I think I've decided I'm going to let my daughter go to 10 sessions or so before deciding if I should seek reimbursement from insurance or not. So far she's had 2 sessions. My insurance lets you submit claims for up to a year after the date of service so we have quite some time to decide. I guess I don't want her getting a mental health diagnosis attached to her medical records at this stage in her life. If the therapy proves to be longterm and I need financial assistance on this, I'll re-evaluate.

I'm kind of bummed also I tried to get reimbursement from my own insurance for my own current therapist (months ago). It turns out he is not reimbursable by either of my insurance plans, but I didn't know that and submitted claims to both of them with his diagnosis. Now they got the information but didn't do their part (pay). Well, I guess for all they know, I only went for 2 visits, since that was the claim I submitted to them.

When I told my T some time ago that I was having trouble getting reimbursed for his services, he asked, what's the matter, didn't they like my diagnosis? And I had the sense he would change it if I wanted to make it more reimbursable (but the diagnosis was not the problem). It all seems like a game to me, and possibly a game with negative consequences.

Now it all makes sense to me why my first counselor (preferred provider) spent ages during our first session taking a detailed history full of irrelevant details. Whereas my current T asked very little of that stuff and we got right to the important issues that brought me to his office. Hmmmmm.

InACorner, if you want a diagnosis from your T, just ask him/her. He can give you a diagnosis even if you don't seek insurance reimbursement, but it will stay between him and you. I have never asked my T to tell me what is wrong with me, although I know what "official diagnosis" he gave when I tried to submit the claim (it was the same one my first preferred provider counselor gave). My sense is he prefers to operate from a position of health rather than pathology, and if I asked him "what is wrong with me?" he would talk about healing and what he can provide in his office that can allow a person to heal.