From Your First Inquiry to Your First Sessions.
Here's Exactly What Happens.
Reaching out for help can feel uncertain, especially if you've never done specialty therapy before, or if prior treatment hasn't worked. Here is exactly what to expect at the Evidence-Based Treatment Institute, step by step, so there are no surprises and you know what's coming.
A Few Things Worth Knowing First.
Patients tell us they spent weeks or months researching before submitting an inquiry. We understand that, and we want to remove some of the uncertainty so the decision feels less daunting.
You don't need a diagnosis to reach out.
Many patients aren't sure if what they're experiencing "counts" as something specialty treatment can help. The intake assessment is where we figure that out together. If we are not the right fit, we say so honestly, and help you find someone who is.
You don't need to have already tried therapy.
First-time patients are common. So are patients on their fifth therapist. Both are welcome here. Prior treatment history is useful clinical information, not a prerequisite.
You don't need to be in crisis.
Most of our patients reach out before things have reached crisis level: when symptoms have started taking up more space than they should, or when something subtle has begun to shift. Earlier is almost always easier than later. There is no threshold of severity required to reach out.
A first inquiry is not a commitment.
Submitting the form starts a conversation, not a contract. The screening call is free and informational. You can decide at every step whether you want to proceed, and so can we, if it turns out we're not the best fit clinically.
You will not be judged.
The conditions we treat (eating disorders, OCD, anxiety) frequently involve symptoms patients have learned to hide, downplay, or feel embarrassed about. Whatever you tell us, we have heard before. Whatever you are doing or thinking that feels too strange or too shameful to say out loud, we have helped people through it. Bring it.
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Within 1 business day of your inquiry
You Hear Back from a Clinician, Not a Scheduler.
When you submit a new patient inquiry through our Get Started page, your inquiry is reviewed by a clinician, not an administrative scheduler. We read what you wrote, think about whether we're the right fit, and reach out personally to schedule a brief screening call. This usually happens within a few hours and almost always within one business day.
If your situation suggests urgency, particularly for eating disorder presentations, we treat the inquiry as urgent and typically respond within hours.
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Within 2–5 days
A 20–30-Minute Screening Call.
The screening call is a brief phone or video conversation where we discuss what's going on, what you're hoping treatment will address, and whether the Evidence-Based Treatment Institute is the right fit clinically. There's no pressure on this call, and you're not committing to anything by having it.
It's also where we begin shaping what your care could look like. We get a sense of which of our services would likely help you most (weekly therapy, a more intensive format, or some combination), and we talk through the two ways you can begin treatment, described below, so you can choose the start that fits you best.
If we're the right fit, we schedule your first session. If we're not (for example, if you need a level of care we don't provide, or have a condition we don't specialize in), we tell you honestly. We will never make you feel that your concerns are too small or wrong for our practice.
It's normal to feel nervous before this call. Most patients describe it as easier than they expected. We do this hundreds of times a year. There's no wrong way to talk about what's going on. -
Your first session
How You Begin: Two Pathways.
Most practices have a single way in: a standard intake, and then a wait until the next appointment before you understand your condition or your plan. We offer two ways to begin, and we help you choose the one that fits you. Both arrive at the same place: a thorough understanding of your symptoms, history, and goals, and a clear, individualized treatment plan. What differs is the pace.
Pathway One · Most CommonThe Standard Intake
A comprehensive one-hour intake assessment. We take the time to understand everything first, and then, at your next session, we walk you through our formulation and your treatment plan. A measured, traditional start.
Pathway TwoThe Extended Launch Session
A single, longer first session, typically 2–3 hours, that moves straight from assessment into psychoeducation and treatment planning, so you leave day one already understanding your condition, with a clear plan and your first between-session work in hand.
How long that extended session runs, and how far into the work you go on day one, is entirely up to you. Both pathways are equally valid; neither is the "right" one. But when an eating disorder, anxiety, or OCD has already taken over daily life, most people would rather not spend the week after their intake simply waiting to understand what they are facing and what comes next. Many of our patients choose to hit the ground running.
Either way, the first session is thorough: we ask a lot of questions and use standardized measures where they help. For children and adolescents, parents are typically included; for adults, the session is individual unless you'd like a partner or family member there.
If you have been in therapy before that felt unstructured or unclear about what you were working toward, this is one of the biggest differences you will notice. With either pathway, you should always know exactly what we are doing and why. -
The first weeks of treatment
Active Treatment Begins.
Once your plan is in place, we move into active treatment. The specifics depend on the approach we're using: exposure and response prevention (ERP) for OCD will look different from family-based treatment (FBT) for an adolescent eating disorder, which will look different from prolonged exposure (PE) for PTSD. But every evidence-based approach involves consistent between-session work, structured in-session interventions, and regular progress monitoring.
Most patients see meaningful progress early when the work is matched correctly and applied with consistency. If we are not seeing the early gains we expect, we revisit the formulation rather than continuing on a path that isn't working.
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Throughout treatment
Coordination With Your Other Providers.
With your permission, we coordinate actively with referring providers: your primary care doctor, pediatrician, adolescent medicine specialist, psychiatrist, OB/GYN, dietitian, school counselor, prior therapist. Specialist mental health treatment works best when it's integrated with the rest of your medical and supportive care, not delivered in isolation.
If medication is being considered, we coordinate with prescribing clinicians. If you don't have a prescriber and would benefit from one, we help you find one.
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Throughout treatment
A Clear Path to Completion.
Evidence-based treatment has defined arcs and endpoints. Many of our protocols run a defined course over months, not years; Schema Therapy for longstanding patterns is longer by design. We tell you the expected duration up front and we taper toward completion rather than treating indefinitely.
When treatment ends, you'll have specific tools you can use independently for the rest of your life. The goal is durable change, not ongoing dependence on therapy.
What Evidence-Based Therapy Sessions Actually Look Like.
If you've never done specialty evidence-based treatment, the in-session experience is different from what you might picture. Here is what to expect.
Sessions are structured.
Each session typically begins with a brief check-in, a review of between-session work, and an agenda for the day. We don't spend the first 20 minutes wandering through how the week was. We start working, efficiently and intentionally, because the time we have together is limited and the work matters.
You will have between-session work.
Every effective evidence-based treatment relies on what happens between sessions, not just inside them. ERP requires exposures done at home. Enhanced cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT-E) requires structured eating and food monitoring. FBT requires meals supported by parents. Schema Therapy requires reflection and behavioral experiments. The work between sessions is not homework in a punitive sense; it is where the actual change happens. Sessions are where we plan, troubleshoot, and refine.
Discomfort is part of the process.
The treatments we use ask patients to do things that are uncomfortable on purpose. ERP asks patients to face their feared situations without performing compulsions. CBT-E asks patients to eat foods their eating disorder has banned. FBT asks parents to hold the line during meals when their child is in distress. We do not soften this, but we also do not throw patients into the deepest water on day one. The work is graduated, structured, and supported. We move at a pace that is meaningfully challenging but sustainable.
You will know what we are doing and why.
One thing every clinician at the Evidence-Based Treatment Institute shares is a commitment to education before intervention. We will not ask you to do something hard without first making sure you understand what it is, why it works, and what it is supposed to accomplish. Patients who understand the mechanism engage with treatment in a fundamentally different way than patients who are just following instructions. The understanding is part of the work.
Treatment is collaborative, and directive.
We are active in sessions. We ask questions, suggest experiments, push back on patterns, and offer specific recommendations. We are not silent listeners. At the same time, treatment is collaborative: we are working with you, not on you. Your goals, your values, your context shape what we do together. The clinician brings the framework. The patient brings their life. Both are essential.
You've seen the whole process; the only step left is the first one. Reach out and a clinician, not a scheduler, gets back to you within one business day.
Request a ConsultationPrefer email? Write to hello@EBTInstitute.com.
Things People Often Wonder Before a First Therapy Session.
Ready to Take the First Step?
A clinician, not a scheduler, responds to every inquiry within one business day.
Request a Consultation