Terms of Service: Terms, Conditions and Generally What to Expect.
Contents:
My Commitments to You as a Facilitator and Guide.
Your Commitments to Me as a Client and Community Member.
Friendly Heads Up.
Refund Policy.
Ready? Here we go…
My Commitments to you as a Facilitator and Guide
Confidentiality
All of my services are confidential. In addition, as I am a legally Ordained, All-Denominational Minister, my community has a higher level of legal privacy protections than counseling and therapy clients. I cannot, for example, be forced to testify in a court of law or reveal anything about the nature of our relationship unless you give me express, written permission to do so.
Sharing information from our sessions. Unless we have your express and specific, prior, written consent, we will never, under any circumstances, share your information with anyone. If you are a member of the Ministry we cannot be court-ordered to do so.
Our Web Privacy Policy is available here.
In brief, your data is private. We will not share your data or information with anyone for any reason unless you have given me express, written permission to do so.Cookies. Cookies exist. You will be able to choose your cookies. ;)
Helpers and testifying: to be added.
Ensuring maximum legal confidentiality.
Any service contract with me entitles you to membership in the Therapeutíkos Healing Ministry Community. By choosing to support that community (which you can do by donating as little as $5.00 monthly) you become an official Community Member and legally ensure the confidentiality of our work. Your choice to become a Community Member is completely optional. I will uphold the same standards of confidentiality regardless. Under the law, however, your privacy rights may be more limited.
The Healing Ministry.
There are many wonderful reasons to become a Supporting Member of The Healing Ministry Community in addition to confidentiality protections. I encourage you to explore the Ministry's work and consider supporting it, regardless. You may read about the Ministry here.
Quality of Service:
I will offer you all of my authentic self, all of my life experience, and all of my professional expertise.
My work is, and will continue to be, trauma-informed, anti-racist, LGBTQ+ competent, and neurodivergent-embracing.
I will treat you with compassion and respect—even as I confront you and ask you to lean into your “oh-hell-no” discomfort at times when that is needed.
I will accept you as you are, including where you have been and what you have done.
If my scope of practice is insufficient for your needs, I will tell you so and refer you to another practitioner.
I will show up as agreed or offer you a reasonable opportunity to reschedule.
I will do my best to respond to your text messages within 24 hours Monday thru Thursday.
Within reason, there is no charge for text messaging.
To the best of my ability, I will offer multiple programs to accommodate as many income levels as possible.
This Being Said
I do not diagnose. I am however trained to diagnose and may suggest you see someone if your diagnosis seems inaccurate or if I feel an accurate diagnosis will be helpful.
I do not prescribe and I am not a great fan of medications. However, I do encourage speaking with a psychiatrist or other prescribing physician in the event medication seems like it would be helpful.
I take vacations—usually twice a year.
I take personal days and medical leave as needed.
I will be unavailable Fridays, Saturdays, and some Sundays.
Despite making every effort to be on time for appointments, I do sometimes run 5-10 minutes behind schedule for private sessions and workshops will often have a life of their own. If this feels uncomfortable to you or you feel it will be a problem, please consider working with someone else or limiting your work with me to group, web-based offerings, as these tend to run on time.
I am not an Emergency Service. If you need urgent support, a number of free, confidential options are available:
Your Commitments to Me as a Client and Community Member:
Accountability:
Change
I can give you tools to liberate yourself from negative patterns and transform your life. Using those tools is up to you.
Safety
You are 100% accountable for your safety in our sessions and group work. If your gut tells you something isn’t good for you:
Speak up or reach out to me or a member of my team as soon as humanly possible and let us know what is going on.
If you are in a group, quietly excuse yourself or exit the zoom. (Do please reach out to us afterwards if at all possible as we will deeply appreciate knowing you are taking care of yourself and having the opportunity to offer you any supper within our skillset.
Triggers
If you are triggered, that is, by definition, your stuff coming up.
Expecting people to navigate around your triggers is unacceptable.
It is your responsibility (and your opportunity) as a client to lean into the triggers.
My team and I are here to compassionately support and educate you through that, to illuminate pathways of transformation and liberation for you. .
Caveat. It is not always possible to dismantle or transform a trigger in a given moment.
If you are up against a genuine wall in your psyche we will give you loving support, including encouragement to excuse yourself from the session and do self-care.
Either way, triggers are opportunities for healing, increased self-awareness, and personal growth.
Even the most recalcitrant triggers will dissolve across time with a steady application of work.
Whether your growth comes most from leaning in or opting out for self-care is 100% up to you.
Readiness for Work:
Show up ready to work.
If you are zooming from home, you agree:
to be in an environment that is free of distractions and interruptions.
If you are unsafe in your environment or unable to ensure privacy, you must inform me of that. We will explore reasonable alternatives.
Have writing and drawing materials available to jot down notes and impressions as needed. A dedicated journal or equivalent is recommended.
If you are having private sessions please ensure you eat prior to session as food can distract from perceptual subtleties needed for fruitful Inner Work
If you are in a retreat, do bring water, snacks, and cozy pillows and blankets as needed
Homework.
Homework, when given, is given to help you progress. If you choose to opt out of your homework, that is 100% your choice. If you notice that you aren’t progressing as quickly as you wish to and you are having trouble motivating yourself to focus when you are away from class or session: please reach out and ask for support. :)
Text Messaging:
Some people find it extremely fruitful to use text messaging as a processing ground for personal material. If that is the case with you, I will bill you for my time, based on the amount of time required to read and reply to your texts. Those invoices will be due within 30 days. After 30 days, I will stop reading and replying to texts until invoices are paid.
Disclosure of Diagnosis and RX Medication:
If you have a medical or mental health diagnosis or are on any kind of prescription medication, I require that you disclose this to me as it can affect the choice of services I recommend and the way I approach our work together. This table provides a quick summary based on my experience.
A Note on Violence:
Hate Speech.
In order to maintain a safe environment all forms of hate speech are banned and grounds for immediate termination of any contract. In the event of hate speech, no refunds will be offered.
Micro-Aggressions.
My policy is to point out micro-aggression and offer education. If micro-aggression persists, you may not be a good fit for our community and your contract(s) may be terminated depending upon the severity of the situation.
Name-calling, verbal aggression, shouting to intimidate, and physical aggression of any kind.
These are unacceptable and grounds for immediate termination of any contract. In the event of aggression, no refunds will be offered.
Domestic Abuse.
Because I ran a safehouse from 2000-2016 and have experience with conflict resolution and de-escalation, because I offer clients the legal protection of the Ministry, and because our culture has become increasingly punitive and carceral—clients have sought me out to help with domestic violence situations. I no longer have or run a safe house. If you are in a domestic abuse situation and fear for your safety, your children’s safety, or the involvement of the authorities, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline for anonymous support.
Friendly Heads Up…
If you need a non-confrontational helper, please choose only Trancework sessions—either group or individual sessions are acceptable.
If you find yourself keeping things from me because you are afraid to disclose, it’s time to talk about that and perhaps find another person.
If my relationship with time bothers you, please tell me so we can reassess: it may be best for you to work with someone else.
Refund Policy:
Individual Sessions:
No refunds are available
Web Classes and Offerings:
100% refunds are available up to 24 hours prior to the start of class or series unless otherwise stated in your registration documents.
Live Classes and Offerings:
Refund policies may vary according to venue policy: please refer to your specific registration materials for details.
Retreats:
Initial deposit (usually 50%) is non-refundable.
Balance is refundable up to 30 days prior to your retreat.
Venue fee is refundable according to the policy of the venue host.