FAQ

Many people have found that therapy helps them relieve stress and cope with everyday challenges and past negative experiences.

It can be overwhelming to begin therapy.  At Bloom we provide validation and support to each client to make every session as comfortable as possible.

Therapy helps us by addressing the past, present, and future related to our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, experiences, and behaviors. 

Through therapy you can develop insight into causes of uncomfortable feelings or negative beliefs about yourself, learn to approach the past with more acceptance, prevent past patterns continuing, develop healthy relationships and skills, and foster positive future life experiences.

At Bloom we meet you where you are at, and help move you towards where you want to be.

Bloom offers both in-person and virtual sessions. In-person sessions are located in Stuart, Florida, while virtual sessions are available to state-wide to residents of Florida.

We offer individual, couples, and group therapeutic sessions. Sessions typically are 1 hour in length, however may be shorter or longer, based on clinical appropriateness.

We understand the importance of being in a safe and comfortable environment when dealing with your mental health, therefore at our office in Stuart we have created a cozy, inclusive, and private office environment.

Our staff welcomes people of ALL sizes, colors, cultures, sexes, ages, beliefs, religions, types, and abilities. 

In Stuart, we are located on the second floor, accessible by stairs and elevators. Our office has a private entrance, gender neutral bathroom, and size-inclusive furniture. We utilize sound machines to maintain privacy and a sense of calm throughout the office, while our interior decor was designed to provide comfort and warmth.

We welcome client and staff's service and emotional support animals, therefore if you have phobias of animals please discuss this with your therapist, so they can ensure your sessions occur when no animals are expected to attend.

At this time our St. Augustine office is located inside Three Branches: A Center for Wholeness. While we are renting space here, we are not affiliated with this practice.

For virtual therapeutic sessions, all sessions are held through HIPAA compliant versions of either Google Meets, Psychology Today, or Zoom. 

Prior to your therapeutic intake session you will be asked to complete intake paperwork in Therapy Notes' Client Portal, and if using insurance also Headway's Client Portal.

During your intake session your therapist will review important Bloom information, your identified symptoms and reasons for seeking treatment, relevant life history, and your treatment goals. 

It is our role as your therapist to help make this session comfortable for you. Therefore, you are not expected to have all of the answers. 

After the intake session your therapist will discuss your recommended frequency of sessions and treatment methods, which will change over the course of your treatment based on your progress and needs.

We do encourage you to let us know if there are ways we can make therapy a better experience for you at any point in your treatment.

While therapy is beneficial, there are inherent risks. Clients will discuss personal issues in sessions that may bring uncomfortable emotions, such as anger, guilt, anxiety, and sadness, to the surface. We recommend verbalizing any uncomfortable emotions that arise during or after session with your therapist.

The benefits of therapy can far outweigh any discomfort encountered during the process, however. Some of the benefits are improved personal relationships, reduced feelings of emotinal distress, and specific problem solving.

Progress in treatment is dependent on client's motivation and follow-through, symptomology, therapeutic relationship, treatment methods, and services. While we can not guarantee benefits or predict length of treatment, it is our goal and desire to work with our clients to attain each client's personal goals for therapy and utilize the most clinically appropriate treatment methods and services.

Choosing whether or not to use your health insurance for mental health services is completely up to you.  To make an educated decision, please review the benefits of each option.

Benefits of Paying Privately:

• Your insurance company will NOT be given any information about your sessions or progress.  

  • Therefore, insurance companies will not be able to use this to influence future coverage or premiums. The most frequent information given is your diagnosis code(s).  However, insurance companies can ask for more detailed information, such as progress in treatment or session notes.

• You determine your treatment, versus your insurance determining it. 

  • Insurance companies have pre-determined which services to cover based on diagnosis, dates, and treatment modality.  Insurances can deny coverage for lengths and frequency of sessions and overall length of treatment.  In addition, using insurance can limit choosing a therapist based on best-fit for you.

• Your plan may not have in-network or out-of-network mental health coverage.

  • Some insurance plans require a deductible to be met in order to pay for mental health services. Please review your insurance benefits to determine if you have to meet your deductible first, and how much your deductible is for in-network or out-of-network mental health providers. 

• Your plan may not cover virtual therapeutic sessions.

  • Virtual therapy coverage is determined by your insurance provider.  Please call the number on the back of your card to discuss your coverage.

• You will receive a Good Faith Estimate.

  • The Good Faith Estimate (GFE) works to show you the cost of items and services that are reasonably expected to your heath care needs for an item or service, a diagnosis, and a reason for therapy.

Benefits of using Insurance:

• If your plan offers copays.

  • This is the total you will be required to pay the provider per session, if the provider is in-network.

• If you have out-of-network benefits.

  • Some insurance plans will reimburse you a portion of your session fees. Reimbursement is determined by your insurance provider.  Please call the number on the back of your card to discuss your coverage.

• If you have a plan with a low in-network deductible.

  • While initially you may be required to pay the full session fee, these fees go towards your overall deductible.  Benefits of meeting your deductible is determined by your insurance provider.  Please call the number on the back of your card to discuss your coverage.

Session rates are dependent on both the clinician and session type. Our clinician's rates reflect their experience, credentials, and specializations. Therefore, our rates range from $75 to $175 per session hour.

In addition to self-pay options, specific therapists are in-network with Aetna, Cigna, Oscar, Oxford, United Healthcare, and UMR. 

We are NOT in-network with any Medicare or Medicaid plans, even those connected through private insurance plans. We are able to accept Employee Assistant Program (EAP) plans through only specific Cigna and Optum plans.

For all other insurances (such as Florida Blue) or therapists that are not in-network with the above insurance companies we will gladly provide you with a Superbill if you wish to seek reimbursement. Please call the number on the back of your card to discuss your coverage.

More specific information regarding your fee can be provided during your consultation.

We understand that finances can become a barrier in treatment. If this is the case for you there is an application you can submit for a fee reduction. Reductions are based on availability as well as financial need, therefore we cannot guarantee a specific reduction until the application is reviewed.

In addition, there are programs, such as Fund Recovery, that provide financial assistance to individuals in need of financial support for our services.

If cannot in need of a heavy fee reduction we recommend looking at community or non-profit mental health agencies that receive funding to allow them the ability to provide minimally priced services.