Ending the marriage did not end the strain.

Divorce is hard under the best circumstances. When your former spouse twists conversations, rewrites history, or turns every logistics question into a fight, it can feel like the marriage simply moved into your inbox. You may brace each time a message arrives, lose an evening to crafting a two-line reply, or worry about how your words will be framed later.

Many people in this situation look composed from the outside. They are still showing up at work, driving kids to practice, and handling the paperwork. Inside, they are running on adrenaline, second-guessing every decision, and wondering when they will feel like themselves again.

Jami Saperstein, LPC (Virginia #0701014656), LMHC (Florida #MH19185), works online with adults in Northern Virginia who are separating from, divorcing, or co-parenting with a narcissistic or emotionally abusive partner. You do not need to prove your former spouse is a narcissist to get support.

What this season can feel like.

You may be dealing with some of the following:

  • Constant alertness. Your body stays ready for the next accusation, last-minute change, or demand.
  • Self-doubt. After years of being told you remember things wrong, it can be hard to trust your own account.
  • Guilt about the children. You may worry about how the divorce affects them and feel pressure to hold everything together.
  • Isolation. Mutual friends, in-laws, or neighbors may have heard a very different version of events.
  • Grief that surprises you. Relief and sadness can arrive together, sometimes in the same hour.
  • Exhaustion from decisions. Housing, schedules, school, and money questions pile up while you are already depleted.

Co-parenting when communication stays difficult.

If you share children, contact may continue for years. Therapy can help you recognize the moments that pull you into old patterns, prepare for handoffs and school events, and keep messages short and focused on the children. You can practice responses ahead of time, plan how to recover after a hard exchange, and protect your time with your kids from the conflict that surrounds them.

Jami works with your emotional experience of co-parenting, not with your former partner. The aim is for you to feel steadier, clearer, and less consumed by each interaction. For more background, see co-parenting with a narcissist and healing after divorce from a narcissist.

What therapy is, and what it is not.

Therapy with Jami is emotional support and clinical care for you. It is not legal advice, and it does not replace your family law attorney. Jami is not a custody evaluator, does not conduct custody evaluations, and does not make recommendations about custody, visitation, or parenting agreements. Questions about your case, filings, or your rights belong with a qualified legal professional.

What therapy can offer is a confidential place to process what is happening, lower the emotional temperature before meetings or court dates, and make decisions from a calmer state. Many people find that when they feel more settled, they communicate more clearly with their attorney and their children too.

How Jami approaches this work.

Narcissistic and emotional abuse recovery is Jami's specialty, and she is a Certified Narcissistic Abuse Treatment Clinician. Her style is warm, direct, and collaborative. Depending on what fits you, sessions may draw on:

  • Trauma-informed therapy that respects your pace and recognizes why your reactions make sense.
  • Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to catch the self-blame and worst-case thinking that a high-conflict divorce can feed.
  • Somatic approaches and grounding skills to help your body settle before and after stressful contact.

You decide what to focus on each week, whether that is an upcoming exchange, a painful memory, or rebuilding trust in your own judgment.

Online sessions that fit a Northern Virginia schedule.

Between the Beltway, I-66, the Dulles Toll Road, and Route 7, a weekly drive to an office can be one more thing a stressful week does not have room for. Sessions are held by video on Zoom, so you can meet from home or another private space without the commute.

Bring a steady internet connection, a laptop, tablet, or phone with a working camera, and a spot where your children cannot listen in. Each session requires you to be physically in Virginia while you meet, so if your office is in DC or Maryland, log on from your Virginia home instead. Jami has no Virginia office, and all sessions are online.

Northern Virginia communities served.

Jami works with adults in McLean, Great Falls, Vienna and Oakton, Fairfax and Fairfax Station, Arlington and Falls Church, and Loudoun County, as well as Reston, Alexandria, and the rest of Virginia.

Related support in Virginia.

Fees, insurance, and cancellations.

  • Self-pay: $175 per session.
  • Insurance: Jami is in network with UnitedHealthcare, Cigna, and Aetna. Copays and coverage vary by plan, so check your behavioral health benefits with your insurer before your first session.
  • Out-of-network plans: a superbill is available so you can submit sessions to your insurer for possible reimbursement. What you get back depends on your plan.
  • Cancellations: please give at least 24 hours' notice to cancel or reschedule. Late cancellations and no-shows are charged the full session fee.