COVID & Telehealth updates

Hello Current and Future Clients,

As of 6/22/2020 I will be offering a limited number of in-person sessions again with some restrictions. Current clients will have received information already about these changes and the required adjustments. If you are interested in being seen face-to-face versus Telehealth at this time, please contact me.

Should the situation change in terms of infection rates, please understand that I may quickly transition back to Telehealth only based on advice from public health authorities.

Going to online sessions

As local and national COVID-19 recommendations continue to be updated, I have made the decision to go to online sessions ONLY for (hopefully) a brief period of time, as of 3/17/2020 and extending through at least 3/31/2020. I know this change may be stressful to some at a time that is already feeling stressful. However, at this point it has become impossible for any of us to really know if we have been recently exposed. Even with hand-washing and wiping down the office several times a day, it just isn’t worth the risk. My clients include people with chronic health conditions, and I also manage a chronic health condition; the risk of exposure currently outweighs the benefits of in-person meetings. I expect this online-only arrangement to last for two weeks, but maybe longer, depending on how things go. I will certainly keep you all updated.

If you have an appointment with me this week after Monday 3/16, or next week (3/23-3/27/2020), I will be changing them to Telehealth appointments. 

Here is what you need for Telehealth Sessions: 

1) There is a Telehealth Consent Form that I will ask you to sign and return to me by email or through the client portal prior to your scheduled appointment. If you don’t have one, please let me know.
2) You should be receiving an email from my software, Simple Practice, that tells you about your Telehealth appointment and provides a link to sign into it. If you don’t get it, let me know by text, phone or email prior to your scheduled appointment. Check your spam filter. At the time of your appointment you will need to follow the link in the email to join the session. 
3) You will need access to a laptop, or to a PC with a camera and microphone. You may need to make updates to your system if you haven’t done so in a while. Ipad and other tablets should also work, but you may need to download the Simple Practice Telehealth App. Although I have tested things on my end and found things to be running smoothly, we may run into technical issues and we will muddle through as best we can. 
4) As far as I know, insurance companies will be paying for Telehealth sessions at this time, but I can make no guarantees about your coverage. If you are unsure, please contact your plan. For those plans I am contracted with, I will be billing with the appropriate codes through Simple Practice software as usual. If I usually provide you with a Superbill, the codes for Telehealth sessions will be included on the Superbill.

If you have other questions, PLEASE CALL ME. I am so happy to answer them and work this out as best we can.
Thank you,
Laura

COVID-19 Updates

As of today, 3/13/2020, my office remains open for business as usual. If you are a current client and would like to schedule a Telehealth session instead of coming in to the office(s), just let me know by phone or email and I will facilitate that for you. At some point, depending on how things develop, I may encourage the use of Telehealth sessions over in-person sessions for a period of time. Although they aren’t quite the same as in-person sessions, it is important to maintain routines and supports at this stressful time.

ATAWS HAS MOVED

Adoption Therapy Associates of West Seattle has moved from our location at 4138 California to a brand new office! We are now located at 7603 35th Ave SW in West Seattle. Our new offices are located in a house solely dedicated to our work with clients.

Policy on Family Separation at Our Borders

The current administration’s policy of separating families at the border is CHILD ABUSE and must be stopped immediately.

When young children are separated from their parents under duress, they lose their sense of safety and security, and will experience extreme stress which can lead to anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and other stress-induced mental health problems that may impact them for the rest of their lives. The trauma of separation from parents may be compounded for these children by the stresses of being held in facilities that lack quality trauma-informed care, or by being moved from one facility to another. We have a wealth of research the shows children who experience prolonged states of extreme duress, or TOXIC STRESS, (prolonged activation of the body/brain stress response systems) will experience disruptions in the development of their brain and bodily organ systems, increasing the risk for a host of diseases and impairments. Particularly for young children, these forced separations and related traumatic experiences will have life-long consequences for them, and ultimately for all of us.

There can be no justification for deliberately abusing children.

To TAKE ACTION, contact your representatives and/or:

Home

Home

Introducing Adoption Therapy Associates of West Seattle

I am pleased to announce the opening of Adoption Therapy Associates of West Seattle, located just north of the Alaska Junction at 4138 California, Suite C. At this new office I will be joining forces with two other incredibly talented and adoption-savvy therapists, Jill Dziko and Katie Stallman. We will maintain our separate practices and also work together to bring a new level of services to our clients. It is our intention to offer therapy in a setting that is supportive and attuned to the needs of all who are impacted by adoption.

First Year Home: Educational and Support Groups for Parents and Their Adopted Infants and Young Children

In this 8 week group, parents learn about the flow of child development as they engage together with their children in age-appropriate songs, stories, games and activities that are designed to support adjustment and attachment. Parents are assisted in problem-solving sleep, feeding, toileting, limit-setting, sharing issues and more. Parents receive support, resource information and connection with other adoptive families. This small group is facilitated by a therapist with over 15 years experience working with adoptive families.

Cost for the group is $45 per session, 8 session minimum (some sliding scale options).  Ages of the children: infant to 4-year-olds who have joined their families in the last year. Group meets in either lower Queen Anne or West Seattle, depending on interest. Meetings are generally weekday mornings from 9:30am to 11am. Groups are formed as families call to express interest. We need at least 4 families to begin a group.

If you are a newly adoptive family interested in joining us for this group, please contact me by phone or email. Exact dates to be determined. Call now; we will set a firm start date when we have enough sign-ups. Call for more information: 206-498-9895, or email: [email protected]

Between The Lines – A Group for Tween Girls

Between The Lines is a group for girls who joined their families through adoption or foster care, and are now age 10 to 12-years old.

This is a 6 week therapy group for girls who are interested in exploring issues related to adoption and identity through making art.  Through structured group art exercises, therapeutic activities and open group discussion time we will engage in a dialogue about adoption-related issues; we will be working to encourage girls to explore their own life story and their experiences related to adoption, as well as to hear about and validate other girls’ experiences. Thoughts and feelings about culture, identity, birth family, prying peers and other issues may be explored.

Groups are formed as families call to express interest. We need at least 4 girls to form a group. Location for groups may be the Queen Anne office or the West Seattle office. Cost is $45 per session and payments must be made for the full 6 sessions prior to start of group. No insurance billing, however a receipt of payment will be provided upon request.