What do the initials LMFT stand for?
LMFT means Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Those with this license have completed a Master’s or Doctoral level of instruction and been licensed by the Board of Behavioral Sciences in California. Licensing may only be granted after 3000 hours of supervised work as an intern, and passage of 2 tests. Those with this license are qualified to work with individuals of all ages, couples, and families. Post licensure, continuing education is required. Beyond this are certifications in specialized modalities.
How does therapy work?
My point of view is that therapy is about achieving the a balanced state of mind and body which allows you to live a happy and meaningful life. Sometimes this means healing past hurts, and sometimes it means working with a current upset. It always means finding and tapping into your originating true self whose fundamental character is clear, solid, knowing, free, joyous, and precious (to name a few possibilities).
Why don’t you accept any insurance?
Primarily because I respect the individual’s right to privacy. In therapy, the consumer holds the confidentiality privilege. That means that no one may have access to your records without your written consent, except under certain circumstances, mostly where harm to yourself or another is involved. Once you use insurance to pay for your psychotherapy sessions many people have access to your diagnosis, your treatment plan, your progress and records of any medications you are prescribed. That may not sound too bad, but some insurance companies limit your number of sessions according to a diagnosis, in essence determining your treatment without an understanding of you as a person. Further, some diagnoses will not be reimbursed unless a medication is also prescribed. And, insurance is only applicable if you have a medically necessary diagnosis, and these are often a more serious diagnosis than might fit you.
What is Buddhist Psychology?
Buddhist Psychology is the study of the workings of the mind, and how to best work with the mind to produce happiness, contentment, and well-being of body and mind. It is not religious, rather it is based in thousands of years of empirical study and philosophy. Most of the contemporary emphasis on neuroscience and changing neural pathways in the brain to effect change can be seen to be exactly what Buddhist Psychology has practiced since ancient times.