Information
1 in 4 adults suffer from a mental health issue in a year.
Mental health issues can occur to anyone.
Depression and Anxiety
We may feel sad, crying all the time, easily angered, anxious and worried about many things and these are possible signs of depression or anxiety. You may also feel tired and struggle with falling or staying asleep or sleeping all the time. It is best to not wait until you find it difficult to function each day before you contact someone for help. Treatment is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy which focuses on the thoughts one has that often lead to negative thinking. Together we will challenge the thoughts as often they can be irrational and unsupported by evidence. It is surprising how powerful out thoughts can be. Depression and Anxiety can also be caused by hormonal and chemical issues and those areas can be explored through coordination of care with your primary care doctor.
PTSD
If a person has experienced any form of abuse, emotional abuse, physical abuse or sexual abuse during their childhood they may have post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from the experiences. People struggling with PTSD may feel as though they are always on guard and looking for escape paths from the room they are in known as being hypervigilant. You may experience frequent intrusive memories that seem to pop out of nowhere or have nightmares. People may say that you are "overly emotional" but in reality you are easily overwhelmed and go into the fight, flight or freeze response to protect yourself.
There are other events that can cause PTSD, being involved in or witnessed a life threatening event, car wreck, violent crime, rape, sexual assault, natural disaster, and involvement in military actions/war. PTSD can be treated and does not have to be something you suffer from for a lifetime. Treatment involves processing the traumatic events as the brain was overwhelmed and unable to properly process the event. This does not always require you to "tell your story" as that can also be traumatizing. Together we will explore how you interact with the world today and how your past is impacting your responses. The goal will be to reframe your thoughts and aid you with feeling safe and at ease and not allowing your fight or flight response and skewed perceptions to interfere. This treatment can take some time and you have to be consistent with treatment to overcome the trauma.
Families and Victims of Childhood Sexual Abuse
1 in 9 girls and 1 in 53 boys under the age of 18 experience sexual abuse or assault at the hands of an adult that is mostly likely known to them. (Statistics are from the Rainn.org, David Finkelhor, Anne Shattuck, Heather A. Turner, & Sherry L. Hamby, The Lifetime Prevalence of Child Sexual Abuse and Sexual Assault Assessed in Late Adolescence, 55 Journal of Adolescent Health 329, 329-333 (2014)
Sexual abuse often goes unreported for a multitude of reasons. If a child discloses abuse/assault please go with the belief that they are telling the truth and report it to the authorities where you are located. It is not on you to determine if it is true; let those trained in investigating these things determine that (only less than 2% of reports are found to be fraudulent.) Perpetrators often have more than one victim and by making the report they hopefully will be stopped from hurting so many others.
Talking with someone who has an understanding of various experiences people may have when this type of crime has occurred is very helpful. The child may need help understanding that what they are feeling and experiencing is a normal reaction to these events. Parents and family members need help too as they often may blame themselves or feel that they should have known it was happening and stopped it. They often do not know what to do to help the victim. If these are concerns of yours please do not hesitate to call and schedule to see someone who has knowledge with helping people through this process.
Health Insurance Portability Accountability Act (HIPAA)
Client Rights & Therapist Duties
This document contains important information about federal law, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), that provides privacy protections and patient rights with regard to the use and disclosure of your Protected Health Information (PHI) used for the purpose of treatment, payment, and health care operations.
HIPAA requires that I provide you with a Notice of Privacy Practices (the Notice) for use and disclosure of PHI for treatment, payment, and health care operations. The Notice explains HIPAA and its application to your PHI in greater detail.
The law requires that I obtain your signature acknowledging that I have provided you with this. If you have any questions, it is your right and obligation to ask so I can have a further discussion prior to signing this document. When you sign this document, it will also represent an agreement between us. You may revoke this Agreement in writing at any time. That revocation will be binding unless I have taken action in reliance on it.
LIMITS ON CONFIDENTIALITY
The law protects the privacy of all communication between a patient and a therapist. In most situations, I can only release information about your treatment to others if you sign a written authorization form that meets certain legal requirements imposed by HIPAA. There are some situations where I am permitted or required to disclose information without either your consent or authorization. If such a situation arises, I will limit my disclosure to what is necessary. Reasons I may have to release your information without authorization:
If you are involved in a court proceeding and a request is made for information concerning your diagnosis and treatment, such information is protected by the psychologist-patient privilege law. I cannot provide any information without your (or your legal representative's) written authorization, or a court order, or if I receive a subpoena of which you have been properly notified and you have failed to inform me that you oppose the subpoena. If you are involved in or contemplating litigation, you should consult with an attorney to determine whether a court would be likely to order me to disclose information.
If a government agency is requesting the information for health oversight activities, within its appropriate legal authority, I may be required to provide it for them.
If a patient files a complaint or lawsuit against me, I may disclose relevant information regarding that patient in order to defend myself.
If a patient files a worker's compensation claim, and I am providing necessary treatment related to that claim, I must, upon appropriate request, submit treatment reports to the appropriate parties, including the patient's employer, the insurance carrier, or an authorized qualified rehabilitation provider.
I may disclose the minimum necessary health information to my business associates that perform functions on our behalf or provide us with services if the information is necessary for such functions or services. My business associates sign agreements to protect the privacy of your information and are not allowed to use or disclose any information other than as specified in our contract.
There are some situations in which I am legally obligated to take actions, which I believe are necessary to attempt to protect others from harm, and I may have to reveal some information about a patient's treatment:
If I know, or have reason to suspect, that a child under 18 has been abused, abandoned, or neglected by a parent, legal custodian, caregiver, or any other person responsible for the child's welfare, the law requires that I file a report with the North Carolina Abuse Hotline. Once such a report is filed, I may be required to provide additional information.
If I know or have reasonable cause to suspect that a vulnerable adult has been abused, neglected, or exploited, the law requires that I file a report with the North Carolina Abuse Hotline. Once such a report is filed, I may be required to provide additional information.
If I believe that there is a clear and immediate probability of physical harm to the patient, to other individuals, or to society, I may be required to disclose information to take protective action, including communicating the information to the potential victim, and/or appropriate family member, and/or the police or to seek hospitalization of the patient.
CLIENT RIGHTS AND THERAPIST DUTIES
Use and Disclosure of Protected Health Information:
● For Treatment – I use and disclose your health information internally in the course of your treatment. If I wish to provide information outside of our practice for your treatment by another health care provider, I will have you sign an authorization for release of information. Furthermore, an authorization is required for most uses and disclosures of psychotherapy notes.
● For Payment – I may use and disclose your health information to obtain payment for services provided to you as delineated in the Therapy Agreement.
● For Operations – I may use and disclose your health information as part of our internal operations. For example, this could mean a review of records to assure quality. I may also use your information to tell you about services, educational activities, and programs that I feel might be of interest to you.
Patient's Rights:
● Right to Treatment – You have the right to ethical treatment without discrimination regarding race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, disability status, age, or any other protected category.
● Right to Confidentiality – You have the right to have your health care information protected. If you pay for a service or health care item out-of-pocket in full, you can ask us not to share that information for the purpose of payment or our operations with your health insurer. I will agree to such unless a law requires us to share that information.
● Right to Request Restrictions – You have the right to request restrictions on certain uses and disclosures of protected health information about you. However, I am not required to agree to a restriction you request.
● Right to Receive Confidential Communications by Alternative Means and at Alternative Locations – You have the right to request and receive confidential communications of PHI by alternative means and at alternative locations.
● Right to Inspect and Copy – You have the right to inspect or obtain a copy (or both) of PHI. Records must be requested in writing and release of information must be completed. Furthermore, there is a copying fee charge of $1 per page. Please make your request well in advance and allow 2 weeks to receive the copies. If I refuse your request for access to your records, you have a right of review, which I will discuss with you upon request.
● Right to Amend – If you believe the information in your records is incorrect and/or missing important information, you can ask us to make certain changes, also known as amending, to your health information. You have to make this request in writing. You must tell us the reasons you want to make these changes, and I will decide if it is and if I refuse to do so, I will tell you why within 60 days.
● Right to a Copy of This Notice – If you received the paperwork electronically, you have a copy in your email. If you completed this paperwork in the office at your first session a copy will be provided to you per your request or at any time.
● Right to an Accounting – You generally have the right to receive an accounting of disclosures of PHI regarding you. On your request, I will discuss with you the details of the accounting process.
● Right to Choose Someone to Act for You – If someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your health information; I will make sure the person has this authority and can act for you before I take any action.
● Right to Choose – You have the right to decide not to receive services with me. If you wish, I will provide you with names of other qualified professionals.
● Right to Terminate – You have the right to terminate therapeutic services with me at any time without any legal or financial obligations other than those already accrued. I ask that you discuss your decision with me in session before terminating or at least contact me by phone letting me know you are terminating services.
● Right to Release Information with Written Consent – With your written consent, any part of your record can be released to any person or agency you designate. Together, we will discuss whether or not I think releasing the information in question to that person or agency might be harmful to you.
Therapist’s Duties:
I am required by law to maintain the privacy of PHI and to provide you with a notice of my legal duties and privacy practices with respect to PHI. I reserve the right to change the privacy policies and practices described in this notice. Unless I notify you of such changes, however, I am required to abide by the terms currently in effect. If I revise my policies and procedures, I will provide you with a revised notice in office during our session.
COMPLAINTS
If you are concerned that I have violated your privacy rights, or you disagree with a decision I made about access to your records, you may contact me, The North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors, the State of North Carolina Department of Health, or the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.