Valerie Kay, Psy.D.
Life Coach

After a career in business and raising my children, I returned to school to study human development and received my doctorate from the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco. I am not a psychologist and I do not provide psychotherapy services. Instead, I provide life-coaching services to assist my clients maximize their potential and move through difficult life transitions.

I accomplish this by helping clients throughout all stages of life, including those times when they feel "stuck", such as during periods of grief, loss and illness. Improving communication and relationships, especially with family members, is another area in which I help clients.

Though I do not currently provide these services, in the past I have worked at the Crisis Intervention Grief Project with individuals experiencing protracted grief. For several years, I worked with at-risk infants and parents in the Infant-Parent Program at San Francisco General Hospital and the University of California. This broadened my insight into parent-child dynamics. I also worked with oncologists, providing education and coaching for women with breast cancer, and facilitated an expressive arts group for women with cancer at California Pacific Medical Center.

My current coaching practice does not address complicated grief or psychopathology, as this is best addressed via health-care services. Instead, I focus on assisting clients without emotional or mental disorders who can benefit from my focused guidance to help them move through normal life challenges.

Now I am happily in private practice as a life coach with the following areas of specialization:

Life Stages and transitions.

Parent and adult child relationships. A special example is the relationship between a mother and daughter at the time of the daughter's wedding. Another is the the important but difficult conversation between an aging or dying parent and children.

Women in the middle. Many women have responsibilities both to their children and their aging parents. Coaching helps women find ways to balance their own needs with attending to the needs of others.

My aim as a life coach is to help you achieve your goals in life, and overcome the barriers in doing this. If you think that I may be of help to you, please contact me. I am available for phone coaching if you are outside of the Bay Area and cannot come in for sessions.

(I am not a licensed psychologist and am not a psychotherapist. If you need the services of a therapist, please see the pages on this website of our IPA Associates who are licensed therapists.)

Please see my Client Consent Form, following, for more information about Coaching and my office policies. This is the Agreement given to all my clients before we begin working together:

Client Consent Form:
Information and Agreement
for Coaching Services

I am pleased you have selected me as your Personal Life Coach.  This document is designed to inform you about my services and to ensure that you understand our professional relationship (the “Agreement”).

DESCRIPTION: Clients with whom I work are psychologically and emotionally “healthy” and seek Coaching for challenges due to normal life events and also to maximize their potential and strategies for success. My objective is to work with clients whom I find, in my professional opinion, I can help using the techniques I have available. I will enter our relationship with optimism and an eagerness to work with you. My interest lies in inspiring individuals through transformative periods whether they involve personal growth, relationships, and/or employment. Together we will explore the areas of growth on which you wish to focus. Utilizing collaborative techniques we will find creative solutions to your challenges.

Our intention is to develop your:

-- positive sense of self
-- extensive interpersonal communication skills
-- healthy and constructive relationships
-- balanced decision making

It is essential for the client to acknowledge that I provide Personal Life Coaching, distinguishing my service from psychotherapy, counseling, psychoanalysis, and psychology. Coaching entails its own unique paradigm that draws on strategies for success from many different practices. It is important for you to know and keep in mind that I am not a licensed psychologist or therapist and therefore will not be providing any psychological or therapy services, including (but not limited to) diagnosis or treatment for psychological conditions or crisis intervention.  If you or I believe at any point that such services are necessary, we can discuss options for a referral to support my coaching services.   

COMMITMENT: You are hiring me because you want to make significant changes in your life. The services to be provided by me as your Coach are designed jointly with you as the Client. Coaching is a powerful alliance designed to forward and enhance the lifelong process of human learning, effectiveness, and fulfillment. Coaching, which is not therapy or counseling, may address specific personal projects, life transitions, professional success or general conditions in a Client’s life.

Throughout our working relationship the conversation will be personal. I will be honest and straightforward, asking clarifying questions and making empowering suggestions. The purpose of our interaction is to maintain focus on YOUR desired objectives. As the Client, if you find that the coaching is not working as desired, you agree to communicate any disappointments or disagreements to me in order to explore them together and reach a mutual understanding. As the Client, you agree to regard our appointment times with respect and to keep me informed of what is needed to achieve a successful experience for you.

LENGTH OF APPOINTMENTS and CANCELLATION POLICY: Sessions are typically 50 minutes in duration and will be scheduled per our mutual agreement. If you are unable to keep an appointment please call to cancel or reschedule at least 48 hours in advance. If this advance notice is not received, you will be responsible for payment. For appointments not canceled at least 48 hours in advance, one-half of a regular appointment fee will be due. For missed and uncanceled appointments a full appointment fee will be due. Exceptions to the above are sudden onset of illness and real emergencies. If I must cancel in less than 48 hours, or miss an appointment without cancellation, you will not be charged for the next appointment. Appointment fees are due and payable at each session, unless otherwise agreed upon together.  

LIMITS OF CONFIDENTIALITY: I am committed to maintaining your privacy and will do all I can to preserve it. However, you should know that California law sometimes requires me to release certain information. For example, if you are involved in legal actions and I receive a subpoena, I may be forced to disclose information about you. If you are expecting such an occurrence please discuss this with me. Because of my position as Coach, and not a therapist, our communications may not be legally privileged. I will do everything possible to maintain your confidentiality, but I do so within the confines of existing California law, which does not recognize a privilege for Coaches and their Clients.

 

This Agreement shall be interpreted under the laws of the State of California.

If you have any questions about this Agreement, please ask. Signing and dating both copies of this form acknowledges your understanding and acceptance of the terms, conditions, and methodologies listed above. A copy will be returned to you for your records and I will retain a copy in my confidential records.

 
I understand and accept the entire contents of this agreement. I have had a chance to discuss this
form with Valerie Kay. I will be given a copy of this form.

Signature____________________________

Date_________

Printed Name _________________________

Valerie Kay, Psy.D.
Life Coach

 

My Offices:

2859 Sacramento Street

San Francisco, CA 94115

East Bay Offices in:
Walnut Creek and Oakland

Telephone: (415) 789-8244

email Dr. Kay

Read Dr. Kay's articles:

When Grief Overwhelms:
Do You Feel Understood?

Communication between Aging Parents and Adult Children: How A Life Coach Can Help

The Mother's Dilemma: Mothers, Weddings and Emotions

Grandmother's Role and Emotions When a Grandchild is Ill

 

Integrated Psychology Associates (I.P.A.) Offices

Main Office: 2859 Sacramento Street, San Francisco, CA 94115
(Please use this address for general correspondence.)
Main Telephone and Facsimile: (415) 331-5433
(See phone numbers for individual Associates on their pages. Use number above for general questions and for faxes.)
Other Offices:
405 Clement St., Suite 2, San Francisco, CA 94118

45 Camino Alto, Suite 203, Mill Valley, CA 94941

2424 Dwight Way, Suite 7, Berkeley, CA 94704

(Additional East Bay offices in Walnut Creek and Oakland, CA)