Your First Three Appointments With Marie

A Foundation Before Practice

Marie's CBT is practical, and these first appointments help aim the practice at what matters to you. Before she suggests anything to try, she takes time to understand your life as it is now, the history behind it, and what you hope will change. You set how much to share and when, and it is fine to say a topic can wait. The three appointments are also a chance to notice how her warm, direct style feels from your side of the conversation.

Appointment One: Intake

The intake looks at your life as it stands today: work or school, relationships, health, and home. You might describe what a recent stretch has been like, where the pressure seems to land, and what made you reach out now. It can cover a lot of ground in one sitting. The goal is a wide view of the present rather than a deep dive into any one part of it, so the picture is broad before it gets detailed.

Appointment Two: Your Story

In the second appointment, you tell your life story in your own words, so Marie can understand you in the context of your experiences rather than as a checklist of symptoms. You choose where to begin. Family, culture, moves, earlier relationships, and the ways you learned to cope may all come up. Marie treats those old ways of coping with respect. In her words, "Old patterns were once protection." That context can help the plan that follows fit your actual life.

Appointment Three: Goals and a Plan

The third appointment turns what you have shared into goals you agree on together. You name what you want to be different in everyday terms, such as falling asleep without replaying the day or starting an assignment before the night it is due. Then you decide how you will both know it is working, so progress is not left to guesswork. With a plan in place, weekly practice begins: one small experiment at a time, reviewed together. Goals can shift later, and you check them regularly.

What to Bring and Practical Details

It helps to bring a couple of recent examples of the problem, your questions, and a sense of what you have already tried. When the client is a minor, a parent or guardian is part of the first conversation. Individual sessions are $200 and couples or family sessions are $225, each 50 minutes, online for clients located in Oregon or in person at 1125 SE Market St, Portland, OR 97214, by arrangement with Marie. If you need to cancel, 48 hours' notice is the policy; shifting to another day that same week still counts as rescheduling. It all starts with a free 15-minute consultation.

Questions You May Have