Frequently Asked Questions

There are many benefits to engaging in psychotherapy! Here are just a few highlights:

Your Own Safe Space: In therapy, you have a dedicated and confidential space to share your thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment. It's all about providing you the emotional support you need.

Uniquely Tailored to Your Individual Needs: Therapy is tailored to support your unique mental health journey and perspective. Whether you're dealing with depression, anxiety, or other challenges, it's about finding what works best for you to improve your overall well-being.

Your Self-Discovery: Together, we explore your thoughts, behaviors, emotions and relational patterns. It's a journey of self-discovery, helping you understand yourself better and promoting personal growth on your terms.

Developing a Coping Toolbox: We work on practical coping strategies that resonate with you and your lifestyle. It's not just about managing stress; it's about arming you with tools to navigate life's difficulties in a way that feels right for you.

Better Understanding and Improvement of Relationship Dynamics: If relationships are a challenge, therapy provides the guidance you need to create and maintain more fulfilling relationships. It's about improving your connections, whether in romance, family, or friendships, and fostering healthier relationships based on your needs.

Building Resilience: Together, we seek to build inner resilience. It's about equipping you to bounce back from setbacks and empowering you to handle life's challenges in a way that aligns with your strengths.

Support Around Goal Setting: We identify and pursue goals that matter to you. Therapy is goal-oriented, providing a sense of direction and purpose based on what you want to achieve.

Supporting and Celebrating Needed Behavioural Shifts: If there are behaviours you want to change, we can work on that together in a way that feels manageable and builds confidence. It's about understanding and altering old patterns that perhaps served a purpose and are no longer proving effective, in order to create positive, lasting change that aligns with your authentic self.

Validation: Feeling heard and understood is central to therapy. It's about validating your experiences and offering empathy to combat any feelings of isolation you may be experiencing.

Personal Empowerment: Therapy is a journey toward your most authentic self. It's about putting you in the driver's seat of your well-being, encouraging you to take an active role and make positive changes that align with your unique path.

While psychotherapy can be highly beneficial for many individuals, it's important to acknowledge that, like any form of treatment, it carries some potential risks. It's crucial to consider these risks in the context of your individual needs and circumstances. Some potential risks include:

Emotional Discomfort: Discussing and exploring challenging emotions and experiences during therapy can be uncomfortable and may temporarily increase emotional distress before improvements are seen.

Vulnerability: Opening up about personal experiences may make you feel very vulnerable. It's essential to have a trusting relationship with your therapist to manage this aspect effectively.

Let us know how we can support you in navigating these and remember that sometimes things do get worse before they get better. Therapy can be hard work and requires an active role for both client and therapist.

The frequency of therapy depends upon your own unique needs and goals. Together we will develop a plan that best fits for you. Frequency and duration of therapy is typically discussed in the first or second session, but don’t be afraid to ask your therapist or adjust the frequency at any point based on current life circumstances.

The length of treatment depends on your situation and goals. It usually takes 4 to 6 weeks to feel a sense of progress. Long-term change might take several months. In some cases, individuals stay in therapy to continue their self-growth.

Your counselling fees may be entirely or partially covered by your extended medical benefits, which recognize Registered Clinical Counsellors (RCC) or Canadian Certified Counsellors (CCC) or possibly deductible as a medical expense on income taxes. Please check your extended benefits plan for details of applicable coverage.

Your feelings of trust and comfort when working with a therapist should be your top priority. More than any specific therapy model or intervention, the largest predictor of therapeutic success is the relationship between the client and the therapist. Typically you will get a sense of whether your therapist is the right fit within the first or second session. Don’t be afraid to ask your therapist for a new referral if you don’t feel it is a good fit! We will do our best to accommodate you in order to get you on a path that feels right for you!

Fees are payable by credit card at the end of each session and a receipt is issued. A 48 hours’ notice must be given for the cancellation of appointments; otherwise, the full session fee will be charged.

As there is a high demand for services, your time is reserved exclusively for you and is not available to others. Please see our fees page for more information.

Information about counselling sessions will not be released to anyone without your informed, voluntary, and written consent.

Exceptions are:

If you may be a danger to yourself or others;

If there is suspicion or disclosure of abuse of vulnerable persons, such as a child, elderly or disabled person;

When records are subpoenaed by court order.

Every reasonable effort will be made to discuss these circumstances with you prior to the involvement of other professionals. An additional exception may be made if counselling has been paid for by a third party (such as an Employee Assistance Program). This will be discussed with you at the onset of counselling.

Research shows that online session are just as effective as in-person sessions. In-person sessions allow you to receive therapy in a neutral and private space, whereas online sessions will enable you to connect from the comfort of your own home. Which form of counselling you choose comes down to your personal preferences and specific circumstances for privacy. We are happy to support and accommodate your needs as much as possible.

We are here to support you in finding the right fit. Contact Us directly or book a free phone consultation for more information!