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Anxiety, attachment, and Trauma Therapist in LA
I’ll be honest—there are times I really wish I took insurance. It would make things easier for my clients and might even bring more people into my practice. But the reality is, insurance just doesn’t respect us or the work that holistic practitioners in Los Angeles do.
Therapy isn’t meant to be rushed, and it certainly shouldn’t be done on a conveyor belt of back-to-back sessions just to make a living. If I were to take insurance, I’d be forced to see far too many clients, and the quality of therapy would suffer. My clients deserve more than that—they deserve a therapist who can show up fully, provide individualized care, and be present without burning out.
The amount of access insurance companies have to your personal mental health records is one of the main problems with using insurance for counseling. Therapists frequently have to provide notes and diagnoses in order to be reimbursed, which provides the insurance company access to some of your most private and sensitive information. There is a serious privacy breach caused by this. Your mental health journey and the information you discuss with your therapist in the privacy of the therapy room should be kept PRIVATE, and not disclosed to a third party that is only concerned with making a profit and reducing expenses.
The possibility of this information being utilized against you is much more concerning. Insurance companies may refuse to provide services if they believe your problems are not “serious enough” or if your treatment plan does not meet their criteria. This is because they frequently base their judgments about your coverage and care on the information in your records. Plus, it may be difficult for you to obtain life insurance, get hired in a certain position, or even file future health claims if an insurance company has a record of your mental health diagnosis. Basically, you lose control over your personal information, and that might have lasting consequences. That’s why it’s so important to me to protect my clients’ privacy and provide a safe space for real healing – without the intrusion of insurance digging through all their mental health records.
Insurance corporations typically have a very limited, antiquated conception of healthcare, emphasizing symptom management above actual treatment almost totally. Outside of that strict, medicalized model are holistic and somatic therapies, which seek to treat the whole person—body, mind, and emotions. By not fitting the mold of traditional, symptom-driven care, insurance companies often view practices like somatic experiencing or breathwork as “alternative” or “unproven,” rather than appreciating the long-term benefits of addressing trauma stored in the body or healing emotional wounds.
This is a serious issue since it shows how little importance they place on integrative, preventative healthcare. In order to treat emotional pain and trauma, holistic and somatic therapies go deeply into their underlying causes. This approach does not produce a quick fix or an easy insurance company billing code. Insurance favors strategies that offer quick fixes, such as writing prescriptions for drugs or authorizing superficial, transitory treatments. However, genuine recovery requires time. It doesn’t neatly fit into a 50-minute, once-a-week paradigm that insurance companies can stamp with a diagnosis code and compensate because it’s complex and chaotic. The significant influence that somatic and holistic therapies can have on a person’s long-term mental health and well-being is ultimately diminished by this lack of knowledge.
Working with insurance implies that you are collaborating not just with your client but also with their insurance company, which has the last say over how therapy is conducted. Insurance companies frequently set guidelines for the length of sessions, the number of sessions a client should have, and the type of therapy that is “approved.” This totally contradicts the individualized, adaptable care I offer.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to therapy, and it shouldn’t be. Whether you’re in San Francisco or Los Angeles, every client has a unique journey, and I need to be able to modify my strategy to meet their needs rather than what an insurance company believes is best. By not taking insurance, I can provide the level of care I know is necessary without being restricted by corporate guidelines.
Working with insurance is…let’s be honest. It’s a logistical nightmare. When they accept insurance, therapists spend a lot of time on administrative tasks such as resolving refused claims, managing a never-ending backlog of paperwork, and constantly checking on reimbursement. I would want to devote that time to my clients and their recovery. I don’t want to spend my time chasing payments or getting caught up in red tape. Refusing insurance allows me to focus entirely on what really matters, which is giving my clients high-quality therapy. It enables me to manage my practice in a way that is efficient, streamlined, and entirely focused on the clients I serve rather than on bureaucracy.it believes to be the greatest.
Because insurance companies prioritize their profits over all other considerations, they frequently impose session restrictions on their clients—even when additional therapy is required. This “quick fix” approach is incompatible with the kind of in-depth, purposeful labor that I undertake. Therapy is a process; developing trust, delving into problems, and bringing about long-lasting change require time. I can concentrate on the therapeutic process rather than pointless session caps because I don’t deal with insurance. I don’t have to worry about whether or not my customers’ sessions will be “covered” to continue working with them for however long they need. This enables me to give the attention I know is required for significant, long-lasting improvement.
At the end of the day, I went into therapy to help people, not to deal with the never-ending tangle of insurance companies that don’t value the work I perform. I’m defending my profession, my time, and my energy by refusing to accept insurance. I know how to set limits so that I can give my clients my whole attention without becoming burned out. I won’t allow an insurance company determine my value or diminish the importance of the services I offer. By making this choice, I am able to establish a long-term business where I can carry on doing the work I love, at my own pace, and in the most effective way for my clients.
Insurance companies handle therapy in the same way as they would any other medical transaction: enter a code, receive payment. However, therapy isn’t a business deal. It’s a lengthy, intense process that requires a lot of emotional work as well as time and energy. Insurance companies frequently overlook that. Their reimbursement rates are so low that they hardly even make up for the overhead of operating a business, let alone the knowledge and treatment we render. This minimizes the many hours we spend planning, investigating, and thinking about our clients outside of sessions in addition to the time we spend in them. I just won’t tolerate these lax standards, which is what taking insurance would entail. I refuse to allow a third party judge the value of the job I perform since I am aware of its worth.
While I wish the system were different and more supportive of both therapists and clients, this is simply why I don’t take insurance. It allows me to protect my practice, offer the high-quality care that aligns with my values, and focus on what really matters—helping my clients heal and grow.
Hi, I’m Cheryl Groskopf, a holistic therapist based in Los Angeles. I specialize in working with individuals who are ready to dive deep into their emotional and physical healing journeys through somatic therapy and Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy. My approach focuses on addressing the root causes of issues like anxiety, trauma, and CPTSD, allowing clients to reconnect with themselves in a meaningful way.
I approach therapy from a holistic perspective, realizing the interconnectedness of our mind, body, and emotions. I design a customized recovery strategy that works for you, whether it be through IFS treatment to explore your interior emotional landscape or somatic therapy to help you release stored trauma. For this reason, I have opted not to operate within the constraints imposed by insurance companies, which frequently restrict the scope and nature of my therapy. My main goal is to empower you to heal on your own terms by providing holistic therapy.
Your journey toward healing is unique, and you deserve treatment that feels in line with what you need rather than being restricted by insurance limitations. To heal according to your terms. If you’re dealing with issues related to trauma, CPTSD, anxiety, or attachment, I’m here to guide you with an approach that respects your individual experience.
Explore how somatic therapy and IFS therapy can support you by visiting my Somatic Therapy and IFS Therapy pages. You can also dive deeper into how I work with specific areas like CPTSD, attachment challenges, and anxiety.
Ready to take the next step? Contact me here to schedule a session and start your healing journey today.
