Smoothing the path ahead

Psychological assessment, parenting, and therapy

Some kids have had a bumpy road

In a perfect world, you wouldn’t need to be seeking a psychologist for your child right now.  Everything would be going smoothly.  The world around them would know exactly how to appreciate and support their unique ways of moving through life.  We can get there.  This is the first step.

I provide psychological assessment, therapy, and parenting support.  My goal is to deliver these services in the most timely, effective, and efficient way possible, so that you can get back out there and move on with your life.  Rather than sitting on a waiting list or continuing services that don’t seem to be changing the things that worry you most, let’s work together to get to the root of your child’s challenges.

Hi, I’m Dr. Taylor.

I’ve been a licensed psychologist for over 12 years, and I work exclusively with kids, teens, and their families.  I am dedicated to demystifying the psychological assessment process and making it a transformative journey of understanding for you and your child.  Parents and caregivers I work with have described me as warm, genuine, knowledgeable, and thorough.  I am good at connecting and building relationships with kids of all ages, from toddler to teen. 

  • I earned my Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin.  I completed my predoctoral internship at Texas Child Study Center and my postdoctoral fellowship at Austin Child Guidance Center.  I then continued to work at Austin Child Guidance Center for 8 years, providing psychological assessment and therapy services as well as serving as a supervisor to trainees, before transitioning to private practice in 2020.

  • I view my role as a consultant and collaborator who can provide information about best practices in supporting kids’ mental health. While I draw on a variety of therapeutic approaches, I tend to start with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) with most clients.  In working with anxious clients, I utilize exposure therapy to gradually decrease avoidance of feared situations.

    Specific approaches I may pull from include SPACE, Inference-Based CBT, DBT skills, TF-CBT, motivational interviewing, Collaborative & Proactive Solutions, PMT, and aspects of interpersonal therapy and structural family therapy.

    My approach to assessment is client-centered and strengths-focused. I use techniques from therapeutic and collaborative assessment to ensure that you don’t leave with just a yes/no answer about a diagnosis, but with a more complex understanding of your child and a clear idea of the next steps forward.

Issues I help with

A diagnosis doesn’t tell the full story, but some of the reasons people come to see me include:

  • ADHD

  • Autism

  • Anxiety

  • Depression

  • Anger

  • Self-Esteem

  • Learning Disabilities

  • Trauma

My Services

Assessment

Psychological testing for ages 4-17 to answer questions about diagnoses, treatment recommendations, and accommodations or support needs.

  • Psychological assessment can provide information about diagnoses or neurotypes, as well as answer more general questions. I will weave together information from tests, clinical interviews, parent/teacher questionnaires, and previous records, in order to arrive at an understanding of what seems to be going on with your child right now, and what recommendations are likely to help.  Then, I’ll share this information with you in two ways: first, as part of a collaborative conversation with you (called a feedback session), and then in a formal psychological report that you can share with other professionals who work with your child. 

Parenting

Empowering you with the tools to support your child at home - especially if they don’t want to attend therapy!

  • The truth is, young kids don’t typically gain insight or apply strategies from therapy on their own – especially when their anxiety, anger, or disorganization may actually be causing more problems for you than for them. Kids need their parents’ support to make changes.  By shifting the way you react to your child throughout the week, there is a lot we can do to treat anxiety and disruptive behavior with minimal direct involvement of your child themself.  By sharing tools you can use to support your child day to day, I can help you feel confident and at peace in your role as a parent.

Therapy

Support for kids and teens with anxiety, depression, OCD, stress, grief, or other concerns.

  • I enjoy working with children and teens with anxiety to decrease avoidance of feared situations, often with parents’ support. I also work with school-age kids on emotion regulation and managing anger and frustration. I work well with depressed teens on increasing mood-boosting activities and shifting outlook on life.  I tend to connect especially well with teens who have existential worldviews.  Many of my clients are also exploring identity characteristics, including LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergence.  I’m also trained in trauma-focused CBT and can work with kids and teens on processing past traumatic experiences.

FAQs

  • Therapy and Parenting– First session is $270 for 75 minutes.  Later sessions are $180 for 50 minutes.

    Psychological Assessment - $2800 for a comprehensive assessment including parent/caregiver initial meeting, testing, review of any previous records, report writing, and parent/caregiver feedback session, up to 16 hours of my time.  $180 per additional hour.

    Brief Assessment - In limited situations when a comprehensive assessment is not needed, I charge $180 per hour. Time needed will vary, and I can give you an estimate after our initial parent meeting

    Parent/Caregiver Initial Meeting (as a standalone service) – $320 for 90 minutes

  • No, I am not in-network with any insurance companies.  I can provide a “superbill” that you may be able to submit to your insurance company yourself for possible out-of-network reimbursement, but I recommend that you check with your insurance company about your coverage.  Please let me know if you need tips about what questions to ask, especially for assessment, which can have complicated coverage limitations. 

    Being out of network allows me to give my clients more of my time and attention.  I know that paying for out-of-network care may be a stretch financially, but my goal is to meet your needs effectively and efficiently so that you can move on with your life and spend your money on other things!   While I realize that being out-of-network limits access for many clients, if I can’t work with you, I am happy to try to help you find someone else who meets your needs both clinically and financially. 

  • No, I work with adults only in the context of parenting/caregiving strategies for an identified child client. 

  • I have limited afterschool appointments, but no weekend availability.  Generally, most of my appointments are scheduled between 9:00-4:00 Eastern/8:00-3:00 Central. I offer some later appointments on Mondays.

  • This will depend on your specific needs and goals, but on average, I see most clients for between 12-20 sessions.  I strongly recommend meeting once a week to start, in order to make good progress and maintain momentum.  Once we’ve started to meet your goals, we may mutually decide to taper off to less frequent sessions or just follow up on an as-needed basis. 

  • This isn’t unusual!  Many kids and teens don’t know quite what to expect from therapy.  They may also view it as an indication that they’ve done something wrong or that you think there’s something wrong with them.  I would rather frame it as an opportunity for support.  If you suspect that your child won’t be open to therapy, I can talk with you ahead of time about how to present it to them.  I would encourage them to commit to just one session – many times, after meeting me and getting to experience what therapy is and isn’t, kids are relieved, comfortable, and want to come back!  If not, then we can discuss using a parent-focused approach instead – this is often more effective anyway, especially with younger children.

  • I think this depends both on the child and on the provider!  I find that my work with parents and most teens is just as effective virtually as in-person, as long as you have reliable internet service and a private place to meet.  For kids under 10, individual therapy is often hard over telehealth, but if a parent is also part of the session, it can work very well.  It can even sometimes be easier to work on anxiety exposures or relationship-building activities when you’re in your own home rather than in my office! 

    If we will meet virtually, keep in mind that I will not meet with you if you are in a non-private location or in a moving vehicle.  Due to licensing requirements, you will also need to be physically located in a state where I am licensed (Pennsylvania or Texas) at the time of our session.  

  • I recommend that partners attend together when possible, so that we can all be on the same page with any strategies we discuss.  However, I know this isn’t always practical, and I can also meet with just one parent.

  • Yes!  I work with clients who both are and are not covid-conscious, and although I no longer require masks in my office, I run air filters at all times and happily mask with anyone who requests it.  I also ask all of my clients not to come in when sick! I understand where covid-conscious families are coming from, and I am happy to work with you to add precautions as needed to make an assessment or therapy possible within your family’s caution level. 

Take the first step today.

dr.taylor@mmtpsychologist.com