FAQs

What is C ouns eling Psychology?

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), counseling psychology "focuses on how people function both personally and in their relationships at all ages". "Counseling psychology addresses the emotional, social, work, school and physical health concerns people may have at different stages in their lives, focusing on typical life stresses and more severe issues with which people may struggle as individuals and as a part of families, groups and organizations. Counseling psychologists help people with physical, emotional and mental health issues improve their sense of well‐being, alleviate feelings of distress and resolve crises. They also provide assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of more severe psychological symptoms".

H ow can counseling help me?

Counseling offers people the opportunity to identify the factors that contribute to their difficulties and to deal effectively with the psychological, behavioral, interpersonal and situational causes of those difficulties. These are some of the ways in which counseling can be helpful:

Help us identify negative or illogical thinking patterns that contribute to feelings of hopelessness and helplessness, and to develop a more positive outlook on life.
Identify and explore learned thoughts and behaviors that create or maintain problems.
Help us regain a sense of control and pleasure in life.
Encourage support from family and friends.
Find solutions and/or develop better coping strategies to deal with life's problems.
Discover personal strengths and how to use those strengths to grow stronger in other areas.
Provide a safe, warm, supportive environment to process your feelings and thoughts.

How do I make an appointment?

To schedule an appointment with me, please feel free to email and/or call me at the contact information listed at the bottom of this page. Please note that everyone over the age of 18 must contact me directly to schedule an appointment.

Where can I park?

There are metered parking spaces along the street in front of the Graham Plaza on North College Avenue and around the square. However, other modes of transportation such as bus, bike, or walking can also be used throughout the city. Several bus stops are located within one block of the Graham Plaza. A public parking garage is also available behind Graham Plaza at 220 North Morton Street.

What to expect at my first session?

You will be asked to arrive approximately 30 minutes early to your initial session with me in order to complete the initial paperwork.
At the start of this initial session, I will go over confidentiality and its limits and explain what you can expect during this session.
The goal of the initial session is to gather enough information about you and your concern to help us address your issue. Therefore, I will ask you a series of questions related to your history and background; your concerns; what led you to schedule an appointment at this point in time; the type and severity level of your symptoms; the length of time that the symptoms have been occurring; and the impact on your daily functioning and life.
At the end of the session, I will help summarize your concerns, explore treatment options available to you, and provide a recommendation to help you resolve the issue at hand. Please be aware that my recommendation could include setting up regular individual sessions with me or being referred to a different therapist in the community if I believe that you will be better served by a therapist with more resources, training and/or expertise related to your presenting concerns.

What is the length of treatment and frequency of sessions?

Everyone is different and as such there is no set number of sessions or required length of time that someone need to spend in therapy. Several factors such as the nature of the presenting concern; frequency of occurrences and length of time that this concern has been an issue for you; level of support; degree of therapeutic alliance between therapist and client; and the client's willingness to actively work on the issue both inside and outside sessions all contribute to how long it might take to resolve a particular concern. In general, most clients tend to engage in therapy at least once a week, or once every other week based on their particular issue (i.e., severity of the presenting concern, length of time that the problem has been an issue for them, how quickly they want to see progress and specifics related to their insurance plan). This is something that we will discuss in more details at the end of your initial session.

What is confidentiality and are my sessions confidential?

The nature of therapy requires clients to disclose personal and often sensitive personal information to their therapist. Professional ethical codes and state laws consider the personal information discussed between a counselor and a client (18 years and older) to be strictly confidential. This means that the information that you share in counseling, including the fact that you are currently receiving therapy, cannot be disclosed to anyone without your written permission.

What are the exceptions to confidentiality?

Even though confidentiality is required as part of the ethical and legal requirements of my profession, there are some exceptions to confidentiality that you need to be aware of prior to engaging in treatment:

Abuse/Neglect/Exploitation of a Child/Elder Adult or Dependent Adult — if the therapist knows or reasonably suspect that a child under the age of 18 or elderly individual is being abused or neglected the therapist is legally obligated to report this information to appropriate state agencies.
Harm to Self — If there is evidence that a person poses clear and imminent danger of harming themselves, a therapist may seek their involuntary admission to a hospital in order to protect the client.
Harm to Others — If a therapist has reason to believe that a person is threatening physical violence against another, the therapist may be required to take action to ensure that the other person is protected. Such action may include contacting the police, notifying the intended victim, and seeking involuntary hospitalization of this individual.
Court Subpoena — A court-ordered subpoena can require therapist to release information contained in records or to testify in a court hearing.
Legal action against therapist - If a client pursues legal action or makes a complaint to a Professional Board against the therapist, the therapist has the right to disclose information regarding the client and/or the client's sessions as part of their legal defense.

What to do if I don't find counseling to be helpful?

If you ever feel that your counseling sessions are not helping you address your concerns, please feel free to bring it up at any point in time. I believe that it is important to have an open and honest conversation with each other to process what you feel is not working for you. In my experience, when things don't seem to be working, it may stem from misconception or misunderstanding about what to expect from therapy or miscommunication between the client and therapist. Therefore, having an open and honest conversation will allow us to identify the problem, process the issue at hand, and to hopefully find a way to enhance your therapeutic experience. If after speaking with me, we determine that what you are looking for in therapy cannot be addressed through me, I will provide you with referral sources that I believe may work better for you based on what we discussed.

Office Location

Contact Information

Address:
Julie d'Argent, Ph. D., HSPP, LLC
205 North College Avenue, Suite 430
Bloomington, IN, 47404-3952
Email:
[email protected]
Phone:
(812) 349-8979
Website:
www.drjuliedargent.com