ABOUT THE INTENSIVE
What four days looks like
This page is for people who have read the Intensives page and want to understand the specifics. What happens each day, how to prepare, what comes after, and what it costs. If you haven't read that page yet, it's a good place to start.
Before you arrive
The preparation is part of the work. After a screening consultation, you'll complete a detailed personal history and a set of structured questionnaires that help be start to understand your story and patterns. People often find that writing their history surfaces things they haven't thought about in years, and sometimes things they've never put into words at all.
We'll review these materials together in our first session, but the writing itself is valuable regardless.
The four days
Sessions take place in my office in Seal Harbor. Each runs two to three hours, with natural breaks for a cup of tea or a stretch on the deck. The pace is deliberate. Long enough to go somewhere, with room to breathe along the way.
Wednesday afternoon — arrival and orientation
We begin with an introductory session focused on developing the working relationship, reviewing your preparation materials, and establishing a shared frame for the days ahead. This is a slower, orienting session. A chance to settle in before the deeper work begins.
Thursday — family of origin and attachment
Thursday holds two clinical sessions, morning and afternoon, with time in between for lunch and time outside. The focus is on your early relational history: family of origin, attachment patterns, and the experiences that shaped how you learned to relate to yourself and others. We may use structured tools including a family tree and an exploration of your attachment history to organize and deepen this work.
Friday — life narrative
Friday follows a similar rhythm, two sessions with a midday break. We move from early history into your life as it has unfolded: significant relationships, transitions, losses, and turning points. We work to integrate an understanding of early patterns into the events and struggles of your present life. When appropriate and with careful preparation, we may engage in focused trauma processing work.
Saturday morning — integration and closing
The final session is devoted to integration. Consolidating what has emerged, identifying what you are taking with you, and creating a clear sense of how the work might continue. We close thoughtfully, with attention to what you will need in the days that follow.
After the intensive
Within two weeks of your final session, you will receive a written clinical formulation. This document summarizes the work we did together including your history, the patterns we identified, and a clinical understanding of how those patterns have shaped your experience and relationships. It is written to be shared with your treatment team at home, and to serve as a reference point for the work that continues after you leave the island.
The intensive is designed to be a complete, bounded piece of work. The formulation is how that work travels with you.
The setting
Wildwell Psychiatry is located in Seal Harbor, a quiet village on the eastern shore of Mount Desert Island, home to Acadia National Park. The office sits within walking distance of Seal Harbor Beach, hiking trails and the carriage roads.
The time between sessions is yours. Some people walk, sit by the water, or write. Others rest. The pace of the island, removed from ordinary demands, is part of what makes this format work. I'm happy to share personal recommendations for places to walk, swim, kayak, bike, or picnic on the island between sessions
Lodging on Mount Desert Island ranges from simple inns to coastal rentals. We're happy to suggest options when you're planning your visit.
Fees and the inquiry process
The fee for a four-day intensive is $8,500. This includes all preparation, the four days of sessions with approximately 16 hours of individual therapy, and a written clinical formulation. Lodging and travel are arranged independently.
A shorter three-day format is available in some circumstances. Format and length are determined through the consultation process, please indicate in your application if exploring alternative formats is of interest
Intensives are not covered by insurance as a standard benefit. A superbill is available on request — if out-of-network reimbursement matters to you, it's worth a call to your insurer before committing. Reimbursement is rarely substantial for this format due to frequency caps on covered sessions.
The process
Submit an inquiry using the form below
If it seems like a possible fit, we'll schedule a 30-minute screening consultation by phone
If we decide to move forward, you'll complete the detailed history and preparation materials
We'll confirm the dates and logistics of your visit - note that intensives typically take place Wednesday to Saturday and I am currently booking for late-summer and fall of 2026.
The following questions help me understand whether an intensive might be a good fit. Please answer as fully as you're comfortable. There's no obligation in reaching out, and all information is kept confidential.