FAQ

I am located in Raleigh, North Carolina, however most of my sessions are currently online via Telehealth Video. I have lived in Portland, Oregon and Charleston, South Carolina in the past. I am licensed to see clients in North Carolina, Oregon, Washington and South Carolina. I also provide nature therapy sessions in-person by appointment in the Triangle area of North Carolina. In-person sessions available Tuesdays from 2pm-6pm EST exclusively at 1000 Vintage Creek Drive Raleigh, NC 27607 through Abide Inclusive Therapy.

Individual Therapy: $150.00 per 45-Minute Session.

Couples Therapy: $200.00 per 50-Minute Session*

*Along with couples therapy is a 1x $39 fee to take the relationship assessment on Gottman Connect (not covered by insurance. Fee covers the assessment of both partners.)

Insurances accepted below. I used a platform called ALMA to bill your insurance in network.

If you have an insurance not listed, check your out of network reimbursement benefits here. Many don’t realize they have some out of network therapy coverage once a certain deductible is met. 

Optum

• UnitedHealthcare
• UnitedHealthcare Shared Services (UHSS)
• GEHA – UnitedHealthcare Shared Services (UHSS)
• Oscar
• Oxford
• UHC Student Resources
• UMR
• All Savers (UHC)
• Health Plans Inc
• Medica (Eligible if policy is commercial only)
• Surest (Formerly Bind)

Optum is inclusive of several health plans that Alma does not currently accept, including:

• Select Health
• Health Plans of Nevada
• Cenpatico
• Sierra Health and Life Health Plans
• Arizona Complete Health
• Optum Medicare and Medicaid plans

Aetna

• Meritain
• Nippon
• Allied Benefit Systems
• Trustmark
• Trustmark Small Business Benefits
• Health Scope
• Christian Brothers Services

Aetna is inclusive of several health plans that Alma does not currently accept, including:

• Aetna CVS
• GEHA – Aetna**
• Boon Chapman
• AmeriBen
• First Health
• Piedmont/S&S Healthcare
• Health Smart
• Emi Health
• WebTPA
• Aetna Medicare and Medicaid plans

If you have a subsidiary insurance related to Aetna, please reach out to insurance_operations@helloalma.com to confirm whether that subsidiary insurance is currently billable through Alma.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield (formerly Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield)

• You must reside in New York state to use Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield benefits through Alma.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts

• If you are covered by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, you do not need to be located in Massachusetts to be able to see an Alma provider. Our national contract with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts allows clients accessing care from all 50 states to see an in-network Alma provider who is credentialed with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts.
• If you are using BlueCard PPO to work with a Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts provider at Alma, you must be located in MA in order to use their BlueCard PPO benefits.

Carelon

National Plans

Beginning in December 2024, Alma went in network with the following commercial insurance plans:

• Carelon Behavioral Health, Inc.
• Providence Health Plan

In the future, Alma will also go in network with Wellpoint. However, the date of this launch is still to be determined.

Please note that Carelon is inclusive of several health plans that Alma does not currently accept, including:

• Emblem
• NYSHIP
• Wellsense
• Unicare/Wellpoint
• Humana

Several of these are state or community health plans, which are not accepted at this time.

Cigna

Cigna is inclusive of several health plans that are included in the Alma insurance program, including:

• Allegiance
• Daniel H. Cook Administrators
• Professional Benefit Administrators
• S&S Healthcare Strategies
• Tall Tree Administrators
• Trustmark
• Wellfleet Group, LLC
• Southwest Service Administrators
• Paragon Benefits

Cigna is inclusive of several health plans that Alma does not currently accept, including:

• Flume Health
• Florida Health Administrators
• Gilsbar TPA
• Healthpartners Inc.
• Magnolia Health
• Priority Health
• UPMC Healthplan

Ineligible Insurance Plans

Providers who are part of Alma’s Insurance Program are able to accept clients with commercial plans under participating insurance plans: Aetna, Cigna, and Optum. However, there are also some types of plans that we do not currently accept. Community or state plans, such as NYSHIP, 1199SEIU, or any plans managed by Medicare or Medicaid, are not currently supported by our insurance program. 

I don’t. However, the following are potential resources that do offer sliding scale, low fee and no fee therapy services for folks who have low or no income:

• Open Path Collective is a search engine with all low fee sliding scale therapist options.
• Community Counseling Centers run by Professional Counseling or Marriage & Family Therapy Graduate Masters Degree programs. You can often find these on college websites, offering student therapists in training. Here are a few by state:
  • For Oregon Residents:
    • Lewis & Clark College
    • Portland State University
  • For Washington Residents:
    • Antioch University Seattle
    • Western Washington University
  • For South Carolina Residents:
    • University of South Carolina
    • Winthrop University
  • For North Carolina Residents:
    • North Carolina State University
    • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Therapist Search Engines: Make sure to click “sliding scale” in the website search filters.
  • Psychology Today
  • TherapyDen
  • For Oregon Residents: Portland Therapy Center
• Sign up for your state’s medicaid program, as therapy services are usually fully covered. Sign-Up Links Here:
  • Oregon Medicaid: Oregon Health Plan
  • Washington Medicaid
  • North Carolina Medicaid
  • South Carolina Medicaid: Healthy Connections
• Some agencies and private practices have graduate student interns in training who offer low or no fee therapy sessions. If you find a practice you really want to work with, you could try asking if they have any discounted services available.

Book a complimentary 20-minute phone consultation at this link.

You’ll receive a call from Angelis to ask any questions you may have and determine fit for services.

If a fit is determined, Angelis will schedule an initial assessment session with George. 

Age 18 and up. Adults Exclusively.

It is important that you get the therapy support that makes sense for the stressors you are experiencing. I am most competent to work with Anxiety, ADHD, LGBTQ+, and Couples Therapy.

Outside of these areas, I’d be happy to provide referrals. If you are looking for any of the following as main reasons you are coming to therapy, you may need more specialized therapy support: severe depression, personality disorders, substance use, eating disorders, PTSD, severe trauma, domestic violence, sexual abuse, family therapy, adolescent therapy. You deserve to get competent therapy support.

A great way to find therapists who offer these specialties is to go to Psychology Today or Therapy Den, and select the specialties you are looking for in the search filters.

We start with a few intake sessions where I ask a lot of assessment questions to find out more about your background and current experiences. This includes mental health history, relationship/family background, communication styles, recent and past experiences that have affected you, and more.

Then, I apply a combination on techniques based on what makes sense for what you are going through.  This can include validating and normalizing your experiences, sharing helpful tools and techniques, and sharing new perspectives to consider. In between sessions, I offer resources, videos, and activities to help assist in your growth.My main therapeutic tool is the relationship we build, providing a safe space for sharing and vulnerability.

You will know when you are getting to a better place overall or in specific areas.  You will report to me changes you are noticing and I will report to you changes I’m noticing in sessions. On average, most clients notice a shift by around 12 sessions on average or 3 months into therapy. But this varies depending on may factors unique to you, your background and current circumstances.

Yes. I am trained in intercultural communication, which helps inform my interactions with various cultural backgrounds. However, I recognize I do not know everything about every way to be. I do my best to be sensitive to whatever your cultural background is and seek consultation when I need to know more, as I don’t expect you to teach me. I also am not perfect and welcome you to call me out on any blind spots that may come up.

I work with all gender identities and sexual orientations. I focus mainly on the LGBTQ+ community, though all are welcome.

I have a Masters in Marriage, Couples, and Family Therapy from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. During my time in graduate school, I also received a certificate in Ecopsychology, which informs how to integrate nature and the environment into therapy support.

I am Gottman Couples Therapy Level 1 & 2 Certified, which integrates 30 years of relationship research & techniques into our therapy work together. I have also received training in Intercultural Communication, CBT, Internal Family Systems, LGBTQ+ & BIPOC Competency, and Nature Therapy Interventions. For the full extent of my background through my Curriculum Vitae, click here.

Evaluation of your therapy needs will inform which therapeutic modalities I include in our work together. Some of the main modalities I focus on in individual therapy are Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), ADHD Skill-building, Psycho-education, Humanistic Therapy, and Ecotherapy. The main therapy modalities I use with couples are Gottman and Intercultural Communication.

Canceling in under 48 hours or not showing up to session will result in being charged the full session fee. If you are able to let me know ahead of your session time you can’t make it, there is opportunity to reschedule the same week during another open slot if there is availability at no charge. Exceptions to this policy are bed-ridden illness and life-threatening family emergencies.