OUR PHILOSOPHY

Three Reasons We Don’t Take Insurance

You should be able to grow and change in a safe environment. At the core, counseling can be a vulnerable experience. That’s why we fiercely protect our client’s confidentiality and goals for growth. Since we opened our Traverse City office in 2009, we have never directly billed insurance. This may seem odd, but since a core value is confidentiality and doing what’s in the best interest of our clients, we continue this. Here’s why we do it.

Reason #1 Why We Don’t Take Insurance | It’s Not Confidential

Insurance companies require us to use an Electronic Medical Records system if we take insurance. Last year alone, the Department of Health and Human Services recorded 24,000 HIPAA violations. Over time we disclose information to a 3rd party insurance or technology company, there is increased risk to your information being out there. As well, if you or your child eventually needs a federal background check, wants to be a pilot, or a variety of other reasons, a diagnosis can be disclosed through your insurance company. We want you to have the most confidential counseling!

Reason #2 Why We Don’t Take Insurance | You Have to Be Diagnosed

In order to have insurance cover counseling, we have to diagnose you. Even if it’s not appropriate, there has to be a diagnosis. For example, if a couple comes in for counseling, for it to be covered, one person has to have a label. Similar to reason one, we don’t think you should have a mental health diagnosis on your permanent medical record. To us, everyone should have access to counseling. We can all use a little help! We want you to get help without having to have a diagnosis!

Reason #3 Why We Don’t Take Insurance | They Decide Your Treatment

Insurance companies decide treatment. They determine the number of sessions and the frequency. We believe this should be you and your therapist’s choice. Sometimes you need shorter sessions or longer ones. Maybe you need them 2x per week or once per month. When an insurance company is involved, they decide payment. Our clients enjoy the freedom to choose what is best along with their therapist. We want you to get the best quality of counseling treatment!

WELCOME

MENTAL WELLNESS COUNSELING

FROM WORRY TO WELLNESS

DEPRESSION TO HAPPINESS

FRUSTRATION AND CHAOS TO HAVING A PLAN FOR PEACEFULNESS

We help parents who are getting too many calls from the principal to have a plan for their kids and get fewer calls from the school.

Through counseling couples that are disconnected and fighting find that spark that was there and learn how to build the fire of their relationship.

When life seems chaotic and confusing we help to guide and direct you to find peace and happiness.

Clients that are depressed and sad work to create a plan to get out of the house, exercise more, and build happiness into their life.

We’re in the business of transformation! Through counseling, we join you in the process of moving from frustration, anxiety, depression, and hopelessness to having a clear plan for creating a happier and better life.

Mental Wellness Counseling is proud to call Traverse City home! We built a Traverse City counseling practice because we love this area, the people, and the families. That’s why we’re trying to make it better, with you. People come to Mental Wellness Counseling for a variety of reasons from depression to divorce, parenting to probation, anxiety to anorexia, we cover a lot of issues. We help people to set goals for their life and find more happiness and fulfillment, will you join us in helping you make life better?

COUNSELORS

MEET THE WELLNESS TEAM

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Sarah Hubbell

Sarah Hubbell

Counselor
Sarah helps youth ages 10+ and adults. When tweens and teens are dealing with anxiety, depression, and family issues, Sarah can help. Sarah also specializes in helping clients who have been through a traumatic experience. Sarah’s process includes working with the caretaker to understand normal development compared to changes that are of concern. Through that process she helps your family to utilize new skills, be happier, and make the tween/teen years easier!
Steve Greenman

Steve Greenman

Counselor
Steve’s specialty centers around the topics of addiction, families in difficult situations, cognitive awareness of bettering oneself and burdens from anxiety, depression and low self-esteem.
Joe Sanok

Joe Sanok

Counselor
I have over 10 years of experience working with at-risk youth in a variety of residential and out-patient settings. As the author of several parenting books, I’m uniquely qualified to help you as an individual, couple, or family. I look forward to talking!
Nicole Ball

Nicole Ball

Counselor
Nicole works with clients that are dealing with anxiety and want quick results to get back to life. As well, clients that value a holistic approach to therapy tend to be drawn to Nicole, especially if they are working through a transition such as divorce, life change, or relationship change. Lastly, Nicole takes a compassionate and holistic approach to teaching parenting, working through past trauma, and building coping skills to find more peace in life.

Emily Hale

Intake Coordinator
Emily is our Intake Coordinator. She will be the one taking your call, answering any questions, connecting you to the best fit counselor, and scheduling new clients. Call her at 231-714-0282 Ext 0.

GETTING STARTED

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

How do I pay for counseling?

Understanding counseling, insurance, and payment can be confusing. If at any time you want our help, just let us know. We don’t directly bill your insurance for a number of reasons. Mostly it is because we want you to have complete control over your records. We’d love to walk you through the process of getting counseling started.

Is counseling confidential?

In Traverse City, it’s usually not a big deal to run into someone. It’s sort of the charm of the area. But when that person is your counselor, you should know exactly how confidential your information is! We take your confidentiality very seriously! 

Not only is counseling protected by federal law, but we go well beyond what is required. We’d love to tell you more if you have questions.

Right Counselor for me?

You always get to choose your counselor. Even if you start with one, you can always switch. We want you to have the very best fit at our Traverse City counseling practice. When we look to bring on new counselors, we look for people that can cover a wide variety of issues. We have counselors that work from infant mental health all the way to retirement. You always have a choice!

TESTIMONIALS

OUR CLIENTS SAY

  • “[My counselor] was a good listener, and could readily focus on the core matter(s) at hand. He was able to address my key issues, and was able to guide me towards a perspective I may not have considered otherwise.”
  • “The approach was very comfortable and accessible… meaning, it was easy to open up right away, which allowed the progress we made happen more quickly.”

  • “[I learned] better ways to communicate.”

  • “He didn’t force me to [change] but was like a motivational speaker.”
  • “My counselor does a great job and should continue with their present strategies.”

  • “I made changes in my life as a direct result of counseling to be more positive.”

  • “My counselor helped me make some very valuable changes in my parenting choices.”

COUNSELING BLOG

ADVICE FROM THE COUNSELORS

  • It might be depression

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    Summer is upon us, the air is warming, the flowers are in bloom, and the winter blah is over…or is it? Maybe someone you love is dealing with the “summer blues.” We assume that when the weather improves, so will our feelings of isolation and lethargy. But for over 16 million American adults, depression is…

  • How to Handle Anxiety

    Traverse City counseling practice
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    Imagine your boss tells you that you need to go to a networking event. What is your first emotional response? For many people they may not want to go, but they would make it work. Some would be excited. For about 18% of the population, it would probably trigger their anxiety. According to the Anxiety…

  • How do I get my spouse to stop using their smartphone?

    How do I get my spouse to stop using their smartphone
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    Are our smartphones the new mistress?  In a number of ways, our brains don’t understand where our body ends and our phones begin. We see them as an extension of our personality, experience, and life. Staying up-to-date on Facebook, posting pictures, and having our businesses more streamlined, makes it difficult to know where we end…

  • A World of Hurt: How to handle trauma

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    Las Vegas, Puerto Rico, and by the time this article is published, another city will be on our list. We live in a world of hurt. What’s amazing about humans, is that when other people are hurting, attacked, and vulnerable, we feel something too. We cry thinking about others being shot at a country music…

  • Is parenting your teen causing conflict?

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    Parenting teens can be very difficult! Parenting conflicts with teens is something that most of us have joked about amongst our fellow parents. If you are raising a teen, it’s highly probable that  you’ve wanted to scream, pull your own hair out, or hide in your bedroom from the adolescent drama and ridiculousness. However, there…

  • Are you looking for Divorce Counseling?

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    DIVORCE- Are you looking for a divorce counselor?  Talking about divorce isn’t easy. It can be messy and heartbreaking, and it can stir up emotions of  anger, resentment, guilt, sadness, amongst many others. Divorce usually eludes to the idea that there is a broken relationship that is unsalvageable. Many couples agree to therapy, hoping to…

  • Are you going to have an affair? [quiz]

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  • Changing the stereotype: Casey Kiley

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    How do you really feel about counseling and coaching? I want to change the stereotype of “Mental Wellness.” I want people to look forward to a good individual therapy session, as opposed to feeling strain and angst because they are coming to therapy to “work on their issues.” To put things in a different perspective,…

  • Does my teen have a digital or internet addiction?

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    Our teens live in a world that is full of screens. It can sometimes be difficult to know what is normal for digital addiction, video game addiction, social media addiction, internet addiction and what is not screen addiction? Signs of Internet Addiction The Center for Internet Addiction published the following: Meeting 5 of the criteria…

  • Four Reasons Couples Divorce

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    Have you ever had a ridiculous fight with your partner? I remember one about mayonnaise that was really a fight about budgeting. Or one about dishes that was really about time management and fairness. Or another that was about snow pants, but it was really about parental roles. What if I told you that 95%…

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