she delivered was easy to follow and understand in a no-nonsense and empathetic way that my tribe was able to walk away from that video with actionable steps to loving themselves a little better through this lifestyle journey. She even spoke on a piece about internal dialogue and how we can rephrase even the things we maybe don’t “love” about ourselves and our bodies, to be more uplifting so we can learn to love ourselves beginning with our own thoughts. I 100% would recommend Sam as a guest speaker in the arena of women empowerment in any space. Women need her voice, her message, and her energy- especially with the challenges 2020 has brought. Your tribe needs her, I promise!!!”
  
- Jody Jones, NASM certified PT, CF-L1 coach


While I do offer a sliding scale, the spots are limited and tend to stay fully booked. However, you are always welcome to send me an inquiry, and I’m happy to put you on the waiting list when a spot becomes available in the future.

Otherwise, I would recommend utilizing Psychology Today or Open Path to find a therapist who is in-network with your insurance carrier or whose rates are within your budget!

Yes - I highly recommend you do! I utilize a company called Thrizer to submit claims on your behalf (or, I can give you a monthly superbill so you can submit to your insurance company yourself).

If you have out-of-network benefits, you can estimate that your insurance company will reimburse you for 60-80% of the total fee of each session once you’ve met your deductible. 

I can absolutely check your benefits for you during our consultation call. You’ll just need to bring your insurance card with your member ID.  Otherwise, you can call the number on the back of your insurance card directly under “Member Services” to confirm your benefits.

What's the first therapy session like?

I use our first session to begin getting to know all the aspects of your life, relationships, and world that make you, you! I’ll do this by asking you quite a few questions, and you’ll be invited to share whatever you are comfortable with, knowing that in subsequent sessions, we’ll have time to go deeper into the areas we need for your healing and growth. We will end the first session by brainstorming a few goals you’d like to work towards together in therapy. This helps me begin developing your therapy treatment plan, which I typically am able to review with you by session 2 or 3! 

We will start out by meeting weekly for 6-8 weeks, and at the 60-day time point, we will evaluate your progress and decide if it makes sense to adjust the frequency. 

I am a CBT-oriented and solutions-focused therapist, which means my goal is that you begin feeling better,more confident, and competent to take on the world sooner than later using different tools you’ll learn in therapy. 

Many of my clients reach their goals within 6-9 months of working together, however, the length of time someone is in therapy varies. I will make recommendations to help guide these decisions!

No, as a Licensed Clinical and Master Social Worker, it is not within my scope to prescribe psychiatric medications. A psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner are the most common providers who are able to offer medication management for mental health disorders. 
I am more than happy to refer you to a prescriber as needed!