Frequently Asked Questions

If something in your life feels stuck, overwhelmed, or harder to manage than you'd like, therapy can help — and you don't need to have it all figured out before you start. Many people also come to therapy simply because they want to understand themselves more clearly or make meaningful changes in how they live. A good first step is simply talking with a clinician about what's going on and deciding together whether therapy feels like the right support.

Getting started is easy — just visit our Get Started page, where you can tell us a bit about what's bringing you in. From there, our team will follow up to match you with the right clinician for your needs.

We work with a wide range of concerns, including anxiety, depression, hopelessness, and low motivation; anger management; relationship issues; addiction (drugs, alcohol, food, sex, or other comfort behaviors); family issues, including parent/child, sibling, and extended family dynamics; school or work performance; stress reduction; and people-pleasing or boundary-setting struggles.

Your first session is about getting to know one another. Your clinician will ask about what's bringing you in, your background, your goals, and any questions you have about the process. From there, we'll work together to build a plan that feels both supportive and realistic for you.

Therapy gives you a supportive space to better understand your thoughts, feelings, relationships, and patterns. Different clinicians draw on different approaches, but the foundation is the same: a strong working relationship and practical movement toward change that reflects your own values and goals.

Yes, it's often worth trying again. A previous experience may not have been the right fit, timing, or approach. If you've tried a specific method, like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and it didn't resonate, your clinician can talk through what did and didn't work and consider other approaches that may serve you better.

Our clinicians are trained in a variety of therapeutic approaches, which may include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, and Rogerian Client-Centered Therapy, among others. Rather than fitting every client into one model, we focus on what's most useful for the person in front of us.

Yes. We provide couples counseling to help partners improve communication, navigate conflict, and rebuild connection in a supportive environment.

We work with clients ages 5 and up, across individual, couples, and family therapy.

Yes. Both our Peabody and North Andover offices offer a hybrid model — in-person and telehealth appointments are both available, so you can choose what works best for you.

Our clinicians provide therapy and do not prescribe medication. If medication support would be helpful alongside your therapy, we're glad to help you think through next steps — many clients coordinate with their primary care physician or a local psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner. We're happy to work collaboratively with any prescriber involved in your care.

The connection between you and your therapist matters — it's one of the most important factors in how helpful therapy can be. If something doesn't feel right, we encourage you to bring it up directly with your therapist; that conversation alone can often help. If it still doesn't feel like the right fit, we can help you connect with another clinician who might be a better match. Finding the right therapist is part of the process.

Working with an intern means your care benefits from two clinical perspectives. Interns are in the final months of their graduate training, bringing current academic knowledge into the room, while meeting weekly with an experienced senior clinician who helps shape a thoughtful, evidence-based plan for your care.

The difference is mainly one of academic emphasis. Licensed Mental Health Counselors (LMHCs) train with a strong focus on individual mental health, while Licensed Independent Clinical Social Workers (LICSWs) train in individual mental health alongside the broader social systems that shape a person's life. At NSCG, all clinicians train together, so you can expect the same high standard of care regardless of license type.

Yes — we're in-network with over 30 insurance carriers. Visit our Insurance page for the full list, or reach out and we'll help verify your benefits.

Sessions typically run 45–60 minutes. Most clients begin by meeting weekly, though frequency can be adjusted over time based on your needs.

In almost all cases, yes. Therapists are legally and ethically bound to protect your privacy. The few exceptions — an apparent risk of harm to yourself or others, suspected abuse of a child, elderly person, or vulnerable adult, or a court order — exist solely for safety. Your therapist will walk you through these boundaries clearly, and would always tell you directly if one of these situations arose.

We understand that life happens, and we ask for as much notice as possible out of respect for your clinician's time and other clients' availability. A late-cancellation fee applies for changes made with less than 24 hours' notice, and a no-show fee applies if a session is missed without any notice.