My therapist was great. Unfortunately this company is a typical money grubbing company. I was sick. I cancelled my appointment, I did this the day before.But I did it 2 hours late the day before.They wanted 70 or 75 dollars. I called and left a message for the owner. He called back the next day. Refusing to take it off . I told him I was disabled. His reply could not be more insincere. I told him I would not be coming back. I called to cancel my remaining appointment. I told her to cancel and I would not be coming back. With out missing a beat she asked if I would like to take care of the balance. Absolutely money grubbing. I filed a complaint with Molina. Even the representative I spoke to said their cancellation fee was excessive. This office is purely money grubbing. I suggest you go to an office that really cares. Avoid this place!! read more

I do not recommend this business. Read all reviews horrible reviews. This people think they have control over your life definitely very prejudice and white snooty. Very incompetent and unprofessional they ask irrelevant questions you can definitely outsmart them yourself. They think they're the only ones with psychology knowledge ha ha ha test them for yourself. Get a real professional compassionate caring someone the listens and is also sensitive to your feelings I can't stress the experience I've had at that place it's disgusting. None of the staff has authority to give to tell you what to do or give you orders. read more

This place is a very comfortable safe feeling spot. If you are looking for help with anxiety, anger issues, stress, etc. then this is the right spot. I would recommend that you try Michael he is very nice and helpful. Do be warned though the waiting room is pretty cold but that's not a big issue. read more

If you really need help getting your mental health on track then this is not the place to go. If you want a high priced "observer" who will not answer your emails and who will belittle you at every turn then sign yourself up. This place is a huge joke. Ben Novell knows when someone is in a tight spot and preys on that. If you don't comply with him you have no chance. I'm not going to review the rest of his staff because they seemed nice enough but Ben Novell will take your money, short you the time you paid for and disrespect you every step of the way. Read the reviews, all these people can't be wrong. read more

Billing, they can't figure out what your copay is and they argue with you to get full payment and then you have to call them to get a refund! The counselor cut me off each visit before my paid time was up! My councelor also made a comment about think about what I have to deal with everyday with these clients! Not helpful at all would not recommend. I wish I had read the comments prior to going here! Jason and Ben were extremely unprofessional and not helpful in my opinion. read more

I'm an Air Force Veteran getting seen by Carl for therapy and so far I have had an amazing experience. The staff seems nice. Scheduling is very accommodating. The care I get for my ailments is very professional. I've been seen in the past by some pretty terrible therapists before in the Temecula valley area and this by far has been the best experience. Carl does an incredible job at listening and asking thought provoking questions. He seems to genuinely care about his patients and that's something I haven't felt before in my experience. Would recommend to any veterans seeking community care through the VA. read more

I had a referral to come here to complete a dv course for 52 weeks. I had to pay $50 so Robert can go over my income and bills in his office,my first meeting with Robert he kept shaking I thought he must have like a medical issue or something so that was a little odd, we went over my income and bills so Robert can determine how much are my weekly fees going to be because I was told by the program that gave me the referral they were going to charge me weekly fees based on my income, Robert made a mistake when he was adding up my bills and my income, he wanted me to pay more than what I could afford, so I went home and I recounted everything I emailed him mentioning that he did a mistake because the numbers don't add up. He not reach back to me until a couple days with the excuse that he had family emergency. He made me redo everything myself but he requested me to provide proof of everything I have to pay which I did and once I emailed him everything again he did not reply. So I had to call his friend office leave him a voicemail to please go over the papers I sent. His response after that was ( amount remains the same) so I said how is that possible if it's in paper that I can't afford what you're charging me? And when I received a notification from the bank they were trying to take out money I told his secretary I will pay it for this week but for next week hopefully Robert reviews the papers I sent and reduces the price and a couple minutes later Robert sent me an email saying to look for another counseling because he will not help! Front office gave me a number to call the (OWNER ) AND WHEN I CALLED THAT MAN WAS AS WORSE AS ROBERT IS IT'S LIKE HE WAS ALREADY EXPECTING MY CALL AND WITH CARELESS AND RUDE AND ALL HE SAID IS I CAN'T HELP YOU BYE. CLEARLY THOSE TWO MEN ARE RELATED I'M GUESSING IT'S A DADDY'S SON BUSINESS. NOW THEY'RE KEEPING MY $50 KNOWING THEY MESSED UP, MADE ME WASTE GAS GOING BACK AND FORTH FOR NOTHING, MAKING ME PAY A $50 ENROLLMENT FEE ALL FOR NOTHING. BECAUSE THEY CAN'T HANDLE GETTING CORRECTED BY A WOMAN. BUT IT'S FINE BOTH OF YOU CREATURES ARE NOT WORTH ME GOING TO JAIL AGAIN. KEEP MY $50 IF IT MAKES YOU FEEL BETTER. SERIOUSLY BOTH ROBERT AND BEN NOVEL SERIOUSLY NEED HELP OR THEY NEED TO CLOSE THAT PLACE ASAP BECAUSE ALL THEY'RE DOING IS TAKING PEOPLE'S MONEY. read more

the history of this center, specifically ben novell speak for themselves. DO NOT seek this office! the most unprofessional "therapist" I have ever met. He believes he can force you to purchase books, he can demand you do something you explicitly tell him you're uncomfortable doing. He will not accept responsibility in any action and will only attempt to bully you into complying. 5min into the second session he thought he could force me to do something I did not want to do. when he didn't get his way, he gave up and cancelled all sessions. Is force and threats how therapists get job security now? my past therapists whom I am still in communication with, agree that the licensing board should know about his unprofessionalism and scare tactics. read more

I never have any issues with scheduling or communication from this office. Brittney Lynn is amazing with younger kids. Highly recommend her.

My family member was referred there by and had a terrible experience with Ben that just aggravated their situation. When the family member told her social worker where she was going for counseling the social worker replied, "Watch your back with that guy. " WOW. read more

Ben seems like a real slime ball... I had emailed them trying to get information on one of their counseling groups and he told me that I need to show up at the office with $50 cash before I could be part of the group... I think he confused me with a court ordered case when I was just looking for my own self-improvement. I could tell the tone of his email was greedy and disrespectful. read more

The reviews that talk about how awful this office is, are correct. I had a new therapy appointment for EMDR. It's an eye movement therapy, supposed to be really effective. It's a therapy you have to do in person though. So I show up and the staff doesn't have masks on, they scramble to put them on when I walk in. So I told the girl that I was checking and verified that the therapist, Jason Agnetti, would be wearing a mask. She's said yeah and she'll let him know I'm here. 15 minutes after my appointment time, the girl comes out and tells me that the therapist will not wear a mask and will go ahead and cancel my appointment. The office literally has signs posted stating that according to the state of California, you have to wear a mask. read more

So, I decided to try Novell & Novell for counseling for myself. (38 year old mother of 3). I was given Ben Novell. After 45 minutes of meeting me, I suggested anti-depressants. AFTER 45 MINUTES. And I do not consider myself a down/depressed person. He didn't ask me anything about myself or my childhood. He just said "what's going on." Fine. I let some stuff out and he listened. Next session (which I almost cancelled) same thing. I mentioned that I didn't like how quickly he suggested medication and his response was "so you're mad at me?" I said, "no, that's not the right word." And he fired back with "so you're frustrated with me?" And I said, "yea, I think it was a bit fast." We then got into conversation and I mentioned some of my difficulties and his quick response was, "you still don't think you need medication?" At one point he even called me a "bad patient" because I make excuses for some of my behavior or I'm "in denial." Like yea - that's why I'm seeking therapy. As if that experience wasn't bad enough, I called to cancel all future appointments. I left a message and they called me back. I asked if there was anyone else I could try and they said, no. They assured me all appointments were cancelled. I then got a confirmation email for an upcoming appointment. When I called, they said there weren't any notes in the system. I have a voicemail stating they received my request. I stayed that they are to not bill my insurance and she proceeded to say, unfortunately, you'd have to take that issue up with Ben! Oh yea, you want me to call the therapist that I fired and ask him why I am still being billed for services that I cancelled. She then said, "sorry, I can't help you." Terrible Company. AND this is one of the owners. Very disappointing. If I could give zero stars, I would. read more

My two teens started therapy here about 6 months ago. Each with a different therapist. Both have made great progress while under the guidance of their therapist. One of my kids is nearly complete with their therapy and according to the therapist, can throttle back to an as-needed schedule. Quick results that I am seeing! The negative reviews generally make me confused as our experience has been positive at Novell & Novell. I think people need to be mentally ready to undergo therapy - especially parents. Which I suspect, may be influencing some of these negative reviews. It can be a vulnerable and intimidating process but ultimately you are here because you want to be better, or you want your kids to be better. That means getting uncomfortable. Progress doesn't come easy. Certainly not by staying in your comfort zone. If that was the case, there simply would not be a need for therapists. read more

Really enjoy coming here. My therapist Kathy is awesome! I have been to a few over the years and I must say she has to be my favorite. read more

Well, I can't review their services because I can't get a call back to schedule a first time appointment. I've left several voicemails this week and explained in each one that this was an urgent matter and I needed to be seen as soon as possible. I expect businesses to return calls within 24 hours. Well, it's been 3 days now..... I'll be looking for someone else. read more

I was referred to Novell by another therapist. I expressed my concerns of the negative reviews of this place to which that therapist reassured me that many of the negative reviews are from the parent that "didn't get their way in a court case" etc. I am not that parent; I am the full custodial parent whose child was the victim of abuse from the other parent. After waiting weeks for a return call, I spoke to Ben Novell. Granted I was in the middle of home school zoom classes for each of my children so my explanation/run down of our situation may have been scattered... (to which Ben could have asked for more clarification instead of concluding after a 2 minute conversation). I explained that I put them in play therapy immediately following the abuse but ended our therapy after 4 months due to: 1. she was not court compliant and we were suddenly in the middle of a court case. 2. She had very strict privacy policy and did not practice open communication with parents, which I understand in some cases is necessary, but for our situation didn't work well with us. At the end of opening up and sharing our recent life story (the play therapist was a small part of our story) the first thing Ben says to me- the play therapist was in the right and my children have the right to privacy. (Yes of course, to an extent, but my child was 5 ?) Moving on, I explained that I was hoping to find a more relationship-building therapist that will keep me in the loop with my kids well-being and help be on the lookout for signs of emotional abuse or inappropriateness (as there has been history) as we eventually move to unsupervised visitation. Ben then tells me, rudely, that "it sounds like you just want a therapist you can dictate to what to do" and that he was not the right fit....... I was dumbfounded. I have never experienced such harshness and lack of emotional empathy in such a short conversation, and with someone who's in the field of understanding and helping people. Perhaps he thought that the court was lifting the supervised visitation and assumed I felt out of control and wanted to control their visitation by being in the loop?? I honestly have no idea. I am the one agreeing to their dad's request to lift supervision because he can't afford it anymore, not the court.. He could've just asked me a few questions (he asked me none) to better understand my situation. I am nervous in making this decision and was hoping to find someone who could help my kids process the coming changes, and be another eye in ensuring my kid's emotional well-being, and instead of receiving any understanding or assistance, I was insulted. As a mom of a child who's been through abuse, the last thing we need is statements that induce more guilt. A little respect and maybe 1-2 questions to better understand a potential client would have gone a long way. The way I was spoken to had me in tears at the end of the conversation. I never take the time to write negative reviews. I am thankful he at least showed his character before opening up our lives to him. Be wary of Ben Novell and his practice. read more

No one answers the phone or bothers to calm you back. This is facility that is suppose to provide services for mental health. Really terrible read more

Unfortunately I see why Ben gets called out so much for bad reviews. One of the therapists at his facility was highly recommended by a friend of mine. I inquired about their services and processes and was told my family wouldn't be a good fit because, per Ben, he didn't want to get caught up in "those" type of situations (family law cases). Best of luck to you Ben. read more

Don't think anyone works here. I have left two messages over the last couple weeks and have tried several times and varying times of day to reach the office and nobody ever answers. Guess you guys must be doing very well if you don't need new business! read more

The customer service is not great, not horrible but not great. Phone calls are rarely answered. I have to call multiple times to even talk to someone, which is annoying and the receptionists aren't very friendly. Thankfully the therapist I was seeing is very kind, she has helped a lot and if it weren't for her help, I wouldn't go here. In regards to the receptionist, I understand people can be difficult but most of the people who receive therapy, it's because they are having a difficult time. So the least they could do is be greet everyone and deal with them in a nice and friendly manner. read more

Well...Chalk up another bad review for Ben Novell. My wife has been bringing my stepdaughter here for some counseling, While I have met Mr. Novell in a "family session" early in my daughters therapy, I called to schedule an additional meeting with him as parents to discuss or get some guidance with our daughter......I called, left a message and he returned the call to my wife a few hours later. My wife explained to him that I wanted to make an appointment with him so she handed me the phone......"Hi Ben, how are you?" He replied "m good, but i dont know why Im talking to you. I was speaking to your wife, can you please put her back on the phone?" I gave my wife back the phone and he precedes to tell her he only wanted to speak to her and would not either speak to me or make an appointment for just my wife and I. While there might be some clinical reason why (im not sure what that would be), Mr Novel was rude, unprofessional and just a downright ass! My daughter is in therapy, the family has been in his office for a session and you alienate a parent by discouraging some assistance from you? Read the other reviews here....BEWARE! ****UPDATE**** Mr. Novell strikes again. As a pending appointment for my daughter on the same day as the call described above. Mr. Novell has re-contacted my wife (just hours before my daughters appointment) and demands that I remove this and above review or he can no longer see my daughter (who of course has nothing to do with MY opinion) This is an OUTRAGE! Well.....I got news for you Mr Novell, not only am I reporting you to the California Board of Psychology BUT.......Either keep your appointment with my daughter or my review will go viral! "Ain't no fun when the Rabbit has the gun" How dare you refuse counseling because you dont like an opinion! Shame on you! ****UPDATE #2**** Today I received a communication by mail from an attorney representing Ben Novell. Yes...you read right......Mr. Novell has retained an attorney in the hopes i will cower and remove the above posts/reviews. The "Attorney" attempts to defend his clients position by explaining how Mr Novell did no wrong. In addition, the attorney even attempts to cite California Civil Code for Libel (which of course has no validity in this matter). I clearly stated DOCUMENTED FACTS WITH WITNESSES! This communication even reaches as far as to insinuate that the climate of my posting was "step over the line" also, the use of verbiage such as "in the climate we are in today in the country, with widespread gun killings occurring regularly, any messages referencing gun use must be taken seriously." My post "Ain't no fun when the rabbit has the gun" is a movie excerpt and was meant to counter Mr. Novell's threat of not treating my daughter anymore if i did not remove the post/review. Mr. Novell attempted to "bully' me in removing a truthful post/review...All I did was "give him a taste of his own medicine". In closing, the "Attorney" again attempts to have me remove these posts/reviews prior to some sort of "mediation" NO WAY! my posts are my opinion of how me and my family were treated, all based on documented facts with witnesses. Read ALL of the reviews pertaining to Mr Novell, My experience is much like others posting their opinion. You want a removal? Have Mr. Novell post a PUBLIC apology on Yelp and then we can discuss terms and conditions of a retraction. This is absurd. read more

I have been seeking counseling for awhile here, and in the short time I've been here, I've been switched therapists TWICE. How do these people expect to be helpful when they do this? I was getting very far in my sessions and they expect me to just start over with someone else. No way, my business is going elsewhere. You guys have really let me down. If anyone is seeking counseling, go elsewhere. read more

Not what I expected. I have walked away from this office due to lateness. Theirs. Not mine. My time is valuable too. They have a policy that if I'm late by 15 minutes, they will reschedule me. That if I don't show up for any reason they will charge me anyway. I'm good with that but I expect the same respect. After the second time being 15 minutes late starting my appointment, I am done. Not late once then several appointments later being late again. Two in a row! This knowing I had rescheduled because he was late. I deserve better. read more

This place could get a 0 very its very unprofessional never going to this place again they only care about money and nothing else if you miss your apt because of a emergency and call and cancel they don't care they will charge you and probably never see you again till you pay them they cancel my other son apt because my other child had a n/s fee and they didn't even call to notify me they said sorry we can't because your other son has a fee I never had this issue with any doctor because there all professional this place is a serious joke good luck with this place and the person who runs it very unprofessional to do that to patients with medical needs! read more

Donna Lindley has been a God send. There are many counselors here to choose from. I chose who I wanted my child to see from a friend's recommendation and have never been told I need to switch. I'm welcomed in the room with them and my child looks forward to each session. read more

This whole organization is a sham. Do not waste your time on this joke of a place. Two minutes after I sat down with Mr. Novell, he said that he wouldn't help me. I was there for all of five minutes and he took my money and would not refund it and billed my insurance. I will be reporting this fraud to my insurance company for sure. I should have come here to read the review first. Mr. Novell is slimy. His dead-fish handshake and creepy eyes told me everything I needed to know. I should have listened to my gut and walked out. His personal office is a nasty, disorganized mess with dishes and crap everywhere, and I didn't safe being alone in a room with this guy. These people should not be in business. read more

I don't recommend this place. I agree with other reviewers that their phones and appointment methods are.....well.....not good. They do make you leave a message which is very inconvenient. The therapist I saw was not very good. I feel like I wasted my money and time. She would come out a couple min late and then end our appointment 10 min early. I did miss an appointment and they charged me 50 bucks, but I never received the confirmation text I signed up for so I assumed it hadn't been booked. Previously they mixed me up with another patient and gave me the wrong time. It's tough to find a good therapist taking new patients so I settled for this place. Won't settle again. Not even sure why I'm giving 3 stars. read more

Really quite dissatisfied with the unprofessional nature of this organization. And with the poor reviews from others it is clearly a place to avoid. As one of the only outfits in town, I am willing to drive to another county for better services. I had used their counseling services which became more of an introspective journey into what I already know about myself. When i asked for tools or methods for dealing with life problems, I was told that they do not do that there. I stopped attending for a short while and my daughter wanted to speak to someone. Hopefully she would get some one other than mr. Novell this time. I tried to book an appointment for counseling for my daughter. Four phone calls with four voice mails, not one return call. read more

I live out of state and my ex-wife had Jason Agnetti provide counseling services for my daughter. After 6 sessions he never contacted me once on his own to include me in the process on how she was progressing and to seek input from me. read more

Not bad service. Not great service. Neither here nor there... They are good enough that I have come back and referred my family members. I had a billing error in the past and they quickly fixed it, no problem. I would refer anyone and let them decide if its a good fit because they really try to be professional here. read more

Update this review it about BEN NOVELL----------ANYONE WANTING A IN DETAIL HELPFUL REVIEW READ THIS (ABOUT MAIN NOVELL COUNSELOR complete psycho): If I could put zero reviews I would. And honestly I thought about suing the main counselor! Me and my family went there for family counseling. When it came down to it my dad was emotionally and mentally abusive along with physically. The counselor swore it was all a lie and I had made it up even after listening to my mom and my 3 siblings. He kept saying to me about how I am wrong about my dad and that I'm weird I hold back stuff I make up stuff and that I'm not a normal person. Which if you meet me you would certainly disagree I have never had anyone comment anything alike that especially since in every room I'm the life of the party. It came down to him scheduling a appointment with me and my father. I ended up saying during the session about how my father abused me how it felt and how he abused my mom. The main MALE counselor kept preclaiming that my father had said none of that happened how I and my siblings along with mom had been lying and basically claiming defamation of character over my words and my families. The counselor never EVER listened to what I had to say he always came back with a smart ass remark. And on this particular day. I had enough. My father starts screaming so I say "shut up" keep in mind I was a teen normally now 2 years older I would never say this. But the counselor (main male I think his last name is Novell or something) started cussing and yelling at me. I then said "f you, you never listen you take my fathers side then call me a liar you can F off" the counselor then starts protecting my father I walk out the hall way Mr. Main Counselor then starts yelling still in the chair for me to come back. Like who yells at a customer?? Weirdo!! I come back and the main male counselor for family divorce tells me "YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED ON THE PREMISES YOU ARE BANNED AND NOT ALLOWED TO GET ANY SERVICES OR REPAYMENT" I tell him "f off you don't even do your job and f you as well." Come to think of it he still yelled at me and actually ran out of the office to harass and follow me out the door. He told the front clerk and screamed in the patient waiting area. Followed and watched me drive off. To this day I'm still thinking about doing something about it. I don't have the time though. Definitely a psycho counselor. Definitely have told many people to steer away from the offices no matter what counselor you see at this place. He doesn't know how to do his job, takes sides in every family's matters, yells at his clients, chases them out, harasses them, along with doesn't let the family actually talk out the problem. The entire time he took the dads "side" which who chooses sides?? Are we in elementary school?? There's no sides when it comes to being a counselor! Anyways later after this appointment the counselor wasn't done HE LEGIT MAILED A LONG LETTER TO MY FAMILY RESIDENCE THEN THE COURTS ALONG WITH EMAILED AND HARASSED THE REST OF MY FAMILY. Total creep. At this point that's complete harassment and the entire letter was about me as well. Definitely do NOT COME HERE. read more

Several members of our family have been to various therapists associated with Novell and Novell Counseling Services over the many years they have been in business. All our contacts with them, including their office staff, have been professional and they have treated me and/or our children with care, empathy and the upmost concern. I've recommended them many times to my friends in times of crisis or for just "regular every day life stresses". read more

If I could give this place 0 stars, I would. My husband and I sought marriage counseling and saw Andrea Mclellan. The first visit was ok, but next time she wanted to see us individually before we sat down for another couples session. We had our individual sessions back to back, and it was a complete nightmare. Her advice to my husband was to "fake it til he makes it" and that divorce was going to cost him a lot of money. She offered no tools of help for me and kept trying to convince me that there was someone else and rolled her eyes when I defended him about things that weren't true. She called me back in to tell me that my husband has something painful to tell me (he had already told her he wasn't ready for a divorce), told us she saw no reason to continue with couples counseling and told us to talk somewhere else because she had another patient. I was shocked. We were teetering on the ledge and she darn near pushed us over. She has no business counseling anyone needing help and it was a devastating experience. I called the office the next day to talk to someone about our experience, and got Mr. Novell's voicemail. I never did get a return call. Fortunately, we found the help we needed elsewhere. read more

Unprofessional. Scheduling an appointment is like a game of phone tag. No one ever answers when you call; you must leave a message and then hope that you are available to answer their return call. Also, they had cancelled two of my first appointments. Impossible to get in and begin a consistent routine of counseling. read more

Scheduled first appointment a few weeks out. I was accepted by Ben. The weekend prior to the Monday appointment, my daughter had a medical issue and I had to cancel appointment to take her to the doctor. I called Monday at 6:00 am to reschedule. Later that morning, I was told that there were two cancellations that would have worked. After requesting one of the cancelled appointments, I received a message saying that Ben needed to approve my reason for the initial cancellation and that he might, if he were so inclined, grant me a reprieve and agree to see me on one of the dates left open because of other cancellations. I get that a last minute cancellation means down time for the therapist, but seeking his approval so he "might" reschedule is a bit heavy-handed. It is unfortunate that the bottom line ($) is more important than helping clients. read more

My son attends therapy with Mrs. Novell....and she has helped him tremendously. She is kind, takes the time to chat with patient AND parent, and generally seems empathic and caring. For those who are belly-aching, therapy takes TIME, PATIENCE, and HARD WORK. It is not a quick fix, or for the faint of heart...it can be uncomfortable and frustrating. That being said, I believe Mrs. Novell truly enjoys working with her patients and takes an active interest in her craft. Thanks to you my son is doing much better!!! read more

please do not take your kids here. i took my 2 daughters here for 2 seperate reasons so they had seperate therapist. the therapist my 9 year old was assigned to told her she was adopted. totally violating my rights not only as a parent but a real human being. that was unprofessional, bad business conduct, just down right evil!!!! novell and novell therapist included have opened up so many problems for me and my daughter who i was only trying to help with another issue it took only 2 visits for you to damage what i had established over 5 years. when i called to cancel all other appointments my other daughters therapist contacted me to see why i had cancelled and when i was telling her my emotional side got the best of me and she told me she could get me some help. what!!!! your co-workers fellow therapist need help not me i'm hurting. when i called to talk to the owner it was always an excuse and i shouldn't have to hunt anyone down. nvell and novell stabbed me in my heart no real words can express my pain. read more