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Hillside Counseling
Hillside Counseling
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Online Therapy FAQs in Michigan

This page is here to take some of the mystery and pressure out of starting therapy. If you’re an adult in Michigan considering online sessions with Hillside Counseling, these questions and answers will help you understand how I work, what to expect, and how the logistics (like fees, insurance, and telehealth) actually function in real life.

Getting Started

How do I know if we’re a good fit?

The relationship between you and your therapist is one of the biggest factors in whether therapy feels helpful. If you’re an adult (18+) in Michigan, looking for online, depth-oriented therapy that honors your nervous system, your lived experience, and your neurodivergence or trauma history, you’re likely in the right place.

My work tends to be a good fit if you:

  • Feel stuck in patterns of anxiety, shutdown, or shame
  • Are tired of just “coping” and want deeper, nervous-system-level change
  • Appreciate a collaborative, emotionally honest, nerdy-about-neuroscience therapist


The free consultation is the best way to sense this in real time.

Yes. I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation.

This brief call gives us space to connect person-to-person, talk through what’s bringing you in (for example, trauma history, ADHD-related overwhelm, chronic numbness, or anxiety), and see whether my bottom-up, experiential style feels right for you.

During the consultation, we will:

  • Talk briefly about what you’re struggling with and what you hope will be different
  • Clarify any questions you have about my approach, fees, or logistics
  • Get a feel for whether we both sense a workable, collaborative fit


It’s not a therapy session and there’s no pressure to commit. If we decide to move forward, we’ll schedule your intake session and I’ll send over the initial forms.

You don’t need to have the “perfect” way to explain yourself. What helps most is:

  • A private space where you won’t be overheard
  • A stable internet or phone connection
  • A willingness to be curious about your inner world


You’ll receive intake paperwork ahead of time so you don’t have to remember every detail in the moment.

About Therapy Sessions

What are your sessions like?

Sessions are relational, experiential, and body-aware. I pay attention not only to your thoughts and story, but also to the emotion, sensation, and nervous-system shifts happening as we talk. This is often called “bottom-up” work—starting from what your body and deeper emotional systems are holding, instead of only analyzing from the neck up.

You can expect a grounded pace, lots of collaboration, and a consistent invitation to notice what feels a little more safe, connected, or alive.

Intake Session: 60 minutes
Ongoing Individual Therapy: 60 minutes

This length allows enough time to settle, access deeper material, and come back to a place of relative steadiness before we end.

Most clients begin with weekly 60-minute sessions. Weekly contact is especially important for trauma work and for ADHD or nervous-system dysregulation, because it creates the consistency and safety needed for deeper change. Over time, we may adjust frequency based on your needs and capacity.

The intake session is our first full 60-minute meeting. In it, we:

  • Explore what brings you in and key parts of your history
  • Begin mapping how your nervous system responds to stress, threat, and connection
  • Clarify your goals, hopes, and any non-negotiables


Ongoing sessions build on that foundation. We’ll continue deepening into your emotional and nervous-system experiences, using experiential approaches (like AEDP and Brainspotting) to move stuck material and support growth over time.

Yes. I work with adults ages 18 and over.

No. This practice is focused on individual therapy. If you’re seeking couples or family work, I’m happy to suggest that we talk about referrals during your consultation.

Yes—when it is clinically appropriate and aligned with your goals, I can provide a mental health diagnosis. This is often helpful for:

  • Clarifying our treatment focus
  • Supporting superbills for potential out-of-network reimbursement
  • Coordinating care with your other providers (with your written consent)


At the same time, I hold diagnoses lightly. They are tools, not your identity. We will always work with you as a complex, intelligent system—not as a label.

Online Therapy Logistics

Do you offer in-person sessions?

No. Hillside Counseling is a telehealth-only practice, providing secure online therapy for adults across the state of Michigan.

You’ll need:

  • A private, distraction-reduced space where you feel as safe as possible
  • A device with video capability (computer, tablet, or smartphone)
  • A stable internet connection
  • Headphones if you want extra privacy


We’ll review how to access the secure platform before your first session.

No. I am licensed to practice counseling in Michigan, so I can only work with clients who are physically located within the state at the time of our sessions.

Fees, Payment, and Insurance

How much does therapy cost?

Current fees are:

  • Initial Intake Session (60 minutes): $175
  • Ongoing Individual Therapy (60 minutes): $160 per session


This is a self-pay practice, which means you pay me directly at the time of service.

I am out-of-network with all insurance plans and do not bill insurance companies directly. Instead, many clients choose to:

  • Pay for sessions out of pocket, and
  • Use a superbill to request partial reimbursement from their insurance provider, if they have out-of-network benefits.

A superbill is an itemized document I can provide (usually monthly) that includes:

  • Your name and identifying information
  • My practice information and license
  • Relevant diagnosis code(s), when used
  • The dates, type, and cost of each session


You submit this directly to your insurance company. If your plan includes out-of-network mental health coverage, they may reimburse a portion of the fee according to your specific benefits.

Payment is collected at the time of service. I accept all major credit cards, as well as HSA/FSA cards when allowed by your plan. You’re always welcome to ask billing or insurance-questions in consultation or session so we can clarify together.

I reserve a limited number of reduced-fee slots based on financial need. If you’re concerned about affordability, please bring this up during your consultation so we can explore together whether one of those spaces is available or whether a referral might better match your financial needs.

Confidentiality & Safety

Is what I share confidential?

Yes. Confidentiality is foundational to our work together. Information you share in therapy is protected by Michigan law and professional ethics. I will not speak with family members, employers, or other providers about your treatment without your written permission (via a Release of Information).

Like all therapists, I am legally and ethically required to break confidentiality in a few specific situations, such as:

  • Imminent risk of serious harm to yourself or someone else
  • Suspected abuse or neglect of a minor, elder, or otherwise vulnerable adult
  • Certain court orders


We’ll review these limits clearly in your intake, so you know exactly how your information is protected.

Therapy Expectations & Outcomes

How long does therapy take?

There is no one-size-fits-all timeline. Some people work with me for a few months around a specific issue; others stay longer to reshape long-standing patterns and heal deeper trauma. We’ll check in regularly about your goals, progress, and whether the current pacing feels right.

Many people find me after feeling frustrated with past therapy that stayed mostly in “talking about” things. My work is experiential and bottom-up, which means we intentionally engage the parts of your brain and nervous system that store emotional pain, rather than staying only in analysis.

If you’ve felt unseen, rushed, or stuck in the past, we’ll make space for that and use it to shape how we work differently this time.

You are explicitly welcome here as you are—neurodivergent, highly sensitive, trauma-impacted, or some mix of all three.

We’ll work with:

  • Masking and the cost of constantly “performing okay”
  • Sensory overwhelm and shutdown
  • The emotional impact of ADHD, anxiety, depression, shame, and invalidating environments


Rather than trying to make you more “normal,” we’ll support your system in becoming more regulated, self-compassionate, and aligned with how you function best.

Feeling nervous, skeptical, or ambivalent is incredibly common—especially if you’ve been through a lot, or therapy has been disappointing before. You don’t have to be certain to take a small step. The free 15-minute consultation exists so you can ask questions, feel out the relational vibe, and decide from there.

Scheduling & Policies

What’s your cancellation policy?

I ask for at least 24 hours’ notice to cancel or reschedule a session.

If you cancel with less than 24 hours’ notice or do not show up for your scheduled session, you are responsible for the full session fee. This helps protect the time I’ve reserved for you and supports the consistency that deeper work requires.

Between sessions, I reserve my time for self-care, preparation, and client sessions.

You may email me for logistical matters—such as scheduling changes or brief clarifying questions—but ongoing therapeutic processing is saved for our session time. If you’re ever in immediate crisis, please use emergency resources (such as calling or texting 988, dialing 911, or going to the nearest emergency room) instead of email.

Click Here for Crisis Support

Next Steps

How do I schedule a consultation?

If you’re feeling some resonance with this approach—or even just a curious “maybe”—the next step is to schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation.

You can do that by visiting the Contact page and submitting the form there. I’ll follow up as soon as I’m able with next steps so we can find a time to connect.

Click Here to Schedule a Free Consultation