What medication management includes
- A full evaluation first. Medication decisions start with understanding you — your symptoms, history, health conditions, and everything you already take.
- A recommendation you understand. If medication fits, you'll hear what we suggest, why, what to expect, and what the alternatives are. Medication is never the only option on the table.
- Careful starts and adjustments. We watch for benefits and side effects, and adjust based on how you actually respond.
- Regular follow-up. Ongoing prescribing is tied to regular visits, because medication works best — and is safest — when someone is paying attention to how you're doing.
- Coordination. With your permission, we keep your primary care provider and other prescribers informed so nothing is working at cross-purposes.
- Safe stopping and tapering. Never stop a psychiatric medication abruptly. When it's time to reduce or stop, we plan it with you.
Why dual certification matters
Jacque is board-certified as both a psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP-BC) and a family nurse practitioner (FNP-BC). In practice, that means psychiatric medication decisions are made with your whole health in view: other conditions you manage, the medications you take for them, sleep, and hormonal factors that can affect mood and anxiety. It also means interactions and side effects get a medical lens, not just a psychiatric one.
What to expect over time
Your first visit is a 60-minute evaluation. Early follow-ups tend to be closer together while we find the right fit and make adjustments; as you stabilize, visits can be spaced further apart. The schedule is set by clinical need, not a calendar. Follow-up visits are 30 minutes and focus on what's improving, what isn't, and what to change.
Medication works alongside supportive psychotherapy skills — drawn from cognitive behavioral, motivational interviewing, and solution-focused and mindfulness-based approaches — that are woven into your visits. VeraMind does not offer standalone therapy; if you want ongoing weekly therapy, we'll coordinate with a therapist.
Already taking psychiatric medication?
You can bring your current prescriptions to your first visit. Please have a list of every medication, dose, and supplement, and the name of your pharmacy. We'll review everything, including what has and hasn't worked before.
Please know up front: not every medication can be started or continued through telehealth with a nurse practitioner — some carry additional federal and state requirements — and VeraMind is not a refill service. We evaluate every situation individually, and we'll tell you plainly what we can and can't do so you can plan accordingly.
Safety, side effects, and monitoring
All medications can have side effects, and many mild ones fade over time. We tell you what to watch for and when to call. Antidepressants carry an FDA recommendation for close monitoring, especially in teens and young adults early in treatment or after a dose change, and our follow-up schedule reflects that. When it helps, we coordinate lab work or medical follow-up with your primary care provider.
Conditions we most often treat
Anxiety, depression, and women's mental health (including PMDD and the postpartum period), plus sleep problems, panic, OCD, grief and loss, trauma, and stress.
Cost and insurance
The first visit is a 60-minute evaluation at a fixed self-pay rate of $259, and follow-up visits are 30 minutes at $129. Commercial insurance is accepted through Headway (Aetna, Cigna/Evernorth, Carelon Behavioral Health, Curative, and select Blue Cross plans), and Headway verifies your eligibility and estimated cost before your appointment. Superbills are available for out-of-network reimbursement. VeraMind is not enrolled with Medicare or Alabama Medicaid and is unable to accept patients covered by either, and we do not offer sliding-scale fee programs or financial hardship applications. See full pricing and insurance details →