FEATURED AUDIO FILE: To listen to Dr. Parker Wilson's public talk, offered in Denver, CO, on the topic of What Is Happiness - A Buddhist Psychological Perspective (31 minutes), please click here. 
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Q: Does AMI finance treatment and/or accept insurance?
A: No, we do not accept insurance nor do we offer direct financing. AMI is a private pay psychological agency. If a client so requests, AMI can offer "super-bills" so a client can attempt to be compensated by their PPO for psychological services. For more information about financing and insurance, please click here.


Q: Does AMI offer a sliding scale or have pro bono spots?
A: AMI does offer two sliding scale spots for appropriate clients. AMI keeps two sliding scale slots for appropriate patients. For more information on AMI's sliding scale, please click here. AMI does also offer one pro bona (at no cost) slot. To be considered for the pro bona waiting list, please contact Dr. Wilson today. 

Q: Does coming into psychotherapy mean that I am mentally ill?
A: Absolutely not. Most people who come into private practice treatment are hard working individuals with families. They are doctors, lawyers, military officers, teachers, and business owners of various kinds. They are home makers, artists, law enforcement professionals, and nurses. The average adult client at AMI is well educated, professional, and over the age of thirty. They come into therapy because, at times, we all have trouble working with our minds and lives. Birth, aging, sickness, death, being met with unfortunate circumstances beyond our control, being separated from people, places, and things that we want - we are all subject to these experiences. If not worked with skilfully, with emotional intelligence, we will not learn and evolve. We will become psychologically stuck, mired down in self-pity and pessimism, and we will produce depression, anger, anxiety, compulsion, martial troubles, divorce, addiction, etc. These are not the problems of the psychologically ill. These are humans challenges. It is quite natural to become disoriented and overwhelmed at times. Sometimes we all need a bit of help in order to gain perspective and learn to flourish.  


Q: What is a "pre-therapy intake" session?
A: Every genuine and professional therapist starts a chart, takes a history, a presentation of symptoms, and has the client sign an informed consent document. That process is the pre-therapy intake session. It is a one time event lasting between 90-120 minutes and it costs $300. If you are seeing a therapist that has not done these things, s/he is not meeting the standard of care and is likely an unqualified "fly by night" therapist. For a more in depth description of the pre-therapy intake, please click here.  

Q: How long is a session, and how long does therapy last?
A: Adult individual therapy is usually scheduled once per week and lasts 50 minutes. In certain cases, therapy can be done once every other week, but patients typically begin at once a week for at least a month or two. Adolescent therapy sessions also last 50 minutes, and frequently begin at two sessions per week. Since adolescent cases are usually more complex, they down shift to once a week only when appropriate. Couples and family sessions last between 70-80 minutes, and, depending on the case, can be done once a week or once every other week. On the average, psychotherapy lasts between 15-30 weeks when done once per week.

Q: How much does therapy cost?
A: Adult individual psychotherapy at AMI costs $150 per 50 minute sessions. Couples therapy costs $170 per 70 minute session, and family therapy costs $180 per 70 minute session. For a full price list of AMI's psychological services, please click here.


Q: What kind of therapy does AMI offer?
A: Primarily AMI offers cognitive psychotherapy, in particular mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT). This therapy is the modern standard of care for many types of depression, anxiety, stress, grief, addiction, and anger management. At times, Dr. Wilson will supplement cognitive psychotherapy with techniques from cognitive-behavioral therapy, reality therapy, gestalt, and psychodynamic thought. For more information about MBCT, please click here.  


Q: Isn't mindfulness a religious practice associated with Buddhism?
A: First, it is difficult to call Buddhism a religion. It is not faith based, it worships nothing, it is non-theistic, it has no dogma, it makes no claim of any special consideration for its practitioners, and it does not seek converts. It is, therefore, more akin to a deep philosophy or understanding. Buddhist psychology and logic, however, are often successfully incorporated into the practice of most world religions. Second, the fundamental techniques for developing mindfulness are rooted in the teachings of the historical Buddha. Modern clinical psychology and mind science, however, have standardized and secularized many of these techniques for therapeutic use in the West. In the 21st century, mindfulness is a type of cognitive technology. The psychological and physical effects of mindfulness techniques are well documented by science, and in combination with modern cognitive therapy, they are powerfully restorative and create tremendous psychological awareness in the client. For a more in depth definition of mindfulness, please click here.


Q: Is Doctor Wilson a Buddhist? How does this effect his ability to perform therapy?
A: Yes, Dr. Wilson is a practicing Mahayana Buddhist who has received instruction from some of the most accomplished meditation and spiritual masters in the world today. Buddhism, however, is not interested in "converts" and has no dogma. Dr. Wilson's patients come from many walks of life and many different faiths: some are agnostic or atheistic; some are Christian, some are Unitarian or Jewish, and others are Hindu or Buddhist. Many times, selected Buddhist contemplations and meditations can be a very useful aid to the client's existing spiritual or religious practice. Because he is a avid student of world religion, Dr. Wilson often incorporates key aspects of a client's existing spiritual or religious practice into their individual therapeutic process and overall psychological growth.   


Q: Does Dr. Wilson treat alcohol and substance abuse, and if so how?
A: Dr. Wilson does treat various substance abuse problems, and has himself been in recovery from alcohol and substance abuse for over eighteen years. Dr. Wilson implements a vanguard treatment called mindfulness based relapse prevention (MBRP). MBRP is a synthesis of traditional cognitive behavioral "relapse prevention" techniques, and mindfulness based cognitive therapy. MBRP, however, is specifically honed to therapeutically address the psychology of addiction. NOTE: Dr. Wilson conceptualizes MBRP as a strong clinical supplement to core and ongoing work in a relevant 12-Step program (AA, NA, or CA).       


Q: What is a "sex addiction," and can it be treated?
A: Sex addiction is commonly considered to be a habitual or compulsive sexual activity that allows the person to exit from connected, authentic relations with a partner. Sex addiction usually involves unwise, impulsive risk taking (sex with random strangers, illegal activities, etc). Like any compulsion, it creates damaging effects across time. Often genuine intimacy with another human being can cause deep feelings of fear and anxiety. This usually happens in the minds of people who have been traumatized in some way (childhood abuse or neglect, victims of crime, combat vets, etc). To escape the fear and anxiety, this person may avoid actual sex with a partner, and instead numb out with sex clubs, internet porn, prostitutes, strip clubs, chat lines, web cam sex, etc, etc. After some time, this numb out (exit door from authentic feelings) becomes concretized as a "habit" and, after longer periods, it becomes a "compulsion." A sexual compulsion is a behavior (or set of behaviors) that become the primary sexual outlet and thus the person may not be able to become stimulated by a partner, or by healthy sexual activity. This type of compulsive, "addictive" behavior can often be readily treated using a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT).  
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NOTE: Please review AMI's fees for service by clicking here. Therapy can be scheduled every week or every other week, depending on the circumstances of the particular clients.

To schedule a consultation with Dr. Wilson, please click here.

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