Frequently Asked Questions

While I am grateful for the privilege to assist so many amazing clients,  my availability is  unfortunately and essentially full at this time. 

If you are open to telehealth care and have flexible scheduling, you can feel free to reach out to me here (via my website contact form) and I will do my best to accommodate. Please keep checking here for updates to availability in the future!

While not guaranteed, I may be able to make scheduling exceptions for clients who have worked with me in the past and are interested in returning, clients referred to me directly by a former or current client, and/or clients referred to me directly by a personally known and trusted colleague. 

In the meantime, for evening/weekend or frequent in-person availability, I recommend: 

www.collabcounselors.com

www.paloverdecounseling.com

www.azmftclinic.com

www.therapywithheart.com

https://fxconnections.org

www.psychologytoday.com or www.helloalma.com  (You can filter to your location and insurance)

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist #15732, in good standing and without disciplinary action in the state of Arizona. 

As of July 2024, I am a registered out-of-state telehealth provider for clients located in the state of Florida. My telehealth provider registration number is TPMF1394. For more information, please see here: https://flhealthsource.gov/telehealth/ 

As of 2022, I am also a board-certified behavioral health clinical supervisor in Arizona; if you are interested in behavioral health supervision services, please reach out to me at (602)-805-0400. 

Yes, I do offer in-person services! 

I primarily offer telehealth services and am occasionally only available virtually. I am committed to providing a dedicated, present, and compassionate approach via video or phone teletherapy that many clients have called equally supportive to in-person sessions. 

I offer occasional in-person appointments on select Monday mornings, weekday evenings, and monthly weekend mornings via my space-sharing partnership with Palo Verde Counseling in Scottsdale. 

Our office is located at Lux Offices Scottsdale (Building A): 5635 N Scottsdale Rd Suite #170B, Scottsdale, AZ 85250 (by appointment only). 

As my practice is primarily virtual and in-person services are in high demand, if you plan to attend more than two appointments per month, we will likely need to hold at least some of our appointments virtually. 

For teletherapy to be successful, it's important that you find a space where you feel comfortable to be open and honest. I understand that many clients seek therapy to find relational clarity or to seek refuge from what we may be experiencing at home. 

As long as you are located in the state of AZ during our sessions, I can virtually meet with you anywhere you are comfortable: In a car (please refrain from driving for a stable connection), in a private office space, in a private room at a library, in a private space at a friend's home, etc. 

If these options do not work for you, we can schedule an in-person appointment at my Scottsdale office. I'm also happy to provide trusted in-person referrals to my clients. 

Healthcare providers include our credentials in our names, as they reflect different training, frameworks, and more that help you to choose the right therapist. 

I received my Master of Advanced Study in Marriage and Family Therapy and currently work as a senior-status, independently licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT). This means I attended a selective graduate program and am a clinician specifically trained to look beyond your symptoms at your environment and history to create lasting change. Additionally, LMFTs are the only professionals specifically trained to work fairly with multiple individuals in a room via systemic therapy frameworks. 

The difference between my licensure (LMFT) and the similar LAMFT licensure refers to experience; LMFTs' senior status is achieved after years of therapeutic work as a LAMFT, thousands of hours with clients, and hundreds of hours with a qualified supervisor. I received independent LMFT licensure in early 2022. 

I am currently in network with Cigna Healthcare, United HealthCare, Oscar Small Group, Cigna, Medica Minnesota Preferred, Arizona Exchange, Optum EAP, Aetna and Aetna EAP, and Cigna's EAP Program. 

Please note that as of December 2023, I am no longer accepting new clients from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona or other Blue Cross Blue Shield networks. 

If I work with your insurer (stay tuned here for updates, as they become available), please contact your insurance company to ensure therapy (individual, couples, or family, based on your service type) is covered under your plan: Insurers, plans, copays, and eligibility differ depending on your coverage type. 

Additionally, please note that insurance coverage is not guaranteed and that insurance companies are more likely to reimburse for individual services than for couples or family services. If insurance billing is denied or benefits run out, we can discuss resources or private pay options to continue your therapeutic work, if needed.

In the meantime, I offer superbills to my clients that can be submitted to your insurer for potential reimbursement from private pay services. 

I am happy to announce my membership with the Alma team of behavioral health professionals! Alma works as my insurance medical biller via HIPAA-compliant software and ethical approaches to claim submission and negotiation. 

I understand that we are all human and sometimes, emergencies, bad days, or health concerns come up last-minute. I am very flexible in the event of sudden sickness or emergencies. 

I otherwise require a 24-hour cancellation notice to avoid a cancellation fee, as slots are competitive and cannot be rebooked last-minute. Please note that this fee is nothing personal and important for by-appointment businesses. Clients will receive 2-3 free passes for non-emergency cancellations, as I understand we are all human and doing our best. 

Otherwise, Compassionate Connections charges a cancellation fee of $130.

I understand that therapy services are expensive and can be tough to maintain. Please reach out to me with financial concerns and we can explore potential payment plan solutions. 

Sometimes, when struggling to resolve conflict, couples may hit, shove, or push each other. I have worked with many couples to achieve healthier conflict-resolution over the years. I also have experience working with individuals who may be navigating the shame, highs, and confusion of an abusive relationship. 

With that said, there are many types of domestic violence. In severe situations or relationships where one partner perpetrates all or most violence, abstaining from services or exclusively attending specialized, in-person therapy are better choices.

I am happy to provide referrals and resources during our free 10-minute consultation call if I am not a fit for you. 

While I frequently work with individuals who may experience thoughts of danger-to-self or suicidal ideation, reaching out to begin services while in an active, crisis state of suicidal contemplation is not appropriate (as I may be in session and can take up 24 hours to respond). 

Please contact the 24-hour National Suicide Hotline at 988 or one of the resources from the statewide link below: 

https://www.azahcccs.gov/BehavioralHealth/crisis.html

If you experience thoughts of hurting or harming yourself but do not currently have a plan, the intent, or the means to act on these thoughts, please feel free to reach out to me for a free 10-minute consultation phone call. We will explore whether my services are a fit for you. 

Confidentiality and privacy are of the utmost importance to therapists. My website, phone service, email, teletherapy tools, and document storage are HIPAA-compliant within a secure browser. 

Confidentiality means that no other party will know you are a client or any content discussed during our consultation call or upon beginning services. Please note that from the initial consultation call to services, I am a mandated reporter which mandates occasional exceptions to confidentiality on the behalf of public safety*. 

If we are working with your insurance or employer and/or if you would like to bring an AZ-based guest(s) into a therapy session, I offer written authorizations to release information signed by all adult members of my client. These documents allow for a purposeful breaching of confidentiality to your requested party and can be revoked at any time. 

Before beginning services, I will require and review with you my secure and HIPAA-compliant Informed Consent and introductory paperwork. 

Please note that LMFTs are trained to provide objective feedback and explore all roles. For this reason, I prefer to be kept in a therapeutic role rather than utilized as a mediative or custodial evaluator. 

Family services with minors may require specific criteria that we can discuss in our consultation call. For example, I believe best practice involves the participation of or acquiring permission from all custodial parties of minors before beginning services. If you have sole custody, I will require legal proof of this arrangement via my secure portal. 

Please feel free to reach out to me with additional questions. 

As you'll see above, therapists are mandated reporters. This means that while your privacy and confidentiality are of the utmost importance to us, I am legally required to inform the appropriate entity if I acquire professional knowledge (before or after beginning services) of any of the following concerns: 

-Threats to hurt oneself that place oneself in immediate danger (active crisis or suicidal ideation) 

-Threats to hurt another person or other people

-Abuse or neglect of a minor, or parental/household violence or danger occurring within the presence of a child 

-Subpoenas to speak by the court of law 

Please reach out to me with additional questions. 

I understand there are a number of therapy and counseling services available to you: That's wonderful news! In addition to my genuine desire to connect with, assist, and even discharge my clients, I am confident about my reasons for this practice. 

Individual, couple, and family clients have shared positive feedback over the years regarding our rapport and my attentiveness in our sessions. I frequently hear clients describe our sessions as "extremely helpful" and "challenging, in a good way." Many couples relay feeling "closer than we have in a long time" through our work together. I strive to deliver quality feedback, tangible takeaways or assignments, and professional-yet-candid honesty to my clients: You hire me for a reason, and I want to deliver! 

Additionally, most independently licensed, experienced clinicians bill at rates of $150-$200+ per session: Therapy is an investment, but accessibility is important! Between my base private pay rate of $150 per hour and collaboration with insurance networks, I offer very high-quality clinical care at reasonable prices.

"I feel like so many therapists help me understand the 'what' or 'why,' but never the 'what next.' Kasey is the first therapist to help me understand and implement the 'what next'; her therapy services have changed my life!" - Current Client

I'm sincerely sorry to hear about your previous experience; unfortunately, some therapists or life coaches can impact clients' views on whether counseling has merit or truly works for you. I have worked with a number of clients who relay that my approach, direct style, and personality have helped them to trust again and see therapy in a new light: I would love the opportunity to potentially create this type of therapeutic space for you. 

I am in collaboration with Clinical Best Practice Institute, owned and operated by Patricia Dobratz, JD, LMFT. Patricia has years of experience working as a talented and respected therapist, board leader, behavioral health administrator, victims' advocate, and consultant for ethical best practices. Through my work with Patricia, I'm committed to remaining informed, ethical, honest, and evolving. 

I have a secure, paperless onboarding and record-keeping process for your privacy. You can sign into your secure client portal via this link: 

https://compassionateconnectionstherapy.clientsecure.me/

Unfortunately, my scope of practice is such that I cannot provide letters evaluating fit for Emotional Support Animals or employment leave. If you find yourself in a situation where you need this assistance, I recommend reaching out to a Clinical Psychologist, Psychiatrist, or General Primary Care Physician.