Conquest Therapy, LCSW, PLLC
Psychotherapy Services
Psychotherapy
Trauma isn't just about war, disasters, or severe victimization. It can stem from experiences like poverty, narcissistic parents, witnessing abuse, or growing up with alcoholism, divorce, or emotional absence. These experiences can lead to attachment wounds affecting adult relationships.
Trauma also includes bullying, neglect, accidents, loss, or witnessing harm to others. It often results in mistaken beliefs like "I'm not good enough" or "I'm unlovable," which run like scripts in our heads. These beliefs, along with intrusive thoughts and feelings, create "sore spots" that, when triggered, interfere with our actions, self-esteem, relationships, and goals.
The good news? We can heal. By addressing these sore spots, we can eliminate trigger reactions, allowing confidence, self-esteem, and relationships to flourish.
Is trauma therapy right for me?
Many diagnoses share common symptoms like anxiety, depression, avoidance, anger, reactivity, and sleep disturbance. These are post-traumatic stress symptoms, which trauma therapy is proven to treat. A trauma therapy approach can address the underlying traumatic source while incorporating specific interventions as needed.
Am I ready for Trauma Therapy?
Many diagnoses share common symptoms like anxiety, depression, avoidance, anger, reactivity, and sleep disturbance. These are post-traumatic stress symptoms, which trauma therapy is proven to treat. A trauma therapy approach can address the underlying traumatic source while incorporating specific interventions as needed.
Do I have to tell my trauma stories?
No. You won't be asked to share detailed trauma stories unless you want to and we both agree it's appropriate. Instead, we'll create a concise bullet-point list of significant events and address each one when you're ready, without encouraging detailed sharing. I'll help you manage your emotional state throughout our sessions, ensuring a smooth and comfortable experience.
Intensive Therapy Program
As a healer who believes in healing healers, I've done my own work to slay my dragons. I'm drawn to the Intensive Therapy format because it can condense years of therapeutic work into a shorter timeframe. While sometimes intimidating, it offers profound experiences with relief, insight, and peace of mind.
Our program brings healing and clear impact, addressing the source of pain rather than just covering symptoms. By healing the sore spot, we eliminate trigger reactions, allowing confidence, self-esteem, and relationships to grow.
Who Can Benefit
Healers Needing Healing:
Front-line workers (therapists, healthcare workers, emergency responders, service workers, teachers) can reduce reactivity to vicarious trauma and blind spots.
Therapists with Clients:
If you don't offer intensive trauma therapy, I'm happy to review cases. Clients remain with you; I provide adjunct intensive therapy.
Clients Supplementing Therapy:
Stay with your therapist while receiving specialized work from me.
Cost and Scheduling
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$150 per 1-hour session (Most insurances will cover 1 hour sessions).
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$160 per hour for multiple-hour Intensive Focused therapy or Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (when scheduled back-to-back).
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Insurance doesn't cover multi-hour or multi-day sessions.
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NYS and PA Victim Assistance Programs may cover some costs for crime victims or witnesses.
We'll decide together on the best approach; whether it’s Individual hour-long sessions, consecutive hours, multiple days as needed, addition of ketamine assisted psychotherapy or an individualized mix.
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy
I offer a therapeutic modality called Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) in partnership with an organization called Journey Clinical. Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) is a holistic modality in which ketamine is used as a complement to psychotherapy to help eligible patients experience more frequent breakthroughs and sustained improvement in symptoms. I take on the psychotherapy portion of the experience, while Journey Clinical’s medical team supports you on all medical aspects. This includes determining eligibility, developing a custom treatment plan, prescribing the medicine and monitoring outcomes. Below is more information about KAP to help you navigate if it may be a good fit for you.
What is Ketamine?
Ketamine is a legal, safe and effective medicine used to treat a variety of mental health conditions, including depression, anxiety and PTSD. Ketamine has rapidly-acting antidepressant and mood-enhancing effects, which can begin to take effect within 1-2 hrs. after treatment and last for up to 2 weeks. It works by blocking the brain’s NMDA receptors as well as by stimulating AMPA receptors, which are thought to help form new synaptic connections and boost neural circuits that regulate stress and mood. Ketamine has also been shown to enhance overall neuroplasticity for lasting symptom improvement. ©Journey Clinical Inc 2023
Ketamine can be administered in a variety of ways, including IV infusion, intramuscular injection, via nasal spray and using sublingual lozenges. In my work with Journey Clinical we only use the sublingual lozenge form.
How Does Ketamine Feel?
The effects of ketamine, which most patients find pleasant, last for approximately 45 minutes. These effects can make you feel “far from” your body, and facilitate shifts in perception that can often feel expansive in nature. Your motor and verbal abilities will be reduced, so you’ll be lying down in a comfortable position during the experience. Once these effects subsided, we’ll spend the remainder of our appointment giving you space to process and discuss your experience. While it may feel hard to articulate what happened during the experience, patients feel like the insights gained are none-the-less clear. Studies have shown that the benefits to mood and neurological growth can last up to two weeks after the Ketamine experience.
How Does Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy Work?
1. Initial consultation with Journey Clinical
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You schedule an initial evaluation with a clinician from the Journey Clinical medical team via zoom. They will go over your medical and psychiatric history with you, provide education on the treatment and determine if you are eligible for KAP.
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If Journey Clinical’s medical team determines that you are eligible for KAP, they will develop a personalized Ketamine prescription and outcome monitoring plan for you.
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Journey Clinical’s medical staff will write a ketamine prescription for you, and a small amount of oral ketamine will be sent to your home, enough for the first 2 KAP sessions. You will be taught to take your vitals and self-administer the ketamine lozenges by Journey Clinical’s medical team in advance of our KAP sessions.
2. Preparation sessions
Once you receive your ketamine lozenges, we will schedule time together for our KAP preparation, dosing and integration sessions. Preparation session(s) will be scheduled just like regular therapy sessions prior to the ©Journey Clinical Inc 2023 KAP dosing session. The goal of a preparation session(s) is to align on the process and set intentions for our KAP sessions together.
3. KAP Dosing Session
A typical ketamine dosing session lasts between 1-2 hours and can take place either in-person at my office, or remotely via telehealth.
During a dosing session, you will self-administer your ketamine lozenge either in my office or in your home. You will be in a comfortable, reclining position wearing an eye mask and listening to calming music. Although a KAP dosing session may be largely an internal experience, I will be present with you the entire time to hold space and provide support as needed.
4. Integration Sessions
After our KAP dosing session, we will meet for multiple integration therapy sessions to review the memories, thoughts & insights that arose during your dosing session, focus on our Psychotherapy goals, such as EMDR and to prepare for the next dosing session.
5. Follow-up consultations with Journey Clinical
After our first KAP session, Journey Clinical’s medical team schedules regular follow ups with you to monitor outcomes and prescribe ketamine lozenge refills, as appropriate. The frequency of follow ups depends on your unique treatment plan, at a minimum of once per quarter.
What is the Cost of Treatment?
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Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy is an affordable, accessible modality. Although the medical intake and follow ups with Journey Clinical are not covered by insurance, they are eligible for out-of-network reimbursement.
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Journey Clinical Medical Costs ©Journey Clinical Inc 2023.
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Initial medical consultation with Journey Clinical: $250.
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Cost of medication: $88 (enough for 2 sessions).
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Follow-up medical consultation with Journey Clinical $150 (at least 1X per quarter).
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Cost of medication: $148 (enough for up to 6 sessions).
What is Journey Clinical?
Journey Clinical is a platform for licensed psychotherapists to incorporate science-based psychedelic therapies in their practice safely and effectively, starting with Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP). Journey Clinical’s in-house medical team takes on patient eligibility, prescriptions and outcome monitoring, while I take on the therapy. Their collaborative care model is designed to deliver personalized treatment plans to meet your individual needs and improve long-term outcomes.