Where do you see your clients?
I offer in person therapy. If you are anywhere nearby, I can see you at my office located at 1096 Calimesa Blvd. #203, Calimesa, CA 92320.
How do I make an appointment?
You may click on this website’s contact page and fill out the contact form there to reach me, or you can call me directly at (951) 922-5136.
If I do not answer the call, I will get back to you within 48 hours.
My email address, if you choose not to use the contact form, is sarahbergesonmft@gmail.com.
What should I expect on my first visit?
The first session is about meeting and getting to know each other. I will be asking questions to understand your background and what brought you into therapy. As the session progresses, you will also gain a sense of who I am and how comfortable you are with me. Since the power and effectiveness of the therapy process is largely based on the relationship that develops between therapist and client, it’s important that we mutually determine if we are a good fit for the journey forward.
Do you keep what happens in therapy sessions confidential?
What happens during therapy sessions is confidential and will not be shared with anyone. That said, as a mandated reporter, by law, I am required to notify the appropriate authorities if it is revealed that:
- There is a risk of a client harming himself or someone else, and the client refuses to seek appropriate treatment.
- Child, elder, or dependent adult abuse has occurred or is occurring.
- If I receive a subpoena for my records or testimony. In most instances, I am forced to honor these subpoenas.
These mandated reporting laws apply to all California Marriage and Family Therapists.
What is your rate?
My fee is $130 per 50-minute session for individuals, $150 for couples and families.
Do you accept insurance?
I am not currently on any insurance panels but I am able to provide you with an invoice, or monthly Superbill, that you may submit to your insurance company to seek partial reimbursement.
How do I pay?
Payments are received online via credit card through Simple Practice, the platform we will use for scheduling and for our video sessions.
How long is each therapy session?
Sessions are fifty minutes in length.
How often do I go to therapy?
It is beneficial to attend therapy on a weekly basis, but bi-weekly can work well if that is the most doable frequency for the client. It depends on the situation the client is facing, as well as how far into the therapeutic process one is.
Weekly sessions are effective because it allows for the therapeutic relationship to grow and become strong enough that the deepest and most impacting work of therapy can be done sooner than later. That said, every person and every situation is unique.
Do you work with people from diverse backgrounds, ethnicities, sexual orientations, or religious traditions?
Yes, absolutely. There is no tolerance for discrimination here.
All are equally welcome to contact me to receive my services.
What is therapy?
Therapy provides you with an opportunity to:
- Gain a deeper understanding of yourself
- Learn about your personality and temperament
- Develop an awareness of your thought patterns
- Process memories from the past that ruminate, or suddenly come up, in your mind
- Learn how to cope with uncomfortable emotions
- Develop a friendship with yourself
- Discover more effective and satisfying ways of communicating with others
- Hear an objective, unbiased outside perspective
- Receive understanding and compassion
- Live with purpose and intention
- Remove blockades to your growth and development
- Craft the life you desire, doing what you love
- Feel free to be fully you in a safe and welcoming environment
- Meet regularly with someone you can trust, and who truly cares about you
Therapy is not:
- Controlling or manipulative
- An abuse of power and authority
- Fault finding
- The same as talking with a friend or loved one
I’ve never been to therapy. Isn’t it a sign of weakness to not be able to handle my problems on my own?
It takes courage to come to therapy, rather than weakness.
I have had clients who were anxious and afraid before they came, and even during sessions, but they inevitably discovered what they were facing was nothing other than themselves. If you are willing to get to know yourself, then therapy will help facilitate, not hinder, that process.
How is therapy different than talking to a friend?
Friendship is a reciprocal relationship that involves give and take, compromise, and reaching out to each other, equally. Friends can feel protective of you, wanting to defend you if you’ve been wronged. Friends can commiserate with you about life’s happenings.
But therapists offer a different kind of relationship. It is unique in comparison to other relationships in that it is about you, not the therapist. You come to therapy to explore your inner world, not the inner world of your therapist. You are able to discuss what is going on in your life without having to worry about how it might affect your therapist.
Therapists are able to see the bigger picture of your life. They are skilled at looking at what is underneath surface behaviors, often not immediately apparent to others. This serves your growth and development, because it allows you to have room to be…to relax, explore, blossom, develop, in your own timing, in your own way.
How long does therapy last?
Therapy lasts different lengths for each person, but it is important to understand that therapy is not a quick fix. Everyone has different pasts, emotional capacities, and rates at which insights take hold. We can determine, together, what progress has been made toward your goals and when it would be best, when the time comes, to taper off sessions to being less frequent, ultimately ending at a time when it feels the most right to you.
What areas do you specialize in?
I have helped people in numerous life situations and mental states.
If you have an area of particular interest or concern, please contact me and we can discuss whether I am able to serve your specific needs.
What is your therapeutic philosophy?
As a foundation to my practice of therapy, I seek a depth perspective which is about getting to the subconscious and unconscious sources of one’s thoughts, feelings, dreams, and behaviors.
Conscious thoughts and behaviors do not govern the majority of our lives – it is the subconscious that sits in the driver’s seat. Therefore, seeking awareness of one’s subconscious mind provides the greatest opportunity for change.
I also bring in other forms of therapeutic practice and modalities as I see fit, given my background, training, and experience. When a different intervention is needed, I will bring it to the session. It definitely keeps things interesting, having multiple options of how I can work with a client!
What treatment modalities do you use?
I am a generalist, which means I have been trained in numerous therapeutic modalities and use what is needed with each client depending on what I sense would help them most. Sometimes I help clients frame their experiences in new ways, other times I help them alter certain thought patterns which have shown up as distortions, and other times we may explore what is happening in their body during their days away from session or in session, to become more in touch with sensations and messages the body is trying to send. Those are a few examples. There’s many more possibilities!
What is your style?
My personality is naturally enthusiastic, but I am also quiet and centered when the situation calls for it. I listen deeply to what is being said, as well as what is not being said.
Since I am fascinated with every person I come across, believing each one to have their own inner landscape to learn about and discover, I am interested and engaged during therapy. Clients have expressed I help them feel at ease, open enough to talk about things that they wouldn’t have told others.
I am always learning and growing too, so there’s never a stagnant moment with me. When the time is right, I bring new perspectives and ideas to the discussion, which encourages greater opportunities for obtaining the help the client needs.