•  Individual Counseling
• Group Counseling
• Couples/Marital & Family Counseling
• Anxiety
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Depression
• Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
• Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Concussion / Brain Injury (TBI)

• Psychotherapy
        • Written History-Taking
        • Written Exercises
        • Talk Therapy
        • Role-Playing
        • Relaxation Exercises
        • Homework
        • Outside reading
        • Journaling
        • Expressing Intense Emotions
        • Psychological Testing
        • Experiential Exercises
• Neurofeedback / EEG
• Photoic Stimulation

is a process of education, self-awareness, and emotional expression in the context of relating to one's self, another person or a group of people. The expected results include a much greater level of healthy psychological adjustment, personal acceptance and happiness, and life fulfillment. 

There are many effective therapeutic orientations and techniques from which to choose.  Some clients need or desire only a few sessions to achieve their counseling goals. Other clients need considerably more to accomplish their goals.  Take an active role in your counseling process: clarify as much as possible what you would like to accomplish in counseling, ask questions, communicate openly and honestly, and express any concerns.  Counseling is very much an individualized process, making it impossible to guarantee any specific results.

Services are rendered in strict compliance with professionally accepted legal and ethical standards.

INDIVIDUAL COUNSELING
One on one interaction with the client.  Individual counseling can be for a number of issues, relating from career counseling to daily monitoring.  Individual counseling is a chance to express yourself, be heard and have someone else lead you to clarity through processing the information coming from within or without.  Working together to make since of it all and most importantly makes sense of yourself.

GROUP COUNSELING
Groups are topic/issue driven such as Petty Theft, Conflict Resolution, Citizenship, Domestic Violence and Anger Management.

COUPLES / MARITAL & FAMILY COUNSELING
Couples & Family counseling session often times start with one person and later involve those in the relationship.

ANXIETY
Anxiety happens to people almost everyday. Excessive worrying, apprehensiveness, restlessness, irritability, feeling easily fatigued are just a few symptoms of anxiety. The worry and physical symptoms of anxiety can cause significant distress and impairment in a person’s social, occupational or other important areas of functioning. Shortened attention span, reduced concentration, and poor memory can also accompany anxiety.

POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD)
PTSD is a disorder that can be caused by a traumatic event. The traumatic event can cause you to respond with helplessness, fear and even horror. If PTSD symptoms are severe, this disorder may be disabling. Some symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder may include avoiding situations that remind you of the event, flashbacks, distressing memories of the event, difficulty sleeping, nightmares, and fear of injury to yourself and others.

DEPRESSION
The cause of depression is unclear; it is thought to be linked to certain imbalances of the brain chemicals. Many people do not seek treatment because they think they can work out the problems themselves, or they might be embarrassed. While some depression may be a normal reaction to life stressors, if depression becomes prolonged it can lead to a poor quality of life and even risk of suicide. Symptoms of depression include sad mood, tearfulness, irritability, withdrawal from friends and family, poor appetite or overeating, insomnia or hypersomnia, low energy or fatigue, low self-esteem, poor concentration, difficulty making decisions, feelings of hopelessness, and thoughts of suicide.

ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER
(ADD) – Children and Adults
ADD is a neurological disorder that affects at least 5% of the population. The symptoms for ADD include: short attention span, distractibility, Impulsiveness, and hyperactivity or restlessness, failure to pay close attention to details, difficulty sustaining attention in tasks, problems listening, misplacing things, being easily distracted, forgetful, problems following through on instructions, difficulties completing work, chores, or duties, and avoidance or dislike of prolonged tasks (i.e. schoolwork, homework, long movies, books).  If ADD is left untreated it may greatly affect self-esteem, relationships and work. Proper treatment can change the ADD person’s life.

HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
(ADHD) – Children and Adults
Symptoms of ADHD include: hyperactivity, restlessness, short attention span, distractibility, fidgeting with hands and feet, talks excessively, difficulty playing quietly, and being always “on the go” or driven by motor. Without proper treatment, ADHD can affect one’s schoolwork, occupation, relationships and everyday functioning. Many children and adults prefer to avoid or decrease usage of stimulant drugs in preference to alternative treatments. A new study in 2002 indicated that ADHD patients who have a course of biofeedback / neurobiofeedback therapy were able to reduce or eliminate their need for medication. 

CONCUSSION / BRAIN INJURY (TBI) AND STROKE
A person who is diagnosed with post concussion syndrome will have had a history of traumatic injury to the head by direct impact, brainlash / whiplash, or an accident such as an automobile collision, slip and fall, or sports injuries (especially boxing, football, and other contact sports).  A stroke or cardiovascular accident occurs when there is either bleeding in the brain or blockage of blood circulation to the brain tissues.  This can result in speech problems, comprehension problems, inability to perform mental reasoning, personality changes, body weakness, numbness, or loss of limb movement.

PSYCHOTHERAPY
Psychotherapy pertains to patient-therapist counseling and psychological techniques.  These techniques may include eye movement desensitization retraining (EMDR), hypnosis, behavioral and desensitization techniques.  Dr. Gard is a cognitive-behavioral therapist who helps patients to cope with stress and emotional problems, working on problems in the "here-and-now".  Cognitive behavioral therapy is a way to address the way we think, feel and behave.  Looking at how people feel can help them determine different ways to thinking in order to cope better.  It helps people learn new methods of thinking, problem-solving, and reacting in order to improve their quality of life, work, and relationships.

NEUROFEEDBACK / EEG
Neurofeedback/EEG entails the use of sensors, placed on the scalp in order to retrain the brainwaves.  Brainwaves vary from slow to fast.  Generally, the faster they go, the more alert and focused we become (to a point).  In this way patients can learn to reduce anxiety, depression, pain and distractibility, and to improve mental focus, learning, memory and specific bodily functioning.  Neurofeedback can also be used to enhance peak mental performance in areas of work, school or sports.

Costs of Counseling ...

FOS IS AN INSURANCE FREE ZONE
Insurance Free Zone means that Family Outreach Services does not accept insurance from any providers.  This in the end keeps costs down and the focus on high quality therapy.  The benefits for doing this are many.  One, your privacy is kept in higher confidence and your records not become part of your medical history/record.  Secondly, you have control over your treatment entirely.  This means you pursue the level of care you can afford. Insurance will determine the best care for you, based on what is best for them.

CLIENTS PAY AS THEY GO
Payment is required at time of treatment in all, but a few arranged cases at the therapist discretion.

•  Individual Counseling
$100 an 50 minute session.  Clients are aloud to have consecutive session to ensure sufficient time for the clients needs.

•  Couples Counseling
$100 an 50 minute session. These sessions very from one to two people depending on circumstances and the therapists therapeutic approach.  Clients are aloud to have consecutive session to ensure sufficient time for the clients needs.

•  Testing
Tests or Psychometric Test are referred to as instruments, inventories or tools.  Like tools they are expensive, but unlike tools they can be used only once and then a new tool is needed.   The test very in price.  The tools we use at FOS range in cost from $25 to $700 each.  Tools are not that useful alone, so more then one tool is used at a time.  This is called a battery of tests.  As many as 4 test can be used at a time.  The cost of the test does not count for the time of the test administrator (generally the therapist) who also take time to score and analyze the results.

•  Court Appearances
Court Appearances require munch perpetration and time from other clients.  Thus, court appearances will be billed at $130/hour from a minimum of 3 hours.  If additional research or reports are requested, they will be prepared at a rate of $100/hour.  The person(s)/agency/attorney that requests a therapist presence will be billed.

•  Payment Plans
FOS does accept payment plans in the form of Pre-Payment Plans.  You may make payment toward future therapy sessions and use the credit to pay for that therapy.

It is not in FOS's best interest to provide payment plans (Post-Payment Plans) for services already rendered.  These cases are handled on a case by case situation at the therapist discretion.  Terms on Post-Payment Plans are negotiated and are unique to each client.   Please understand that the nature of Post-Payment Plans puts Family Outreach Services in the position of collections.  Thus, Post-Payment Plans are avoided.