FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

DO YOU OFFER ONLINE OR ONSITE SERVICES?

We offer both online and onsite mental health services. Our onsite clinic is located at the 3rd Floor Hollywood Square Building, 33 West Avenue Quezon City. Meanwhile, online sessions are available via videoconferencing platforms. All sessions are by appointment.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE AMONG COUNSELING, PSYCHOTHERAPY, AND PSYCHIATRIC CONSULT?

Counseling and Psychotherapy are both talking interventions. Through a confidential, professional, and trusting relationship, a psychologist will guide you in understanding yourself, releasing emotional burdens, exploring thoughts/feeling/behavior, and planning for change. Counseling tends to be short-term and for normal life concerns, while psychotherapy tends to be longer and for more complex issues. Psychiatric consult, on the other hand, are with medical doctors who can provide assessment as well as pharmacotherapy. They can provide some talking interventions but not as intensively as with counseling or psychotherapy.

WHICH CONSULTATION SERVICE IS FOR ME?

In general, if you would like to consult about normal life issues (e.g. stress, career change) you're better suited to counseling services.

If you’d like to consult about a possible mental health problem (e.g. depression), you can choose between a psychologist (for psychotherapy) and a psychiatrist. Mental health problems are those that cause significant distress, may be going on for a long time, and affects a person’s daily functioning. For these, a psychologist can offer assessment and psychotherapy, which refers to long-term, more intensive talk therapy mixed with other non-pharmacological interventions. A psychiatrist can offer assessment, some talk therapy (shorter than with a psychologist) and pharmacotherapy.

If you have sleep problems, concerns about reality testing (hallucinations/ delusions), and symptoms that do not respond to talk therapy, you are probably better suited to seeing a psychiatrist first.

WHAT ARE THE
BENEFITS OF COUNSELING

AND PSYCHOTHERAPY?

While the outcome of session vary from person to person, client often report positive outcomes. Among other benefits, counseling and Psychotherapy can help you with:

expand self-knowledge
improve self-esteem and self-acceptance
express and manage of difficult emotions
discover ways to thrive in a crisis
change self-defeating thoughts
enhance stress-resilience
cultivate healthier and more fulfilling relationships
assess and treat depression, anxiety disorders, and other mental health concerns
map career and life

WHAT IS YOUR THERAPEUTIC APPROACH?

Our team is composed of licensed and trained mental health professionals who practice evidence-based interventions. The approach your consultant will use during your session/s will depend on many factors including your age, nature of concern, and person variables that can influence therapeutic style and client fit. Our admin officer usually asks some details about your concern so that we can assign you the consultant most suited to your needs.

All therapies used are always in consultation with you. Our team of psychologists, psychiatrists and psychometricians do work collaboratively to give you the highest quality of care we can provide. As per the Mental Health Law, service users have the right to take part in designingtheir treatment modality and have the right to refuse treatment.

HOW LONG ARE EACH SESSIONS AND HOW MANY SESSIONS DO I NEED?

Sessions are typically 1 hour, but the initial session (intake) may be longer as this is when your consultant gets information about your concern, makes an assessment, proposes a treatment plan, and conducts initial interventions.

After this initial session, your consultant will advise if you need follow-up depending on the initial assessment of your concern and how often should this follow-up be. You will be booked with the same consultant for your follow-up sessions unless there is need to be referred to another professional better suited for your needs or you request for a different consultant.

IS ONLINE TREATMENT AS EFFECTIVE AS FACE TO FACE TREATMENT?

Online Treatment has shown to be as beneficial as face-to-face treatment for many concerns, but of course there are factors that can facilitate treatment effectiveness regardless of the medium. Ensure that you're in a private, quiet, and conducive room when you hold sessions and check your device and net connectivity to avoid disruptions. Communicate with your consultant about your needs, reservations, or any clarifications so you can become more comfortable with the process. Remember that there are limits to communication online, with the absence of some non-verbal cues and possible transmission lag, so if uncertain best to make clarifications.

Online mental health services do not fit everyone, yes, so if unsure if our services are for you, you can message us for a screening.

HOW MUCH DO SESSIONS COSTS AND HOW CAN I PAY?

Individual Counseling and Psychotherapy is P2200/session, each session is around 1 hour except for the initial session which may be longer. Couple/ Family Counseling is P3000/session, usually around 2 hours.

Psychiatric consultation is P2500/session and is also usually 1 hour. Psychological Assessment fees depends on the test battery required and the purpose of the assessment.

CPPS has discounted rates available for partner NGOs and community organizations. Most of our services are eligible for PWD and SC discount.

Fees may be settled via direct bank transfer to our BDO Account, GCash, PayMaya, or PayPal.

[FOR MH+ CARD HOLDERS]
DOES MY COMPANY GET A REPORT
ABOUT MY SESSION?

No. We will not furnish your company information about your appointment or the session, except for anonymous aggregate data about the service utilization. Noted exceptions are if there is immediate threat to your life or to others during which a mental health professional is ethically bound to inform family members or report the risk to authorities.

ARE YOUR ONLINE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR EVERYONE?

Our Telehealth service is not an emergency service. It is not recommended for clients who are in immediate harm to self or others, or clients who at the time of the session are experiencing acute mental health states that make consultation challenging, such as manic episodes. If you are experiencing these, we suggest that you proceed to the nearest hospital for emergency care and enlist the help of the nearest available responsible adult.