Therapy FAQs

If you are asking yourself this question, it’s usually a sign that therapy is right for you! People seek out therapists for a variety of reasons, including feeling anxious, disorganized, frustrated or just “off.”

Although people seek therapy for different reasons, they usually find their symptoms are interfering with their school work, responsibilities or relationships. Even if your symptoms just bother you, that’s still a good enough reason to start therapy.

Yes! We have a beautiful office in Fairfield, Connecticut, at 765 Post Road, on the second floor. Our clients often reside in Fairfield, Westport or Greenwich and find our office to be conveniently located.

In addition to in-person therapy, our therapists offer virtual sessions based on your preference and schedule. Shantal Placido, LCSW, is only virtual at this time.

Spencer McCauley, LCSW, and Teresa Giolitto, LMFT, currently serve clients 6-25 years old. Shantal Placido, LCSW, currently serves clients 13-27 years old. We have received specialized training to work with children and adolescents in addition to the adult therapy training all therapists receive. We also work with parents of children.

If your child is 4 or 5 and you’re having difficulty finding services, call us for a free 15-minute consultation to see if we can accommodate your needs.

We are an out-of-network benefits provider. This means that if your insurance has out-of-network benefits, you can be reimbursed for our services. Reimbursement rates vary and can range from 0-80%. Please call your insurance provider to get a quote for reimbursement. Not all insurances reimburse for out-of-network benefits, and it is important that you understand how much therapy will cost.

Since we are out-of-network, you will be responsible to pay the full fee at the time of each therapy session. You will later receive a superbill—a list of services received during a specific time period—which you can submit to your insurance company. They will use this bill to determine your reimbursement.

Using your out-of-network benefits means it is hard for us to say exactly how much your sessions will cost after reimbursement. Insurance companies will reimburse up to 80% of the cost of each session after you have hit your deductible. Please contact your insurance company to find out your unique benefits.

The fee we collect at the time of each session will be $175 to $300, with sliding-scale spots available. This means that if you are able to use your out-of-network benefits at an 80% coverage rate, you would pay $35 to $60 per session after hitting your deductible.

As stated above, all of our therapy sessions are out of network or private pay.

If you choose private pay (meaning no reimbursement from your insurance company), you have more control over confidentiality. Because you are not going through your insurance company, they do not have access to your diagnosis or notes related to your services.

When you are using private pay or out-of-network services, your insurance company cannot dictate the number of sessions or type of therapy method used. When you use in-network insurance, your insurance company will tell you how many sessions you can have and what techniques the therapist is allowed to use. This affects your treatment and is not always a decision made by a therapist. Nor is it based on your individual needs. With out-of-network or private pay, we can create a therapeutic plan that truly aligns with your needs.

We also do not need to assign you a diagnosis if you are private pay—diagnoses are required when using in-network insurance or to receive reimbursement for out-of-network benefits).

For more information and to decide if out-of-network or private pay is right for you, please see our blog post about why many therapists have stopped taking insurance.

Our therapists offer in-person sessions at our office in Fairfield, Connecticut, and virtual sessions across the state. We often serve clients in Fairfield County or New Haven County, including those living in Fairfield, Westport, Greenwich, Weston, Wilton and Milford.

Spencer McCauley, LCSW, also provides virtual therapy to people in New York and Massachusetts, which is perfect for college-age clients who move between states.

We offer convenient times on weekdays, including after school and evening appointments. Our last appointment begins at 7 p.m. and ends at 8 p.m.