Frequently Asked Questions.
Clear information can make it easier to determine whether Advanced Behavioral Health is the right fit for you and what you can expect from the treatment process.
Below you will find answers to common questions about getting started, specialized OCD treatment, fees, private-pay care, confidentiality, communication, telehealth, and appointments.
Beginning Treatment
What to expect when contacting Advanced Behavioral Health and preparing for your first appointment.
How do I schedule an appointment?
To inquire about Advanced Behavioral Health or schedule an appointment, use the Request an Appointment option on the website or call (256) 945-7959.
Do you offer a free consultation?
Yes. Advanced Behavioral Health offers and prefers a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation prior to scheduling an appointment.
This brief consultation provides an opportunity to discuss what you are looking for, ask initial questions, and determine whether ABH may be an appropriate clinical fit.
What happens during the first appointment?
During your first appointment, we begin with introductions, review the forms completed before your visit, discuss your clinical history, and review important office policies including informed consent, confidentiality, and the Client Rights and Disclosure Statement.
The first session is also an opportunity to better understand your current concerns, symptoms, history, and treatment goals.
For clients seeking OCD treatment, psychoeducation is provided to help explain what OCD is, what it is not, and the mechanisms that keep OCD symptoms active. This may include discussion of intrusive thoughts, anxiety, compulsions, avoidance, reassurance seeking, and the role of uncertainty.
Together, we begin developing an initial treatment plan designed to make effective use of your time, effort, and clinical goals.
Is ABH Right for Me?
Will Advanced Behavioral Health be a good fit for me?
Advanced Behavioral Health may be a good fit if you are seeking specialized, evidence-based care for OCD, intrusive thoughts, or anxiety-related concerns.
ABH is particularly suited for clients who want a structured and collaborative approach to treatment, practical strategies that can be applied outside of session, and care guided by focused clinical expertise rather than a one-size-fits-all model.
Because ABH is a private specialty practice, treatment is intentionally individualized and designed for clients who are ready to better understand their symptoms, develop effective skills, and actively work toward meaningful change.
Understanding the Private-Pay Model
What is the session fee?
Advanced Behavioral Health is a private specialty practice with a session rate of $200 per session.
The practice model is designed around individualized, clinically focused, evidence-based care for clients seeking specialized treatment for OCD, intrusive thoughts, and anxiety-related concerns.
Does Advanced Behavioral Health accept insurance?
Advanced Behavioral Health does not directly file insurance claims.
Clients may request a superbill, which is an insurance-friendly receipt that may be submitted directly to an insurance company for possible out-of-network reimbursement.
Reimbursement is determined by each client's individual insurance plan and is not guaranteed.
Is financing available?
Advanced Behavioral Health offers CareCredit, a health and wellness credit card that may be used to help manage the cost of therapy services.
What does it mean that ABH is a private specialty practice?
ABH is intentionally structured as a private specialty practice rather than a high-volume counseling clinic.
This means the number of clients accepted into care is limited so treatment can remain personalized, focused, and clinically responsive.
This model allows for thoughtful treatment planning, careful monitoring of progress, and greater attention to each client's specific goals and needs.
Why does ABH limit the number of accepted clients?
ABH limits the number of active clients in order to maintain quality, availability, and individualized care.
A smaller caseload allows for more personalized treatment planning, better continuity of care, and increased responsiveness when clients need assistance applying treatment strategies.
Does ABH offer after-hours consultation?
When clinically appropriate and available, ABH may provide limited after-hours consultation to help established clients apply treatment strategies, remain consistent with therapeutic goals, or navigate difficult moments.
Advanced Behavioral Health does not provide emergency or crisis services.
Understanding OCD & ERP
Specialized OCD treatment requires understanding not only the content of intrusive thoughts, but also the compulsive processes that keep the OCD cycle active.
What are some of the different aspects of OCD?
OCD can involve many different themes and behaviors, including contamination fears, checking, intrusive harm thoughts, sexual intrusive thoughts, taboo thoughts, religious or scrupulosity concerns, relationship OCD, perfectionism, mental rituals, reassurance seeking, avoidance, and intolerance of uncertainty.
What is Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)?
ERP stands for Exposure and Response Prevention. It is one of the leading evidence-based treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder.
In simple terms, ERP helps a person gradually face thoughts, situations, emotions, or triggers that produce uncomfortable feelings such as fear, guilt, shame, anxiety, or disgust while learning not to perform the compulsions or rituals OCD demands.
The exposure component involves practicing contact with something that triggers uncertainty or distress.
The response prevention component involves resisting the usual compulsion, such as checking, washing, confessing, avoiding, asking for reassurance, mentally reviewing, or repeatedly attempting to figure everything out.
ERP is not about forcing someone into overwhelming situations. It is a structured, collaborative process that is carefully planned and practiced at an appropriate pace.
Why is specialized OCD treatment important?
Specialized OCD treatment matters because OCD is frequently misunderstood and may be unintentionally reinforced by approaches that are useful for other clinical concerns.
Reassurance, avoidance, repeated analysis, and attempts to obtain complete certainty about intrusive thoughts may produce temporary relief while strengthening the obsessive-compulsive cycle over time.
Effective OCD treatment requires a structured, evidence-based approach that helps clients reduce compulsions, increase tolerance for uncertainty, and develop a more effective response to intrusive thoughts.
Will treatment make me talk about uncomfortable thoughts?
OCD treatment may involve discussing uncomfortable or unwanted thoughts, but this is done in a structured, respectful, and collaborative manner.
The goal is not to shock, shame, or overwhelm you. The purpose is to help you better understand how OCD operates and develop a healthier, more effective response to intrusive thoughts and uncertainty.
How long does OCD treatment take?
The length of OCD treatment varies from person to person and depends on several factors, including symptom severity, avoidance, consistency with treatment, co-occurring concerns, and willingness to practice skills between sessions.
There is no single timeline that applies to every client. The objective is to develop a structured treatment plan that reduces compulsions, increases tolerance for uncertainty, and supports meaningful progress over time.
Do I have to practice between sessions?
Yes. OCD treatment, particularly ERP, requires practice outside of the therapy office.
Between-session assignments allow clients to apply what they are learning, reduce avoidance, resist compulsions, and develop greater tolerance for uncertainty in real-world situations.
Practice is planned collaboratively and paced appropriately, but consistency between sessions is an important part of meaningful progress.
OCD themes can change. Treatment therefore emphasizes identifying and changing the patterns of avoidance, compulsions, reassurance, mental rituals, and intolerance of uncertainty that maintain the disorder.
Confidentiality & Communication
Is therapy confidential?
Yes. Therapy is confidential, and protecting your privacy is an important part of the counseling relationship.
There are legal and ethical limits to confidentiality. These can include concerns involving risk of harm to yourself or others, suspected abuse or neglect of a child, elderly person, or vulnerable adult, court orders, or other disclosures required by law.
Can I communicate by email or text?
Email or text may be used for basic scheduling, appointment reminders, or limited administrative communication.
For privacy and security, clinical concerns, sensitive personal information, forms, documents, and treatment-related communication should generally be handled through the SimplePractice Client Portal or discussed during scheduled appointments.
Email and text should not be used for urgent matters, emergencies, or crisis situations.
How quickly are messages returned?
Advanced Behavioral Health makes every effort to return messages in a timely manner during normal business hours.
Response times may vary depending on the clinical schedule, appointments, weekends, holidays, or time away from the office.
Because messages are not continuously monitored, voicemail, email, text, and portal messages should not be used for urgent or emergency situations.
Does ABH provide emergency services?
No. Advanced Behavioral Health is an outpatient specialty practice and does not provide emergency or crisis services.
If you are experiencing a mental health emergency, believe you may harm yourself or someone else, or need immediate assistance, call 911, go to the nearest emergency room, or contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.
Visiting ABH
Where is Advanced Behavioral Health located?
Advanced Behavioral Health is located at:
303 Williams Avenue SW
Suite 135A
Huntsville, Alabama 35801
The office provides a professional and private setting for clients seeking specialized treatment for OCD, intrusive thoughts, and anxiety-related concerns.
Do you offer telehealth?
Yes. Telehealth may be available when clinically appropriate.
Because counseling licensure laws are state-specific, telehealth services are generally available only to clients who are physically located in Alabama at the time of the appointment unless otherwise permitted under applicable licensure requirements.
Is parking available?
Yes. Ample parking is available at the Park Plaza location in downtown Huntsville.
Do you see clients who live outside Huntsville?
Yes. ABH may work with clients outside the Huntsville area when telehealth is clinically appropriate and permitted by licensure requirements.
In most cases, the client must be physically located in Alabama at the time services are provided.
Clients outside Alabama should contact ABH directly to determine whether services may be available under current legal and professional requirements.
Hours & Availability
What are your office hours?
Typical office hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Office hours and appointment availability may vary depending on the clinical schedule and administrative responsibilities. Appointments are scheduled in advance, and prospective clients may contact ABH directly to discuss current availability.
Still Have a Question?
A brief conversation can help determine whether Advanced Behavioral Health and its specialized treatment approach may be appropriate for your needs. Contact the office to ask questions or request a complimentary 15-minute consultation.
Call (256) 945-7959Specialized Care Begins With Understanding the Problem.
At Advanced Behavioral Health, treatment is focused on areas in which specialized knowledge, evidence-based interventions, and clinical experience can make a meaningful difference. Explore our areas of expertise to learn more about the conditions we treat and the scientific, evidence-based approaches used to help our clients move forward.