Frequently Asked Questions
Reaching out for therapy can bring up a lot of questions. We try to make the process feel as clear and straightforward as possible. Here are some of the questions we hear most often.
Peace Love Wellness Mental Health Counseling PLLC is a New York online therapy practice offering relational, trauma-informed individual therapy and couples/relationship therapy for adults and partners across New York. Our work is especially suited to thoughtful people who may look functional on the outside while feeling overwhelmed, disconnected, self-protective, or stuck in repeating patterns inside.
Peace Love Wellness may be a good fit for adults and couples in New York who want therapy that feels warm, relational, trauma-informed, and deeper than surface-level coping skills. Many clients come to us for support with anxiety, trauma, burnout, emotional overwhelm, relationship strain, life transitions, identity questions, self-doubt, and patterns that keep repeating.
Peace Love Wellness is a collaborative therapy practice, not a directory. Our clinicians share a commitment to relational care, trauma-informed thinking, identity affirmation, emotional honesty, and careful matching based on your needs, preferences, insurance, availability, and therapeutic fit.
Relational therapy means we pay attention not only to symptoms, but to the patterns that form in connection with other people: how you protect yourself, seek closeness, handle conflict, manage needs, and respond when you feel unseen, overwhelmed, or unsafe. Therapy becomes a place to understand those patterns with more honesty, compassion, and choice.
Trauma-informed therapy at Peace Love Wellness means we do not ask what is wrong with you. We ask what happened, what you had to carry, what helped you survive, and what your mind and body may still be protecting you from. This approach honors the ways your nervous system, relationships, identity, and history may shape how you respond to stress, closeness, conflict, uncertainty, or vulnerability.
Yes. Most of our clients use insurance. We are in-network with Aetna, Anthem / Empire BlueCross (including Excellus, Highmark, and out-of-state BlueCard plans), Carelon, Cigna, EmblemHealth, MagnaCare, Meritain, and NYSHIP / The Empire Plan. Cameron is also in-network with NYCE PPO, United HealthCare / Optum, Oxford, Oscar, and UMR. Ryn can also see clients with United HealthCare / Optum, Oxford, Oscar, or UMR who have out-of-network benefits: Ryn bills out-of-network, and you pay your in-network copay. Coverage varies by clinician and plan, and we help verify benefits before you begin so you have a clearer sense of your options.
We are in-network with Aetna, Anthem / Empire BlueCross (including Excellus, Highmark, and out-of-state BlueCard plans), Carelon, Cigna, EmblemHealth, MagnaCare, Meritain, and NYSHIP / The Empire Plan. Cameron is also in-network with NYCE PPO, United HealthCare / Optum, Oxford, Oscar, and UMR. Ryn can also see clients with United HealthCare / Optum, Oxford, Oscar, or UMR who have out-of-network benefits: Ryn bills out-of-network, and you pay your in-network copay. We are not in-network with MetroPlus, Medicaid, or Medicare plans. Coverage varies by plan and clinician, so we help verify your benefits before you begin.
Full private-pay fees are $200–$250 per session for individual therapy with a licensed clinician and $150 with a supervised clinician; couples and relationship therapy is $250–$350 with a licensed clinician and $200 with a supervised clinician. Sliding-scale rates are available and set with your circumstances in mind: $75–$250 per individual session with a licensed clinician ($75–$150 with a supervised clinician), and $100–$350 per couples session with a licensed clinician ($100–$200 with a supervised clinician). We review costs with you before your first session so there are no surprises.
Yes. Sliding-scale rates are available, and our supervised clinicians — therapists who have completed graduate training and practice under close supervision by an experienced licensed clinician — are our lowest-cost option. With a supervised clinician, individual sessions are $150 at full fee, with sliding-scale rates of $75–$150; couples sessions are $200, with sliding-scale rates of $100–$200. Supervised clinicians also often have strong insurance access and sooner availability.
Often, yes. If we are not in-network with your plan, or you prefer a clinician outside your network, your plan may offer out-of-network benefits with partial reimbursement. We can provide documentation to support that reimbursement process, and we help you understand your likely out-of-pocket cost before you begin.
Availability varies across the team, but many clients are able to begin within weeks rather than months — especially when open to working with a supervised clinician, who more often has current openings. When you reach out, we review fit, insurance, and availability and help you find the soonest realistic start.
All therapy at Peace Love Wellness is 100% online through a secure, HIPAA-compliant platform. That allows us to work with clients anywhere in New York State and makes it easier to fit therapy into real life without adding a commute.
No. Because all sessions are online, we work with clients anywhere in New York State — including NYC, Long Island, Westchester, and upstate. You need to be physically located in New York during your sessions, since our clinicians are licensed in New York.
Yes. Karen Garcia, MHC-LP, offers counseling in English and Spanish for adults navigating anxiety, work stress, self-esteem, and life transitions. Contact our team to discuss a free 15-minute consultation and practical details. Michelle Batista, MHC-LP, also offers bilingual care and is currently full with a waitlist. Mention your language preference when you reach out.
Fit matters. You can read through our clinician profiles to see whether someone’s approach resonates with you. If you are not sure, that is completely okay. Reach out through our contact form, tell us a little about what you are looking for, and we will help guide the match based on fit, insurance, and availability.
Once you contact us, we review what you share and help guide the next step. That may include talking through what kind of support you are looking for, which clinician may feel like the best fit, insurance or payment options, and current availability across the team.
An MHC-LP is a therapist who has completed graduate training and is practicing under the supervision of a licensed clinician while working toward full licensure. Working with an MHC-LP can still mean receiving high-quality, collaborative care, and it may also make it easier to start sooner depending on current openings.
Individual therapy sessions are typically 45 or 60 minutes. Couples and relationship therapy sessions are commonly 45 minutes, depending on clinician and clinical needs.
Frequency depends on your needs, goals, and what kind of support makes the most sense clinically. Many clients begin weekly, and some shift to bi-weekly over time. Your clinician will work with you to find a pace that supports meaningful progress.
Yes. We offer relationship therapy for couples, partners, and polycules, including affirming support for ethically non-monogamous and poly relationships. We focus on communication, conflict patterns, trust, repair, and helping people understand the deeper cycles shaping the relationship.
Yes. Our practice is committed to affirming, inclusive care for LGBTQIA+ clients and relationships, including support that is identity-aware and respectful of complexity.
Yes. Therapy is confidential, with legal and ethical exceptions such as imminent risk of harm to self or others, suspected abuse or neglect of a child or vulnerable adult, and certain court orders. Your clinician will review confidentiality and its limits with you as part of the intake process.
We ask for at least 24 hours’ notice for cancellations or rescheduling. Late cancellations or no-shows may be subject to a fee. Your clinician will review the full policy with you before ongoing work begins.
Yes. Therapeutic fit matters. If something does not feel like the right fit, let us know and we will help facilitate a thoughtful transition whenever possible.
The first session is a chance to start understanding what brings you to therapy, what feels most important right now, and what kind of support may be most helpful. You do not need to have everything prepared or explained perfectly.
No extensive preparation is required. It can help to think a little about what is bringing you in, what you hope may feel different, and any questions you have, but you do not need to arrive with everything figured out.
No. We provide psychotherapy and do not prescribe medication. If medication evaluation would be helpful, we can offer referrals for psychiatric care.
Peace Love Wellness is not a crisis service. If you might hurt yourself or someone else, or you need immediate support, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If you can, you may also contact a trusted person, a local mobile crisis team, a peer respite center, or another community-based crisis resource near you. If there is immediate physical danger and no safer support is available, use emergency services.
Still have questions?
You do not need to figure everything out before reaching out. Start with the contact form and we will help guide the next step.