Client Information
The following information will provide you with answers to the practical questions that you may have prior to arriving for your first session or returning for following sessions. This includes our rates, cancellation policy, insurance information, and more.
If you have any other questions that are not found here, you may find them on our Inside Scoop FAQ page. If not, please feel free to contact us - we are happy to help!
The First Session
What to do Prior to your Initial Session
Once you have booked an appointment, or reached out to inquire about our services, you will be receiving a couple emails from us. An email with a link to our secure online intake forms, which need to be completed prior to your initial session and an appointment confirmation email once your appointment has been booked that will also provide a secure link to your video conference session if the session is taking place online. Our intake forms take about ten minutes to complete and help us understand what you are looking for help with as well as providing us with consent to collect your personal information in order to provide you with therapy.
What to Expect
The initial session is centred around gathering background information, defining what it is that you are looking for help with, beginning to set goals, discussing expectations, and beginning to establish how you and your therapist might work together based on the information that you provide. It is also an opportunity for you to ask any questions that you may have about the therapy process.
What to Bring
There is nothing that you need to bring to the first session. You may want to have with you a journal to make notes in. You may also want to write down prior to your session any questions or concerns that you may have about the therapy process, and any notes that will help you remember what you want to share about yourself, your concerns, or what you are looking for help with.
Therapy Rates and Session Information
Free Phone Consultation
Some of our therapists offer free brief phone consultations in order to answer any questions that you may have and see if it makes sense to book an initial appointment. You are also welcome to email us or ask our Intake Coordinator, Kristen, any questions you may have. Please keep in mind that the privacy of what you share in email cannot be guaranteed unless all users are using encryption software. Since this is not the case, please use your own discretion when communicating personal matters in this way.
* For information on how to choose a therapist, see our article: Eight Things You Need to Know to Find the Right Therapist
Rates
Our standard session fees will be charged at a rate of $190/hr. Clients are responsible for paying session fees at each appointment.
Methods of Payment
For in-person sessions, you are welcome to pay for your appointments with cash, personal cheques, credit card or debit cards that have a MasterCard and Visa logo on them. We are unable to accept Interac debit cards. If you have benefits provided through your employer that you are hoping to use, please discuss this with us prior to your first session to ensure that you will be reimbursed for the cost of the sessions.
For online session we do not accept cash or personal cheques and the therapist will discuss payment with you at the time of your initial session.
Insurance Coverage
All of our therapists are highly qualified individual, couple and family therapists with different professional credentials. If your provider covers services of Registered Psychotherapists, Marriage and Family Therapists, or Registered Social Workers, we can provide services that you will be reimbursed for, dependent on specific therapists' availabilities.
If you have benefits that you are hoping to use for your sessions, please note that you will be responsible for paying for the sessions yourself and submitting your receipts for reimbursement with your benefits provider directly. Sessions are not covered by OHIP but may be covered through private insurance plans. To ensure coverage, please familiarize yourself with your benefits plan and which mental health professionals are covered, and provide us with this information when you are booking your initial session.
Please note that each benefits provider is unique regarding which types of professionals they cover and plans can vary even with the same provider, therefore you will need to verify with your benefits provider that they will cover our services. Please let us know if your plan only covers certain therapy professionals to make sure that we have a therapist available that will be covered by your plan.
Length of Therapy Sessions
Standard sessions are one hour in length, however, longer sessions can be arranged on a case-by-case basis. Some of our therapists may recommend slightly longer sessions when working with couples and families.
While longer sessions are not necessarily more helpful, especially with younger children, more time can be helpful for couples and for families with older adolescents and adult children, as multiple voices and relational dynamics often require more time. Feel free to inquire about longer sessions if you think it may be helpful for you and your circumstances.
* For information on choosing between individual, couple, and family therapy, see our article: Why You May Not Be the Real Problem
Number of Sessions
The number of sessions that will be required will depend on the nature of the concerns, the goals that you have for therapy, and how much time and effort you are willing and able to allocate for making change outside of sessions. You are not required to commit to a specific number of sessions and we can work together to assess what might be helpful for you and your circumstances.
Cancelling Appointments
Since we are in an appointment-based fee-for-service profession, short notice cancellations affect our income and also affect our ability to offer available spots to clients who are needing support. Because of this, we require 48 hour notice for cancellations or you will be responsible for the regular session fee. We understand that there are exceptional circumstances, because of illness or emergency where it may not be possible to provide such notice, and we are willing to be flexible in these specific circumstances on a case by case basis.
Although we require 48 hour notice, we appreciate being notified with more notice when possible in order for us to be able to offer the appointment time to somebody else. You are welcome to notify us by phone or email should you need to cancel or reschedule and we request that you reach out directly to your therapist - as they are your point of contact once you have booked your initial appointment.
If you have any other questions prior to your first session - do not hesitate to call or email.
Learn more about our therapists. Read articles and find recommended resources about therapy, relationships, parenting, sex and mental health.
More information on therapy and counselling for: individual adults, couples, and kids & teens.