Counselling / Psychotherapy
Individual and couples counselling for people in Barrie/Simcoe County, or virtually via video conference across Ontario. Before booking your first counselling session, a 15-minute free consultation is often most helpful.
THE STARTING POINT
Reasons to seek counselling
- To be more successful in your relationship, job, or personal life
- For your well-being or for your family’s well-being
- To regain respect, love and stability
- To decrease conflict
- To like yourself a bit more than you do right now
Consider:
- It is never too late to seek help and support
- Counselling is an effective way to sort out issues and improve communication
- Having a neutral person work alongside can help you see things differently
My Services
Individual Counselling
Individual counselling means choice, not force, not advice. With counselling, it is the client who takes the decisions so that the solutions adopted are more likely to be appropriate. An appropriate solution will be one that the person can follow with successful results.
Couples Counselling
Once refreshing, full of life and fun, relationships can begin to feel like too much work. It’s normal for relationships to get stagnant, as life gets busy. Maybe it’s due to kids, jobs, or something completely unknown, counselling can help to identify the type of change needed to bring back the relationship you want.
Clinical Supervision
I offer a safe and empowering environment for clinical supervision, which allows for two-way learning to happen. I meet the standards outlined by CRPO for clinical supervision and can sign-off on supervision attestation forms.Â
My Approach
I am a Registered Social Worker (RSW) with more than 15 years of experience providing individual, couple and family counselling/psychotherapy. My experience includes working in community mental health agencies, primary care agencies and hospital settings,I practice from an eclectic approach and draw from several counselling modalities to support clients, including cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), narrative therapy, emotion-focused therapy (EFT), motivational therapy and solution-focused therapy. Personally, I enjoy sailing, travelling and spending time with my partner and my cat and dog. I currently volunteer as a board member for Redwood Park Communities in Barrie, as I strongly believe in the need for better housing supports, as everyone deserves safe, affordable and hopeful housing. I was previously a board member for the YMCA of Simcoe/Muskoka.
What can your takeaway be after counselling?
Counselling allows for self-discovery, better self-acceptance and the development of a sense of contentment, which fosters unprecedented growth from within. It will encourage hope, optimism and bolster self-confidence. Typically, counselling fosters new insight, which increases the ability to openly communicate with a newfound respect for others and openly work through issues with more motivation and ownership. Counselling can help you tap into a new you!
Learn ways to overcome challenges in the future
Set goals in a way they are achievable
Create habit-forming coping strategies to support you & help you achieve your goals
Create healthier relationships
Feel more confident
Getting Started
Contact me to schedule a free 15-minute telephone or online video consultation to see if counselling with me is a fit. During the call, we can discuss your challenges and whether I can help you! I’ll answer any questions you might have about myself and my approach, as well as counselling in general. If appropriate, I will also provide you with a few options and resources that might be useful whether or not we decide to work together.
FAQ
What is the difference between counselling and psychotherapy?
Counselling and psychotherapy usually mean the same thing, as they have a lot in common. Both terms are used to describe talk-based therapies to help someone address a problem they are dealing with. Problems could include mental illness, mental health problems, relationship issues or any stressor they are dealing with.
Are my counselling sessions private and confidential?
Everything you discuss in counselling is confidential, with a few exceptions. A record of each session is maintained and only you, as the client, has access to the file, without your written consent. There are a few exceptions to this rule, including:
- If there is reasonable grounds to believe that a child under the age of 16 may be in need of protection
- If there is reasonable grounds to believe that you or someone else is in imminent danger of harm
- If there is reasonable grounds to believe a vulnerable adult is in need of protection
- If there is reasonable grounds to believe a regulated professional you have received care from has caused harm
- If presented with a court order to release client files.
Are your counselling services covered through extended health benefits?
Social work services are covered under some benefit packages, so check your coverage to see if your benefits will cover counselling with me, as a Registered Social Worker (MSW. RSW). Social Work/counselling expenses are recognized by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) as a medical expense for income tax purposes.
What is your counselling session rate?
The fee for an individual counselling session is $125.00 and sessions typically run around 50 minutes in length. The fee for each couple session is $150.00.
Session fees are due the day the session takes place and payment can be made by cash, e-transfer or credit card. A receipt will be provided.
What if I can not attend a scheduled appointment (need to reschedule or cancel)?
In order to cancel or reschedule an appointment, please notify me 24 hours before the appointment in order to avoid paying a cancellation or ‘no-show’ session fee.