Frequently Asked Questions

It is natural to have questions about therapy as you consider seeking support for yourself or a loved one. We have compiled answers to commonly asked questions about our services below. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have further questions.

General FAQs 

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Are Psychological Services Covered by OHIP?

No. Psychological services are NOT covered by OHIP. They are often covered (at least in part) by most extended health insurance plans. If you have insurance, We recommend you contact your insurance company to clarify the nature of your coverage.

Do you work with children or couples?
No, we do not currently offer couples therapy or therapy for anyone under the age of 18. At the time, we are able to work with adults between the ages of 18-65, providing one-on-one individual therapy sessions.
What are your fees?

Our fees vary based on the credentials, level of training, and expertise of each clinician. We offer free initial phone consultations and will discuss fees with you at that time. A fee will be agreed upon prior to beginning therapy.

How Long is Each Therapy Session?

The standard length for each session is 50 minutes.

How Many Sessions do I Need?
This varies depending on the individual. Length of treatment can vary from a single consultation to several years, depending on your goals. This is mutually determined and periodically reviewed as needed.
How Can I Book a Session?

If you feel ready to explore the possibility of therapy, you may call (289) 276-2852, leave a voicemail, or complete our contact form to set-up an initial free phone consultation.

Anxiety & Stress FAQs

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My anxiety isn’t that bad. How do I know if therapy is for me?
It is a common misconception that therapy is just for those in crisis. This is furthest from the truth. Symptoms can be experienced on a continuum from mild to severe. Regardless of the intensity, anxiety symptoms are your body’s way of communicating with you and asking for help. It is always a good idea to listen to these signs early on and address stuck points before they get worse.
Do I have to take anxiety medication? I prefer not to.
This is ultimately your choice. We are a team of mental health clinicians who provide assessment and psychotherapy services. We help you better understand your anxiety and learn techniques to manage anxiety in your day to day life. We do not prescribe medication. Should you require a medication consult, we will discuss it and you may be referred to a psychiatrist or physician for this purpose.
What are the benefits of therapy for anxiety? Is therapy for anxiety worth my time and energy?
How you choose to spend resources such as time and energy is closely linked to what you value. It is important to take time to think about what your priorities are, what resources are available, and how you would like to use your resources. High anxiety and stress can negatively impact your health, your life satisfaction, your day-to-day productivity, your relationships, and the way you feel about yourself. It may be helpful to think about therapy for anxiety as an investment in YOU. A course of psychotherapy for anxiety with a qualified mental health professional can help you gain control of your symptoms and better manage stress – you will learn skills to cope better now and well into the future.
In my culture and religion, we are taught that prayer and spiritual practice will heal anxiety. I am praying and connecting spiritually, but I still have anxiety. What should I do?
Prayer and spiritual practices are essential healing tools if this is an important part of your belief system and who you are. We will support you in maintaining your connection to your spiritual, religious, and cultural practices. A culturally safe mental health professional will help you add healing tools to your toolbox that can be used in addition to what you already know.

Bicultural Stress FAQs

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I’m afraid of therapy. What if I feel worse when I face my problems and feelings?

The fear you’re experiencing is natural as you think about facing some painful and difficult emotions. Coming to therapy takes courage. Although you may temporarily feel worse as you connect with feelings and memories you have been avoiding, this will lead to new insights that will help you better understand your needs and the actions needed to move forward.

Know that therapy will progress at a pace that you feel comfortable with – you will never be forced to speak about anything you are not ready to discuss. Openly speaking about all that you have been hiding can be very healing and help you build skills to better address challenges now and in the future.

Is it possible that people might find out I see you?

We know that therapy is stigmatized and misunderstood in many cultures and communities. You may face judgement and criticism for not being strong enough to “just get over it.”

Firstly, know that this expectation is as unfair as expecting you to “just get over” a broken leg. Unfortunately, this type of thinking is all too common and grounded in misunderstandings of the mind-body connection.

Also, know that your presence in our offices and that our work together is held in strict confidence. Our clinicians are governed by strict privacy and confidentiality laws that protect your private personal health information. With few exceptions (e.g., safety concerns), the fact that you are a client and anything that you say to us cannot be repeated without your consent.

Full privacy and confidentiality guidelines will be discussed with you prior to beginning therapy.

What are the benefits of therapy for bicultural stress? Is it worth my time and energy?

It is important for you to spend time with yourself to identify your priorities, your resources (e.g., time, energy), and how you would best like to use your resources. Cultural conflict, lack of belonging, and identity confusion can cause problems with low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, relationship problems, and body image/eating problems.

It is often very difficult to make sense of the inner chaos on your own. It may be helpful to think about therapy as an investment in yourself, your relationships, and your future.

By investing in a course of therapy, you are proactively making a choice to feel better sooner and build the life you envision for yourself.

I have conflicting ideas about how I should heal. Prayer? Community engagement? Therapy?

It can feel like you are dishonoring parts of yourself if you to pursue therapy instead of engaging in cultural or religious healing practices. This is part of the experiences of fragmentation that can come with bicultural stress.

When working with bicultural stress difficulties, our goal is to help you connect to and honor all parts of you– including any cultural, spiritual, religious or community healing practices that feel important and meaningful to you.

Our work together will help you choose the combination of healing practices that feel good for all parts of you.

Depression FAQs

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I’m afraid of therapy and what I might discover in our sessions. What do I do?

Your depression symptoms are telling you that something is not quite balanced in your life. It is important for us to pay attention to our feelings and to their underlying messages.

When you better understand your symptoms, you will better understand yourself, improve your coping skills, and become better equipped to handle life’s difficult situations. Know that depression treatment will progress at a pace that feels comfortable for you and that you will never be forced to speak about something you don’t feel comfortable speaking about.

I am depressed, but I don’t want to go on medication. Do I have to?

Medication is often not needed for mild to moderate depression. In these cases, therapy combined with lifestyle changes can be very effective in alleviating symptoms. Ultimately it is your choice to pursue medication treatment. We are a team of mental health clinicians who provide assessment and psychotherapy services.

We help you better understand your depression and learn techniques to manage depressive symptoms in your day to day life. We do not prescribe medication. Should you require a medication consult, we will discuss it and you may be referred to a psychiatrist or physician for this purpose.

What are the benefits of therapy for Depression? Is it worth my time?
We all value things differently, so it is important that you take the time to connect to yourself and decide how you would best like to use resources such as time and energy. Depression can negatively impact your relationships, make it hard to be productive at work, and lead to feelings of low self-worth.
It may be helpful to view therapy for depression an investment in yourself now and for the future. A course of psychotherapy for depression with a licensed mental health professional can help you face the barriers to sustained happiness.
You will make room for healthier relationships, increase your productivity, and overall gain a more positive view of your life.
In my culture, we are taught to always be grateful and to count our blessings. I feel guilty about feeling unhappy and depressed. I know I have lots to be grateful for, but I still feel down.

There is no question about benefits of a gratitude practice. It is such a beautiful practice and important coping tool. Unfortunately, when taken to the point of invalidating very real and difficult emotions, it can become a problem.

We invite you to give yourself space and compassion to accept all parts of you – even the parts that feel unsatisfied or hurt. Those hurt parts are holding important information about your needs.

It’s amazing what can happen when we listen to parts of us that we’ve ignored for so long. Our therapists can help you connect to and honour all parts of you. This will ultimately improve your mood.

Trauma Therapy FAQs

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I’m afraid of talking about my trauma. How do I handle this?

We get this fear. And you won’t be expected to talk about it until you are ready. In the beginning of trauma treatment, we will address the immediate problems in your life that are causing you the most pain (e.g., difficulty regulating your feelings).

As you begin to feel more stable and feel ready to manage the memories and feelings related to the trauma, we will move towards trauma processing. Know that the pace of therapy is up to you – together, we will collaboratively decide on goals and the best course of treatment.

I am worried you are going to blame my parents, my culture, my community for my trauma. How is this going to work?

When the people in our lives are both the source of safety, love, care AND the source of significant hurt and trauma, we feel confused. On one hand, we want to protect them because we love them, but on the other hand, we want to heal. Our job as therapists is to help you understand the nature of your injuries.

Our therapists understand the complexity of intergenerational trauma and how it impacts the resourcing of our caregivers and community. We are not here to blame or judge. We are here to help you integrate all parts of your experience.

To help you make decisions about what/who to keep close and what/who you need to distance from. The work will happen at a pace that you feel comfortable with.

I’ve heard that trauma therapy is hard and takes time. Is it worth my energy and time?

Indeed, trauma treatment can take time and is emotionally challenging. You are invited to think about trauma therapy as an investment in yourself, your well-being, and your future.

Untreated trauma can have significant negative impact on your mood, anxiety, and daily functioning. With appropriate trauma therapy, over time, you will feel better as you gain control over your emotions and behaviours, and improve your day to day functioning.

In my culture, we are encouraged to speak to religious and community leaders when we need psychological help. It’s not working. Am I weak? What is going on here?

Religious and community leaders play a vital role in healing. We believe in integrating all your supports in all forms throughout your healing journey.

Sometimes, additional support is needed through the services of a qualified mental health professional. It doesn’t mean you’re weak or that you shouldn’t turn to your culture or community for support. It just means that we may need to add additional tools to your toolbox.

Our therapists will work with you to help provide you with the integrated support you need.

Relationships and Self-Esteem FAQs

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Relationships are so difficult for me. Can therapy really help me?
Repeated hurts and struggles in relationships can lead to loss of hope. With the help of a skilled and experienced mental health clinician, you will learn evidence-based strategies to shift your thinking, process painful feelings, and improve your self-esteem.

You will also learn to communicate better with others and set appropriate boundaries. Through this work, you will create new relational patterns and increase your capacity for fulfilling personal connections.

With new skills and increased self-awareness, you can move towards building the types of relationships you’ve always envisioned for yourself. There is hope, regardless of how long and how hard you have been struggling with your relationships.

What are the benefits of therapy for relationships and self-esteem? Is it worth my time and energy?

Feeling good about yourself and maintaining meaningful, strong, and healthy relationships with others is a central part of your well-being. The stress created by unfulfilling and failed relationships can take its toll on your self-confidence and lead to conflict and feelings of loneliness.

This can further interfere with your relationships and negatively impact other important areas of your life, such as your physical wellness. It may be helpful to consider therapy as an investment in YOU that can help you break this cycle by increasing self-awareness, building your self-esteem, and increasing readiness and capacity for fulling personal connections.

I feel anxious in my relationships. Does this mean I need therapy for anxiety?

Feeling unsafe in relationships is often related to your attachment history. Your therapist will spend time understanding your relationship history and ways in which you learned to be on guard or insecure.

Relationships difficulties are often associated with symptoms of anxiety. We are integrative in our approach to therapy and will be able to help you understand and address both sets of challenges.

In my religious/spiritual community, I’ve been taught to pray for healing. Does this work?

We honour, encourage and celebrate healing in all its forms. Religion and spirituality can be important sources of comfort, connection, and healing. Disconnection from healing practices from our specific religious, cultural or spiritual communities is harmful.

We encourage reconnection to those practices that predated psychology. We are integrative in our approach and will help you incorporate religious and spiritual healing practices into your work with us in a way that honours all parts of you.

Disordered Eating and Body Image FAQs

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I am concerned that people might find out I see you. Is this possible?

We understand that therapy is stigmatized in many cultures. We also understand that the secrecy and hiding often associating with eating and body image difficulties can make it difficult to seek help.

Through telling our stories in a safe and non-judgmental space, we overcome shame. Know that your presence in our offices and our work together is held in strict confidence. Our therapists are governed by strict privacy and confidentiality laws that protect your private personal health information.

With few exceptions (e.g., safety concerns), the fact that you’re a client and anything that you say to us cannot be repeated without your consent. Full privacy and confidentiality guidelines will be discussed with you before beginning therapy.

I’m afraid of therapy for disordered eating and body image. How can I handle this?

It takes courage to pursue therapy. Your difficulties with food and your body are signs that something is not quite balanced in your life. It is important for us to pay attention to these signs and to understand their underlying messages. When you better understand your symptoms, you will better understand yourself, improve your coping skills, and become better equipped to handle life’s difficult situations.

You will work towards a healthier relationship with food and your body and ultimately towards better holistic physical and mental well-being. Know that treatment for body image and eating difficulties will progress at a pace that feels comfortable for you and that you will never be forced to speak about something you don’t feel comfortable speaking about.

I am part of a culture/religion/community where fasting is part of our spiritual practice. Will therapy for eating disordered behaviour will interfere with my spiritual practice?

We are committed to helping you maintain connection to your religious, cultural and community ties and practices. Our work will be collaborative and may involve consultation with spiritual leaders to help ensure that your needs as a whole person – mind, body, spirit – are met.

What are the benefits of therapy for disordered eating and body image difficulties? I heard it takes time. Is it worth it?

Indeed, this type of treatment can take time. It may be helpful to think about therapy as an investment in yourself, your well-being, and your future.

Untreated difficulties with food and body image can have a significant negative impact on your mood, anxiety, relationships, ability to focus/concentrate, physical health, and daily functioning.

With appropriate therapy, over time, you will feel better as you gain control over your emotions and behaviours, improve your day-to-day functioning, and feel better in your own skin.