First session
What actually happens.
Nobody should have to guess at this, and not knowing is the most common reason men put the first call off another six months. So here is the whole thing, start to finish.
- 01
Two ways to start
Book a free consultation call, which runs 15 minutes, or request an appointment directly if you already know you want to begin.
- 02
The consult call
A call, on the phone, free. You say what is going on, in whatever words you have for it. I say whether I think I can help. If I am not the right fit I will tell you and point you somewhere better, which makes it a useful call either way.
- 03
Paperwork
When Josh accepts an appointment request, two forms to sign and a short questionnaire arrive through the client portal. They are completed before the first session.
- 04
Getting here
You will get directions, where to park, and exactly where to meet before your first session. It is not somewhere you would stumble across, so nobody is expected to figure it out on their own.
- 05
The session
Sessions run 50 to 60 minutes. You choose what we do with the time. The first one is largely me understanding what brought you in and what you want to be different. No couch, no clipboard, nobody watching you decide whether to cry.
- 06
Afterwards
You leave with something specific to try, not homework for the sake of it. We agree when we are meeting next, or we agree that we are not, and that is a real option rather than a polite one.
The questions men actually ask first
- What do I wear?
- Whatever you would wear for a walk. Shoes you do not mind getting dirty. This is not a hike and you will not be tested on anything.
- How much walking is there?
- As much or as little as you want. Plenty of men never leave the pond. Moving is there to make talking easier, not to be exercise. Some sessions barely move at all.
- What if it rains?
- Sessions are not rescheduled for rain. There is a house on the property we can use, we can move to video, or we can stay out in it if that is what you would rather do. Your call.
- Is this still confidential?
- Yes. The setting changes, the rules do not: the same confidentiality obligations apply outdoors as they would in any office. Ask on the consult call and Josh will tell you exactly how privacy works where sessions happen.
- What if I do not want to go outside?
- Then we don’t. Video sessions are available across North Carolina and plenty of men use them.
- I have tried therapy before and it did not work.
- Say that on the consult call. It tells me more about what you need than almost anything else, and it is a common enough starting point that it does not surprise me.
Still just a phone call.
A free conversation. You are not committing to anything by making it.