Phoenix Counseling & Consulting provides services through Advanced Psychotherapeutics in Forest, VA.  Call 434-616-2388 to reach the front office.  They will walk you through the necessary paperwork and schedule you with one of our staff counselors.  All subsequent appointments will be scheduled by the front office as well.  When possible, appointments will be scheduled at the same day and time.

Teletherapy services are available upon request.

Paying for sessions times is welcomed. Those who pay the fee have greater privacy because no insurance company is involved.

A number of benefits come from participating in therapy. Therapists can provide support, insight, skills, and enhanced coping strategies for many issues such as depression, anxiety, relationship troubles, sex addiction & betrayal, sex, unresolved childhood issues, grief, stress management, body image issues and creative blocks.

Many people also find that counselors can be a tremendous asset to managing personal growth, interpersonal relationships, family concerns, marriage issues, and the hassles of daily life. Therapists can provide a fresh perspective on a difficult problem or point you in the direction of a solution.

The benefits you obtain from therapy depend on how well you use the process and put into practice what you learn. Some of the benefits available from therapy include:

• Attaining a better understanding of yourself, your goals and values
• Developing skills for improving your relationships
• Finding resolution to the issues or concerns that led you to seek therapy
• Learning new ways to cope with stress and anxiety
• Managing anger, grief, depression, and other emotional pressures
• Improving communications and listening skills
• Changing old behavior patterns and developing new ones
• Discovering new ways to solve problems in your family or marriage
• Improving your self-esteem and boosting self-confidence
• Growing in your Christian walk

Going to a counselor the first time can be daunting.  The counselor will not force you into anything.  Counseling is a collaborative effort, which means that we will work together or co-create attainable goals to address your concerns and improve the overall satisfaction of life.  Counseling is not magic.  If your expectation is that your counselor is going to tell you what to do, you will leave disappointed.  But, if your expectation of counseling is that you will have a helper consult with you about ways to make life better, help identify unhelpful thinking habits, and help break old ways of thinking, then counseling is a wise decision for you!

Our counselors also request clients to complete at home assignments to help with assessment and treatment.  While every client has the choice of what he or she is willing to do, the tasks are highly important to helping you with your concerns.

The typical therapy session is about 50 minutes.  A double session is about 1:40 minutes in length. The first session with the therapist is a diagnostic interview that will consist of the therapist learning about the presented issue with you. From there the therapist will recommend the frequency of sessions or possibly make referrals as needed.

Several factors determine the frequency of your sessions including your level of need, your schedule, your therapist’s availability, and what is allowed by your insurance. Your therapist will usually discuss this with you during your first visit. Session frequency is most often weekly or biweekly.  It may decrease as you make progress.

Everyone goes through challenging situations, and while you may have successfully navigated through other difficulties you’ve faced, there’s nothing wrong with seeking out help when you need it.  The old saying of pulling oneself up by their bootstraps is a reason that many avoid seeking a counselor. Many times one’s bootstraps break.  In fact, therapy is for people who have enough self-awareness to realize they need someone to guide them through a difficulty, and that is something to be admired.

You are taking responsibility by accepting where you’re at in life and making a commitment to change the situation by seeking therapy. Therapy provides long-lasting benefits and support, giving you the tools you need to avoid triggers, re-direct damaging patterns, and overcome whatever challenges you face.

One of the primary differences is in the desired result. In secular counseling, the desired result is primarily related to increasing the ability of a person to function more effectively or to become more emotionally stable. In Christian counseling, the primary goal is to enable the person to heal in order that they are able to interact with God.

The most significant difference is based upon the worldview of Christians and “secular” therapists.  A Christian worldview sees the world through the lens of Scripture whereas a secular worldview is based on humanism, which means man is the center of the universe not God and relativism, which means that there are no absolute truths. Both speak to matters of living, but from very different vantage points.  Christian counselors begin with the truths and principles in Scripture and “integrate” what is relevant and research based from clinical counseling and psychology.  As someone once said, “truth is truth no matter who finds it.”  Just because secularists do not base their views of life on the Bible, doesn’t mean that they have not found truth.

PCC seeks to help people regardless of their faith backgrounds or beliefs.  Our beliefs are not pushed on anyone.  Many people who come to see us for counseling are not Christians or, if they are, do not want Christianity or prayer as part of the therapy.  The counselor will respect your wishes and provide services without reference to faith.

It is well established that the long-term solution to mental and emotional problems and the pain they cause cannot be solved solely by medication. Instead of just treating the symptoms through medication(s), therapy addresses the cause of distress and the behavior patterns that curb our progress. You can best achieve sustainable growth and a greater sense of well-being with an integrative approach.  Working with your medical doctor or a psychiatrist you can determine what’s best for you, and in some cases a combination of medication and therapy is the right course of action.

Psychiatrist:  a licensed physician who can mentally and physically evaluate a patient and prescribe the appropriate medication.

Psychologists: Psychologists who mental health practitioners who are licensed at a doctoral level.  Typically, they work with more serious mental health problems, but many work with a wide variety of issues.  Course work primarily focuses on assessment, research, and a have a medical-model perspective.

Licensed Therapists:  In terms of a licensed professional counselor (LPC), a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT), and a licensed clinical social worker there is little difference.  All mental health providers have studied human behavior.  They all of at least a master’s degree, have completed clinical internships, and passed a state licensing board’s examinations.

Non-Licensed Counselors: A Licensed counselor has completed 4000 hours of supervised counseling and passed the Virginia Board of Counseling’s licensure exam.  A non-licensed counselor, has at least a master’s degree of 60 credit hours, but has not completed the 4000 hours or exam.

Research has shown that there is no difference in effectiveness between psychologists, LPC, LMFT, and LCSWs.

A first counseling session is somewhat like a first visit to a new doctor.  You will have to fill out forms that will give us information on your history, along with our counseling contract, informed consent, and information on how we keep your information private.  (You can find our client forms at the “Client Forms” link on our website.)  We suggest that you print out your forms prior to your first session, and fill them out before your appointment.  Your therapist will review your information at the beginning of the session. The session will begin with how your therapist honors your confidentiality.

When you go to a physician’s office for a health concern such as the flu, you are weighted, have vitals take, and you are asked about issues that seem irrelevant to your flu.  Likewise, in counseling you will be asked about the issues that led to you seeking counseling as well as many areas of your life. To use an old saying, “the devil is in the details” to capture the importance of digging into each client’s life.  Nothing is asked for voyeuristic purposes, every question as a therapeutic intent.

Confidentiality is one of the most important components between a client and therapist. Successful therapy requires a high degree of trust with highly sensitive subject matter that is usually not discussed anywhere but the therapist’s office.   All therapist are bound to keep confidentiality concerning your attendance to therapy, what is said in therapy, and your diagnosis.

Every therapist should provide a written copy of the confidential disclosure agreement, and you can expect that what you discuss in session will not be shared with anyone.  This is called “Informed Consent”.  Sometimes, however, you may want your therapist to share information or give an update to someone such as your Spouse or other Family Member, Physician, Attorney, insurance Carrier, or anyone of your choosing, but by law your therapist cannot release this information without obtaining your written permission.

The Commonwealth of Virginia require therapists to maintain confidentiality except for the following situations:

• Suspected past or present abuse or neglect of children, adults, and elders to the authorities, including Child Protection and law enforcement, based on information provided by the client or collateral sources.
• If the therapist has reason to suspect the client is seriously in danger of harming him/herself or has threated to harm another person.

Typically, the first one to two visits will be focused on gathering background information, and at that point the counselor should be able to talk to you about what to expect moving forward. Counseling is usually not a “quick fix”, and we find that people get more out of it when they are committed to the process.  The length of treatment depends on many factors but none more important than the nature of the problem and the motivation of the client.

For mental health emergencies that occur during regular office hours, call (434) 616-2388.

For mental health emergencies that occur after hours, dial 911 or go to Lynchburg General Hospital emergency department (1901 Tate Springs Rd, Lynchburg, VA 24501; 434-200-3000).  Have someone drive you to the emergency room.

Need this answer

All of our counselors abide by the American Association of Christian Counselors code of ethics (2005) .The AACC Statement of Faith is as follows:

• There exists only one God, creator and sustainer of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally co-existing in three persons Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
• The Scriptures, both Old and New testaments, are the inspired, inerrant and trustworthy Word of God, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of human beings, and the final authority for all matters about which it speaks.
• Human nature derives from two historical personas, male and female, created in God’s image. They were created perfect, but they sinned, plunging themselves and all human beings into sin, guilt, suffering, and death.
• The substitutionary death of Jesus Christ and his bodily resurrection provide the only ground for justification, forgiveness, and salvation for all who believe. Only those who trust in Him alone are born of the Holy Spirit and are true members of the Church; only they will spend eternity with Christ.
• The Holy Spirit is the agent of regeneration and renewal for believers in Jesus Christ. He makes the presence of Jesus Christ real in believers, and He comforts, guides, convicts, and enables believers to live in ways that honor Christ.
• Ministry to persons acknowledges the complexity of humans as physical, social, psychological, and spiritual beings. The ultimate goal of Christian counseling is to help others move to personal wholeness, interpersonal competence, mental stability, and spiritual maturity.