What is counselling? Counselling is a collaborative process between you and your counsellor in order to examine and better understand your thoughts, behaviours, emotions, and how you relate to others. You may seek counselling for a variety of reasons, including emotional difficulties, challenging life transitions, or relationship problems. It is up to you to determine what you want out of the counselling process, and I will support you through this process; helping you set and achieve goals, learn coping skills, and offer strategies and techniques to assist you in reaching your goals. Most importantly, I am here to listen and support you.
What are the benefits of counselling? Some of the benefits of counselling include increased personal insight, self-growth, and learning problem solving and coping skills. Clients may also experience a greater sense of well being and healthier functioning in relationships. There are also risks involved in counselling, as clients sometimes experience strong emotions or difficult memories that arise as a result of discussing personal issues. Making changes in behaviour, beliefs, or in the ways one relates to others can also be difficult, and impact relationships.
How long does counselling last? It depends on your needs. People seek counselling for a wide variety of reasons. Some clients may feel better after having short term therapy, which might last anywhere between one and six sessions. Others benefit from long-term therapy that uses a slower approach to address deeply embedded problems. There are no hard and fast rules, but usually the number of counselling sessions you have depends on the goals you set, and how long it takes you to reach these goals.
Is counselling confidential, and what are the limits of confidentiality? I take your privacy and confidentiality very seriously, and follow the ethical guidelines set out by the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC) and the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA). Your identity as my client, and anything you discuss with me in session is strictly confidential, and information about your sessions will not be released to anyone without your voluntary, written consent. I also protect your personal information in accordance with BC’s Personal Information and Privacy Act (PIPA, 2004), which outlines how counsellors collect, use and disclose personal information.
There are times, however, when I may have to break my duty of confidentiality, but this is rare. According to the BCACC, I am legally required to break confidentiality for the following reasons:
If I have reason to believe that a child or vulnerable adult is being sexually or physically abused or severely neglected, or is at risk of such abuse;
If I suspect there is imminent danger to our client or identifiable others;
If a court orders the disclosure of my records
In order to provide you with the best care, I participate in regular clinical and peer supervision. If your case is reviewed, it will be done so in a completely confidential and non-identifying manner.
What kind of training do you have? I have a Master of Arts (MA) in Counselling Psychology, and am a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) with the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC). I completed my clinical training at the Reproductive Mental Health Program (RMH) located in the out-patient psychiatry department at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver, BC. In addition to my private practice, I work in Royal Columbian Hospital's Reproductive Mental Health Program. I have experience working with youth, individuals, couples, and facilitating groups, and continue to develop my skills through professional development workshops and training. Previous to becoming a therapist, I worked in the non-profit sector, and in the education system with students with developmental disabilities, and diverse learning needs. I completed the Special Education Assistant program at Capilano University.
Working with parents of children and youth with developmental disabilities I am interested in counselling and supporting parents of children and youth with special needs. Along with my degree in Counselling Psychology, I have a background in Special Education, and worked for several years in the Burnaby school district as an Education Assistant. I have experience with working in a variety of programs (regular classrooms, pre-employment, ACCESS, behavioural programs, specialized autism programs); and with children and youth with a range of developmental disabilities, including autism, Asperger’s syndrome, Down syndrome, acquired brain injuries, physical disabilities, learning disabilities, AD/HD, challenging behaviours, and more. My knowledge about these disorders, and understanding of the challenges that families may face has informed my practice as a counsellor. I strongly believe that every parent is the expert on their own child, but I can offer support with issues directly related to parenting, or those related to depression, anxiety, stress and anger management, self-care, and communication and relationship issues. I am also willing to invoice to the Autism Funding Branch for counselling services.
What are your fees, and is counselling covered by insurance? Do you provide refunds on prepaid counselling? Many extended health insurance plans in BC will cover some of the cost of seeing a Registered Clinical Counsellor. In this case, you will be reimbursed by your insurance plan for a portion of the fee paid to your counsellor.
My fees are set according to professional guidelines.
Individual 50 minute session: $135 plus GST ($141.75)
*Please note that a one-hour counselling session is 50 minutes. The remaining 10 minutes is used for administrative duties.