Frequently Asked Questions

Mental health therapy services are for everyone, anywhere, anytime. Just like you would take care of your physical health by scheduling regular check-ups with your primary care doctor, our psychological health also requires consistent attention and nourishment. Social and emotional health are a big component of our inner lives so mental health therapy services often become top of mind when people notice stress in their bodies or with the people that they love.

Engaging in mental health therapy services during times of overwhelming stress and crisis is absolutely necessary, but we encourage most people to catch their stress signs early so that they can take their time finding a provider. People often benefit the most when they can build a therapeutic relationship with a clinician over time, and they can have meaningful conversations about what support should feel like and look like.

Many of the people that reach out to us to work with our Nutritionist are interested in reflecting on their relationship with food and eating. Our work in this area is not focused on dieting and weight loss. We are a practice that combats fatphobia, and instead embraces the wellbeing of all people in all bodies.

What we are interested in is discovering the foods that bring nourishment and satisfaction while empowering people to make decisions that move them towards a healthy relationship with their nutrition.

Children are not “little adults”. They don’t communicate their needs in the same way that grown-ups do. This can mean that parents, caregivers, teachers, and any other caring adult in a child’s life would usually capture the need for social and emotional support by noticing how the child-caregiver relationship is feeling, and by noticing how the child engages in everyday activities. Adults often reports some of the following observations when reaching out for services:

• Strained relationships with peers
• Struggles or lack of interest in school
• Challenges with community engagement and participation
• Difficulties with sleep-wake cycle regulation
• Noticing increased stress signs such as running away or social withdrawal
• Changes in eating and appetite

It is also common for parents to identify the need for mental health support while having conversations with teachers or caregivers. It is not uncommon for children to behave differently in a variety of settings, so events like parent-teacher conferences can sometimes help identify the benefits of additional supports.

Parent guidance is a form of mental health support that empowers parents and caregivers to reflect on effective strategies to support their children. A parent guidance session often involves getting to know what the family sees as their strengths, how do they define their areas of growth, and building a plan for how the family will come together to support the development of the child. Parent guidance often involves discussions about child development utilizing a variety of frameworks that make sense of how a child can thrive.

Parent guidance is an embedded component of any child therapy we provide at Mente. It can also be a stand-alone service for families who wish to reflect on their own parenting and caregiving strategies without having the child present.

SPACE, Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions, is a 12-week program created by Dr. Eli Lebowitz at the Yale Child Study Center. It’s unique in that it’s a parent-based treatment to help treat children struggling with anxiety and OCD. It targets the accommodations caregivers may be making in reaction to their children’s anxiety. Ironically, these accommodations, while effective in short term reduction of distress, impact the family dynamics deeply and can actually perpetuate the anxious feelings.

Take a look at this interview with Margaret Lacy, LMHC, our Lead SPACE therapist.

Our therapists have different fees for a variety of reasons. A few of our therapists charge something in the range of $100-$125 for an individual session. Other therapists charge $150 for an individual session. Relationship counseling ranges from $175-$200.

Each of our therapists has a “fees” section within their profile on our website. Please make sure to review this information as you are preparing to engage in services.

Most of our therapists are able to bill Premera. Martha and Emily accept a few other insurances including Regence and Cigna.

This is very important to know. At Mente, we are invested in empowering people to be informed consumers, and want to make sure that people have as much information as possible to be able to navigate the benefits they have.
Here are some of the questions that our clients have told us are helpful to know ahead of time:

Call your insurance company to ask the following questions:

1. What coverage do I have for mental health services?
2. What is my coverage with out of network providers?
3. Do you cover CPT code 90837? How much do you reimburse for this code? How much do you reimburse if the provider is out of network?
4. For relationship therapy, do you cover CPT code 90847? The diagnosis code is Z63.0 Problems in relationship with spouse or partner.
5. Do I have a deductible? How much?
6. How much can I expect to pay per session after I meet my deductible?
7. What do I need to submit in order to get reimbursed for out-of-network services?

Absolutely! We regularly offer this service to our clients. We recommend that you call your insurance and ask the following questions:

1. Do I qualify for reimbursement for out-of-network services?
2. If so, what do I need to submit in addition to the superbill?
3. How much will you reimburse for CPT code 90837 (individual counseling)?
4. How much will you reimburse for CPT code 90847 (relationship counseling)?
5. What are the modifier codes you need to see on the superbill for telehealth services?

Yes we do! We have two offices, one in North Seattle and in West Seattle. All of our therapists are available to see clients for telehealth sessions.