Mental health therapy in Edmonton
Break free from pain that keeps you stuck.
It can be hard to know what to do when we are struggling. And when we have come to the realization that we need help, it can be challenging to ask for help. Seeking therapy can feel scary for some, which is why we do our best to make you feel cared for. Our experienced team of registered psychologists is proud to offer a wide range of individual counselling services that will assist you in moving forward in your life.
What is individual therapy?
Individual therapy, which is also referred to as talk therapy or individual counseling, is where you and a therapist work collaboratively towards a healing goal you’ve identified on your own, that you develop together during your sessions, or that may emerge over time in therapy. The goal could be any number of things, such as decreasing the severity of your symptoms, to developing a better relationship with yourself and others. Therapeutic goals could also change for a person over time.
We believe it’s important that clinicians create a space where their clients can be themselves without fear of judgment. We are committed to being on your team and want to accompany and guide you towards the life you want to lead.
Benefits of therapy:
Develop insight and new perspectives
Learn coping strategies to effectively deal with life’s challenges
Obtain additional support for overcoming addiction or substance abuse
Develop resilience
Regain self-esteem
Improve relationships with yourself and others
Don’t know if therapy is right for you? Contact us for a free phone consultation.
We can help you with…
Depression
Depression is characterized by a state of persistent sadness, a lack of interest in the pleasures of life, sleep disturbances (e.g. sleeping more than normal, or less than normal), difficulty concentrating, suicidal thoughts, plans, or attempts, and/or a loss of appetite. While everyone experiences sadness, depression is enduring and interferes with daily functioning, making everyday tasks unusually difficult to manage.
Anxiety
Anxiety is characterized by high and debilitating worry and fear in response to events that do not usually provoke such responses in others. For some, feelings of anxiety may constantly be in the background, while for others, certain triggers such as talking to other people, performing in front of others, going to new places, etc., may bring about incapacitating dread and panic to the point that it prevents them from engaging with people, places, or things that would otherwise contribute positively to their life.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) & Complex-PTSD (C-PTSD)
Trauma is characterized by a state of emotional overwhelm that is caused by a threat to one’s sense of security. Trauma can be single-incident, or chronic.
PTSD is generally characterized by the frequent experience of disturbing and involuntary flashbacks to a traumatic event, or events, an active avoidance of reminders of the event or events, and a significant increase in one’s feeling of being ‘on edge’. Self-destructive behaviour, feelings of fear, and negative feelings and thoughts about oneself are often experienced.
C-PTSD which can also be understood as childhood trauma or complex trauma, reflects an environment where a child or young person was raised with an sense of security and emotional validation from caregivers that was inadequate to their developmental needs. When those needs are not met, it can lead to an unstable sense of self, feelings of shame, mistrust, helplessness, dissociation, relational difficulties, and other kinds of chronic suffering and difficulty in adulthood.
Addiction
Addiction is characterized by compulsively engaging in activities (e.g., gambling, shopping, looking at porn), or ingesting substances (e.g., alcohol, drugs, food) that interfere with your ordinary responsibilities such as work, relationships, or your health. These compulsive behaviors tend to offer quick relief of overwhelming stress but at the expense of one’s long-term wellbeing. They are usually done in secret due to the loss of control and feelings of shame they produce over time.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders (e.g., anorexia, bulimia, binge-eating) are chronically distressing and health-endangering behaviours and attitudes to food and the practices of feeding oneself, that in many ways resemble addictions. They are painful and harmful patterns of thinking and behaving around substances (in this case, food) and are highly compulsive. They too offer short-term relief of high stress at the expense of long-term wellbeing, and are often accompanied by terrible feelings of shame and an urge to hide these compulsive behaviors or their true extent from others.
Grief & Loss
Grief is the tremendous suffering that results from experiencing loss that remains to be processed. The loss can vary widely from more explicit forms, such as a death of a loved one or more implicit forms, such as the loss of a dream or wish. Grief can be characterized by feelings such as: anger, abandonment, guilt, overwhelming sadness and/or feelings numbness. It can also manifest as physical symptoms (e.g. fatigue, aches and pains).
Attention Deficit (Hyperactive) Disorder (ADD/ADHD)
ADHD is characterized by difficulty keeping track of time and being on time, being highly distractible, ‘lost in space’, difficulty sustaining attention for things that are of little interest, difficulty sitting still (for the hyperactive type), and being able to hyper-focus. Other symptoms include: anxiety, low self-esteem, shame, issues with emotional regulation, and impulsivity. People with ADHD often also experience difficulties at work, in relationships, and with addiction (e.g. alcohol, drugs, food).
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
OCD is characterized by ‘obsessions’: intrusive thoughts/feelings and ‘compulsions’a behaviour that lowers one’s anxiety regarding the obsession. Some examples of OCD are: contamination, symmetry, and checking. Some symptoms that are OCD-like include: skin picking, hair pulling, and hoarding.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is characterized by a profound disturbance in one’s mood, in which an individual may feel very depressed at times and very elated at times (e.g., have grandiose beliefs, would talk uncharacteristically fast, experience racing thoughts, engage in impulsive behaviour, sleep little, etc.) or experience muted versions of the two extremes. While our moods naturally fluctuate, bipolar disorder interferes with regular functioning.
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
Borderline personality disorder is characterized by pervasive instability in moods, interpersonal relationships, self-image, and behavior, which often disrupts family and work life, and one’s sense of identity.
Anger Management
Anger management difficulties are characterized by inadequate internal strategies and skills for emotional self-management that lead to feeling overcome by anger to the point of being out of control and unable to stop oneself from expressing anger in ways that end up hurting those we’re responsible for or to; people we care about, and even ourselves. These overly aggressive, unwanted, and inappropriate behaviors may range from verbal abuse, to acts of violence and other criminal behavior, and may lead to such problems as destruction of key relationships, termination of employment, or even jail time. A therapist can help them develop more compassion for self and others and better coping skills for managing difficult emotions.
Sexuality, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity
Sexuality remains a taboo thing for many people to think about and to discuss openly with others. This can mean that a person can feel very worried, ashamed, or isolated when they find that changes to their thinking and changes to their way of life having to do with sexual practices, sexual orientation, gender identity (to name a few) are calling out to be made or consciously explored further. An informed and sex-positive therapist can listen to your concerns without judgement and help you sort through these kinds of concerns and possible changes for yourself.
Our therapists can also help you develop healthy coping mechanisms when dealing with the natural stresses of life, to discover and refine your strengths, build greater insight, and overall get to a place where you feel more at peace with yourself.
Please know that your symptoms do not need to be extreme or meet clinical diagnosis for a given disorder to warrant seeking help. If you feel distressed and want to change, that is more than enough reason to receive assistance.
How are you? Let’s talk.
Our psychologists are here to help. To learn more about therapy or to book a free phone consultation, please call us at 780-860-7338 or fill out our contact form.