Fertility Evaluations
Your mental health holds significance. Here at La Jolla Psychology Center, we are committed to aiding women who are facing mental health conditions before, during, and after pregnancy. Infertility can impact various aspects of your life, including your relationships with others, your perspective on life, and your self-perception. Support from family and friends is crucial during this period, and counseling can offer further assistance if negative thoughts and emotions persist. Our clinicians collaborate closely with your healthcare provider to comprehensively understand your situation and work towards a resolution. Our offices deliver dedicated and experienced counseling for individuals grappling with fertility issues, and we are delighted to provide extra resources and support to our clients.
Empowering Your Fertility Journey: Our specialized fertility psychological counseling services extend compassionate support as you navigate the intricacies of IUI and IVF. With an emphasis on emotional well-being, we create a secure space to process emotions, develop coping strategies, and improve communication. Our objective is to empower you with the emotional resilience necessary throughout your fertility treatment, ensuring that you never feel isolated on this journey towards parenthood.
Immigration Evaluations
It is often that immigration laws require a psychological assessment or expert testimony by a mental health professional to move forth with immigration proceedings and place this burden of proof on the applicant or their beneficiary. Additionally, there are a number of reasons why a psychological evaluation can be helpful, even if required. These reports are very specific so it is essential to work with a professional well-versed in immigration services and at La Jolla Psychology Center, we have professionals specialized in exactly that.
Our offices specialize in a number of immigration proceedings and collaborate with immigration attorneys to best serve the client. Furthermore, to ensure you feel safe and comfortable during the evaluation process we are able to provide an assessment in English and in Spanish. Evaluations consist of one-on-one interviews and psychological tools and tests to assess your current symptoms. These results are then interpreted, drafted, and sent confidentially to your or to the attorney handling your case. For further questions, please contact us directly and inquire about our immigration services.
Parenting Workshops & Classes
In addition to individual pre-birth and postpartum assessment and psychotherapy, Dr. Boscan and her fellow clinicians gives helpful sessions for guardians and their babies. Regularly, parents seek these therapy sessions since they may feel that there's a mismatch between them and their child or their feelings are confused about them. Others have concerns about their child’s development, while others come to develop a stronger and deeper bond. These sessions can be most supportive when the child is still young (~ a few months old), however, there is evidence that prenatal counseling which addresses parents' thoughts and concerns about the child can be instrumental for the establishment of a positive attachment and connection. Expectant mothers who have an elevated risk for Post-Partum Depression (PPD) can particularly benefit from the combination of prenatal and postpartum counseling that focuses on the mother-infant relationship.
Our goal is to foster the bond between you and the infant! It is important for you to keep in mind that:
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There is no “right” way to parent
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No parent, or child, will ever be perfect
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A therapist can be useful at assessing the situation from an outside perspective
Emotional Support Animal Evaluations
At La Jolla Psychology Center we are pleased to offer Emotional Support Animal Assessments which take a holistic approach in assessing your particular mental health diagnosis and the benefits of having an animal that can alleviate some of those symptoms. Emotional support animals (typically dogs and cats but can also include other animals) have proven to be helpful for a range of physical, psychiatric, or intellectual disabilities. In order to be prescribed an emotional support animal, the person seeking such an animal must have a verifiable disability. To be afforded protection under United States federal law, a person must meet the federal definition of disability and must have a note from a medical professional or a licensed mental health counselor stating that the person has that disability and that the emotional support animal provides a benefit for the individual with the disability. At La Jolla Psychology Center, we are very aware of the mental health benefits of pets including the many psychological benefits of animals in therapy. Our goal is to provide a smooth transition between diagnosing your condition, assessing the support of an animal companion, and providing a letter of qualification for the ESA.
Veteran Services
Here at La Jolla Psychology Center we are proud to offer a wide array of mental health services for both active duty and retired military members. Our clinicians have proudly provided treatment to members of the military and their families for the past ten years. Clinicians at our office have experiences in varying forms of treatment, such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD and can help with medication management. We work closely with both patients and their families aiming to provide the utmost high quality service and a goal of delivering long-term relief with mental health struggles.
Depression is a mental health condition which can lead people to struggle to go to work, attend school, or perform everyday activities as it impacts a person’s behaviors, emotions, and thoughts. Lingering symptoms of depression can put strain on an individual’s relationship with friends, family, and themselves. Anxiety is another mental health condition which can indicate underlying disease such as Generalized Anxiety Disorder (when symptoms increase in frequency and intensity) impacting activities of daily life and preventing the enjoyment of life. Proper mental health treatment for military families can be hard to find not just in San Diego but in other regions across the United States. This is why we are proud to offer a variety of options to ensure that active and retired military personnel and their families receive our utmost support in alleviating their symptoms.
Whether dealing with symptoms from combat or other stressors, we recognize the struggle of the family in coping with being apart from their loved ones for extended periods of time, all of which can take a toll on individual mental health. Our goal is to find the right mental health treatment service for all service members and their loved ones.
Psychological Services Available:
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Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy aims at identifying the root of a person’s suffering and to find ways to cope with the symptoms of anxiety and depression. Some common types of psychotherapy can include individual, group, and play therapy. Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, and many others. Psychotherapy is often provided in conjunction with other treatments for depression and anxiety, such as medications.
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Neuropsychological Evaluations
Neuropsychological Evaluations are used to assess an individual’s thinking, behavior, and social and emotional functioning, using standardized tests and procedures. Tests results can help guide treatment to ensure correct symptoms and appropriate management.
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Post-Partum Depression Treatment
An important intervention for new mothers, Post-Partum Depression may impact mothers after childbirth and cause mood swings, anxiety, insomnia, and other symptoms of depression. Meeting with a doctor can help mothers understand their symptoms and develop a treatment plant that prioritizes not only her recovery but the health and well-being of her baby as well.
Autism Spectrum Disorder Evaluations
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism have a tendency to share many similar symptoms. Both show signs of problems with focus, inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, communication, trouble with school work, and trouble with social interactions. However, the two are completely different conditions. Autism is a developmental disorder whereas ADHD impacts the way the brain grows and develops and possibly, you or your child may have both. According to researchers, roughly two-thirds of kids with ADHD have at least one co-existing condition, and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are among the conditions that commonly occur with ADHD. Some studies suggest that up to half of kids with ASD also have ADHD.
There are two main differences between Autism and ADHD:
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ATTENTION
While children with Autism will struggle to focus on things that they want to do and fixate on other things, kids with ADHD simply lose interest.
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COMMUNICATION
A child with ADHD may talk nonstop, interrupting or attempt to dominate conversations, while a child with Autism may have a hard time communicating thoughts and feelings.
Our goal is to provide an early diagnosis and set the child on a correct treatment plan in order to insure that both as kids and into adolescence and adulthood he or she can lead a successful, and happy life!