Holistic care involves mind, body, and the environmental sphere in which we exist. Instead of only focusing on the medications, there will be a combination of psychotherapy and medication, either with an outside therapist or with capacity myself where we can assess layers and apply appropriate interventions.

Collaboration with your primary care provider and any specialty providers may also be necessary along with relevant laboratory testing, electrocardiograms, and imagining. If it is determined your treatment needs would better be addressed by another provider/clinic I may refer you to a higher level of care or to providers that can more specifically address your needs.

Medication is often an important component of mental health treatment. If medication is recommended we will discuss risks, benefits, and any potential adverse effects both when starting or adjusting medications. Alternatives to medications are also important, or behavioral adjustments that can aid mood, coping and wellness will also be part of medication discussions.

My prescribing practices are directed by evidenced based practice guidelines as well as your comfort level. I am generally conservative when prescribing with a goal of using the lowest effective doses and fewest medications to reach your treatment goals. I am particularly conservative regarding controlled medications. I do not prescribe stimulant or benzodiazepine medications on first appointments and only on a case-by-case basis thereafter. If you arrive to my care on these medications it doesn't guarantee they will be continued, or maintained.

I reviewed the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP), which is a database documenting orders of controlled substances. It's a requirement to use this tool with prescribing of controlled substances.

I became a therapist in 2005 and worked in a variety of locations, until going into nursing school in 2013. Therapy is a very important component of mental health treatment. The combination of therapy and medication is often more effective than either alone. Therapy expands skills, often leading to a place where medications may not be necessary. As a therapist, then nurse practitioner, I often provide some brief therapy with each session as part of the funneling down of medication effects matched with coping and self care. More formal skills can be applied in longer medication management sessions. I do not provide psychotherapy alone but can provide recommendations to those who do should you be interested.

I have extensive experience working with patients struggling with substance use. I am waivered to prescribe buprenorphine/naloxone and plan to offer this to select patients in the future. However, at this time I am not able to provide these services. In the meantime I will gladly prescribe non-narcotic medications for substance use treatment.

Your first appointment is generally around 60-90min and involves identifying current concerns, collecting relevant mental and medical history, and identifying psychosocial factors affecting your mental health. I will ask you to complete some forms and questionnaires prior to your appointment to ensure our time is used efficiently. Follow up appointments will carry forward from there, and vary between 15-60 min.

I believe that all things exist on a spectrum, and the intensity will vary. Due to this, diagnosis is an ever evolving process and one that won’t happen with one session, but several and with rapport and trust.

Information gathered in the initial evaluation is thoroughly reviewed to establish an accurate DSM-V diagnosis to help guide further treatment and to help you understand your individual experience. Mental health diagnoses can vary from depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, psychosis, and personality disorders, among others.

I don't provide neuropsychological assessments for the purposes of ADHD diagnosis. With that said, I do treat ADHD, and witness how it truly affects a person's life, and social functioning. My approach to ADHD is thorough assessment, one that is layered and starts with review of development from youth into adulthood.

The assessment of ADHD at Bloom Wellness requires robust data across lifespan and typically doesn't start with any medication interventions without clarification of diagnosis. The use of neuropsychological assessment goes further in identifying executive functioning deficits in a way that is more exhaustive, and offers recommendations to structural changes in life that aid focus and attention rather than solely relying on medications. I value this and will request this type of testing prior to medication management, unless you have a copy of your previous evaluation for review.