Psychological Treatment

In my practice, I generally work with individual therapy clients on a one-on-one basis. I am open to partners, family members, friends or others joining sessions on an occasional or regular basis, with my clients' permission.

Appointment length varies from 30 to 90 minutes according to client preference and scheduling availability.

I am happy to accommodate appointment booking according to client needs and preferences, including pre-booking a number of appointments that can then be either kept or cancelled (with 24 hours' notice) if they are not required. I am often booked up 4 to 6 weeks ahead of time, but I do maintain a cancellation list for clients who want to be seen on short-notice and don't have pre-booked appointments.

Psychological treatment needs are different for each person and each issue that a person wants to address. Some people find that a short course of sessions (such as 3 to 10 sessions) helps them focus on and work through a specific issue or concern. In these cases, it is often helpful to schedule appointments closer together, such as once every 2 weeks, to keep moving forward on the  identified goals.

Other clients may have more complex or long-standing concerns, want to work through a broader set of issues, or be interested in establishing a therapeutic relationship from which they can come and go as needed. For these clients, longer-term arrangements are made, such as regular meetings that are ongoing (at a frequency that is preferred by and affordable to the client) or meeting more often for a  shorter burst and then having a longer gap between appointments.

In terms of my approach in sessions, I strive to take an individualized approach to my work with each, unique client. My approach to psychological treatment is informed by humanist, feminist and client-centred perspectives that emphasize client rights, integrity, empowerment and personal dignity. Specific therapeutic modalities include education about psychological topics and concerns, cognitive-behavioural therapy, emotion-focussed processing and other process experiential techniques, acceptance and commitment strategies, solution-focussed approaches and psychodynamic interventions. I also use supportive and advocacy interventions as appropriate.