FAQs About Online Therapy with a Trauma-Informed Therapist in Chicago

The standard fee for a 50-minute individual therapy session is $190.

Yes. For some clients, especially those navigating relational dynamics, trauma, or simply needing more space, longer sessions can offer the time to slow down, integrate, and connect more deeply.

I offer the following session lengths:

• 50 minutes: $190

• 80 minutes: $300

• 110 minutes: $440

Extended sessions are completely optional. We can explore whether a longer session feels supportive, either occasionally or as part of our ongoing rhythm.

If you're on a sliding scale, extended session fees are adjusted based on your tier. I’ll always clarify session length and cost ahead of time. No surprises.

Longer sessions can offer more room to settle, reconnect, and be with what’s hard. Whether you’re working through a rupture, deepening insight, or navigating a relationship, we’ll move at a pace that feels grounded, intentional, and spacious for you.

Cancellations made with less than 24 hours’ notice, no-shows, or arriving more than 15 minutes late are billed the full session fee. This helps honor both our time and the structure of the work.

I’m an out-of-network provider, which means I don’t bill insurance directly. This allows us to focus on your care, without needing to justify sessions, assign a diagnosis, or limit our work based on what an insurance company considers “medically necessary.”

That said, many clients use out-of-network (OON) benefits to receive partial reimbursement for therapy. If your plan offers OON coverage, you have two options:

• Submit a superbill yourself (I’ll provide one monthly)

• Use Thrizer, a platform that can:

  • Check your benefits

  • Estimate your co-insurance in advance

  • Submit claims on your behalf

  • Track reimbursements or appeal denials

You’re not alone in navigating this. I’m here to help walk you through it.

I choose not to work directly with insurance companies because therapy should center your healing, not a diagnosis code or a third party’s limitations.

Insurance requires a formal mental health diagnosis and often limits how long, how often, and what kind of care you can receive. These restrictions can:

• Compromise your privacy by requiring sensitive records to be shared

• Pathologize human experiences like grief, stress, or trauma

• Reinforce inequities by making care harder to access for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled, and immigrant clients

• Pressure therapists to fit into short-term, one-size-fits-all models that ignore the impact of identity, culture, and systemic harm

By working outside of insurance, I can offer therapy that is:

• Slower, deeper, and more relational

• Rooted in liberation and equity

• Free from gatekeeping or imposed timelines

I know this system isn’t perfect. There are still barriers, and I’m still learning. But I’ve chosen this path because I believe it allows us to build care based on honesty, autonomy, and equity, not diagnosis codes and gatekeepers.

If you’re interested in learning more, the following articles offer in-depth explanations:

Therapy & Social Justice: Why Insurance Isn’t Our Path

Why I Don’t Accept Insurance As A Mental Health Therapist

Why Don’t Therapists Accept Insurance

Yes. I participate in several programs that help increase access to therapy:

• Asian Mental Health Collective's Lotus Therapy Fund – Covers the full cost of therapy for up to 8 sessions. If you’ve been awarded this fund, please send me your confirmation code before our first session so I can verify eligibility.

• Inclusive Therapists BIPOC Therapy Fund - This fund provides up to 12 fully covered sessions for Black, Indigenous, and Communities of Color/Global Majority with intersecting marginalized identities.

• Open Path Collective - Offers ongoing, low-cost therapy (not time-limited). My Open Path rate is $50 per session, and sessions are paid by the client directly. These spots are part of my Tier 1 sliding scale and are limited in availability.

Yes. To help make therapy more accessible, I offer a limited number of sliding scale spots, guided by values of redistribution, collective care, and economic justice.

Current sliding scale tiers:

• Tier 1 – $50/session (2 slots; currently full)

• Tier 2 – $75/session (2 slots; currently full)

• Tier 3 – $125/session (2 slots; currently full)

• Tier 4 – $165/session (2 slots; currently full)

• Standard Rate – $190/session

• Community Supporter – $190+ (optional)

These rates are based on a trust-based model of access and self-assessment. No documentation is required. I trust you to choose the tier that feels honest and sustainable based on your financial realities and social location.

Sliding scale spots are reassessed every 4–6 months to ensure they remain available for those with the greatest need. If all spots are full, you're welcome to inquire about joining a waitlist.

If you're able to pay the standard rate or contribute more, you’re directly helping to sustain this model and make therapy more accessible to others. Thank you for being part of this collective care practice.

I use a trust-based, self-reflective approach inspired by the Green Bottle Method, developed by community healer Alexis J. Cunningfolk. This model centers access, agency, and collective care, not shame, judgment, or comparison.

You're invited to reflect on more than just income. Consider your access to financial and social resources, including:

• Income stability

• Personal or family debt

• Caregiving responsibilities

• Intergenerational wealth (or lack of it)

• Public assistance or financial safety nets

• How systems of power and oppression shape your access

There is no documentation required, and you’re never asked to explain or justify your choice. Healing begins with respect, trust, and relational safety.

Not Sure Which Tier Fits?

This isn’t about guilt; it’s an invitation to practice honesty and collective care.

Ask yourself:

• Do I have reliable access to housing and healthcare?

• Am I paying off large personal or family debt?

• Do I support others financially beyond myself?

These aren’t rules, just reflections. Let them guide you gently, without pressure.

Reflection Checklist

Before selecting a tier, consider how many of the following statements feel true for you:

• I own or lease a vehicle and can afford gas and maintenance

• I live in stable, secure housing

• I have savings or financial support from family

• I have reliable income that covers my basic needs (food, rent, etc.)

• I have health insurance or access to medical care

• I can take time off or travel without significant financial stress

• I can buy non-essential items (clothes, books, etc.)

• I have manageable or low debt

• I do not rely on public assistance

• I have a financial safety net for emergencies

Let your answers, not just the quantity, but how easily they apply, help guide your selection.

Fee Tier Guide

• Tier 1 – $50/session
  You’re facing financial hardship or systemic barriers that make accessing therapy difficult. This tier exists to reduce obstacles to care.

• Tier 2 – $75/session
  You earn income but experience ongoing financial instability or precarity. This tier reflects a need for support while still making therapy a priority.

• Tier 3 – $125/session
  You can meet basic needs and are resourced enough to make intentional choices about where and how you invest. This tier supports access and sustainability for all.

• Tier 4 – $165/session
  You are financially comfortable and choose a rate that supports both your care and community care.

• Standard Rate – $190/session
  You are financially resourced and able to pay the full rate. This supports the sustainability of the practice and expands access for others.

• Community Supporter – $190+ per session
  If you hold significant financial privilege, paying above the standard rate is one way to redistribute access and practice mutual care. Your choice helps sustain this model.

Whatever tier you choose, please know it’s welcome and respected.
This system exists to honor your lived reality, not to test your worth.

I know this system isn’t perfect. There are still barriers, and I’m still learning. But I’ve chosen this path because I believe it allows us to build care based on honesty, autonomy, and equity, not diagnosis codes and gatekeepers.

My court policy is included in my informed consent. It states that I do not voluntarily participate in legal proceedings. If legal involvement is required, it clearly outlines my limitations and applicable fees.

If you are looking for a therapist who can support legal cases, I recommend seeking someone trained in forensic mental health or custody evaluations.

No. I do not provide court testimony, appear in court, or write letters for any legal or custody-related matters. This includes communication with attorneys, judges, or court-appointed professionals.

My role is to support your emotional and psychological healing, not to serve as a forensic evaluator or legal witness.

Because therapy and the legal system serve different purposes. Court involvement can:

• Compromise your confidentiality and therapeutic process

• Place me in a dual role that undermines the trust we build in therapy

• Require disclosures that may unintentionally harm your case

• Pressure therapists to act as neutral evaluators, which contradicts our therapeutic alliance

You are entitled to your records, but please be aware:

• Therapy records are not written for legal use

• I do not provide summary letters or character references for the court

• Records will only be released with a signed release of information from all relevant parties (e.g., both partners in couples therapy)

If I receive a subpoena:

• I will consult legal counsel

• I will invoke therapist-client privilege when applicable

• I will not release records without signed consent from all relevant parties

• I may be legally compelled to comply in rare cases

Yes. If I am required to participate despite my policy, the following fees apply:

• $2,000 per full day of testimony (in-person or virtual)

• $1,000 per half day of testimony (in-person or virtual)

• $200/hour for travel time (time spent commuting to and from the location)

• Reimbursement of all actual travel expenses (e.g., transportation, lodging, meals)

• All fees must be paid in full by cashier’s check 7 days in advance