Frequently Asked Questions

516 Sul Ross in Houston's historic Montrose district (77006).

Telehealth by HIPAA-compliant Zoom across Texas, including Cypress. Join from any private, comfortable space using phone, tablet, or computer.

Reaching out for therapy takes courage, and I want the process to feel simple. Text or leave a voicemail at (832) 308-0467, or email lisa.vanvleet@yahoo.com.

We'll begin with a free 15-minute phone consultation, a brief chance for both of us to see whether we're a good therapeutic match.

Sessions run in one-hour blocks.

Primarily adults. The work goes best when you bring curiosity about your inner life and a willingness to put feelings into words.

Men, women, and non-binary folx are all welcome, as are transmasculine, transfeminine, and gender-diverse clients. My practice is an affirming home for LGBTQIA+ clients and for people recovering from religious or spiritual harm.

Yes. What we discuss stays private, with a few legal exceptions, such as an imminent safety concern or certain situations involving abuse.

I'll explain those clearly, so you always know where things stand.

Depth-oriented, relational psychotherapy. We look beneath your symptoms at the patterns, relationships, and experiences underneath them.

Psychodynamic, trauma-informed, affirming, strength-based.

This is real work, and it asks something of you. You and I do it together, at a pace you set.

Anxiety, depression, trauma, the strain of life transitions, questions of identity, and the lingering effects of emotionally unhealthy relationships.

Much of my work centers on what runs underneath these concerns. The shame, self-criticism, and relational patterns that no longer serve you matter more than the surface symptoms alone.

Mostly getting to know each other. I'll ask what brings you in, a little of your history, your strengths, and what you're hoping to work toward.

If you're not sure where to begin, gentle questions will help us find a starting point. There's no pressure to have it all figured out before you arrive.

Depends on your goals. A few months for a specific challenge, or longer to explore deeper, long-standing patterns.

We revisit your goals along the way and adjust together.

Most begin weekly. From there, we settle into a rhythm that fits your goals and schedule.

As your needs change, we adjust.

No. Therapy is valuable well before things feel overwhelming.

People come because they feel caught in a pattern, want healthier relationships, are facing a transition, or want to understand themselves better. Any of those is reason enough.

Yes. Insight alone often isn't enough to shift a pattern.

Together we look at the emotional patterns, unconscious beliefs, attachment history, and nervous-system responses that keep an old script running. Understanding those is what makes real change possible.

Coping skills genuinely help, and I use them.

But once we understand where a pattern comes from, something opens up. You made these patterns, often early and for good reason, which means you can make new ones, with understanding, self-compassion, and intention.

Tends to fit people who want deeper self-understanding.

Maybe you act against your own better judgment, or keep doing the opposite of what you know would help. Maybe you feel caught in a pattern you can't quite explain.

If you're ready to take ownership of your life and go beneath the surface, this work is for you.

Worth talking about. Often it comes down to fit rather than something wrong with you or with therapy itself.

Early on, we'll talk about what was and wasn't helpful last time, so this experience can be a different one.

Not often. Now and then I'll offer information or a perspective, but advice isn't the heart of this work.

My role is to help you understand yourself, get clear on what matters, and make choices that align with your own values.

Okay, and more common than you'd think.

We start with whatever is on your mind, even if that's the not-knowing itself. Some of the most useful sessions begin right there.

You'll feel seen, heard, respected, and challenged in a way that supports you.

The free 15-minute consultation is a good first read. We keep checking in as we go, because fit matters to me.

LCSW in Texas, practicing independently since 1994, and licensed to supervise social workers toward independent licensure. I am a certified psychodynamic clinician.

PhD from Smith College School for Social Work (2023), with a dissertation on spiritual trauma among LGBTQIA+ individuals. Doctoral internship at the Montrose Center, and a 2014 fellowship at the Center for Psychodynamic Studies.

Master's from the University of Houston Graduate School of Social Work (1994), and a BA in Psychology from Berea College (1989). I am afraid I may be revealing my age here.

Lol. No, you won't lie down. I sit facing you.

My work is psychodynamic, but I've left the old Freudian conventions behind. It's relational, and I'm not the blank slate the Freudians preferred.

Kleenex is what I have at the moment. Bring your own if you prefer.

You're welcome to ask whatever you wish. Whether I answer depends on whether doing so serves the direction of your growth.

Cats, dogs, and also horses!