Online therapy with a registered Canadian therapist

For many people it is as effective as meeting face to face, though that depends on a few things. Your own needs should be assessed to make sure online is appropriate. Your location and the quality of your internet matter, because repeated outages or long delays interrupt the work. Being at home makes starting easier but brings more distractions: pets, calls, other browser tabs. Reducing those and committing to the time you have booked makes a real difference to what you get out of it.

In an office, the room itself provides privacy. Online, your therapist maintains it through encrypted devices and a private space at their end. You need the same at yours: somewhere you cannot be overheard, and ideally a device you do not share with anyone else. If that is difficult to arrange, say so in your first session and your therapist will work through the options with you.

It suits people who find it hard to attend in person: busy working schedules, full-time parenting, living somewhere with few local therapists, or finding the idea of an in-person session daunting. Children and teens can also be seen online, decided case by case with their therapist. There are limits: we do not offer online therapy for severe mental health problems, for anyone currently having thoughts of suicide, or for highly conflictual couples work. If any of these apply, call (905) 319-1488 and we will help you find the right service.

Yes. Phone sessions suit people whose internet will not hold a video call, who share a home and would rather take the session somewhere private, or who find that a camera makes it harder to say the difficult thing. You get the same registered therapist and the same hour. Only the format changes, and the informed-consent terms below apply to phone exactly as they do to video and to meeting in person. Not every therapist works this way, so mention that you would prefer phone when you book: call (905) 319-1488 and an Intake Specialist will match you with someone who does.

Ask about education, experience, and focus of practice. Therapists typically hold a master's degree in a psychology or social-work field. Each one then extends their scope through further training and experience, and their regulatory body and professional standards keep them practising only within what they are competent to do. That is why no therapist treats everything: some focus on couples and relationships, some on anxiety and depression, some on working with children. Ask where a therapist's focus lies before you book.

Therapists are registered with a college or supervising body in the province where they practise. That registration is what holds them to the regulations and the ethical and professional standards of their field, and it gives you somewhere external to go if something goes wrong. A registered therapist may only practise in the provinces where they are registered and in good standing, or must be familiar with the regulations of the province you are living in, which is why where you are sitting matters as much as where they are.

The same warmth and non-judgmental listening you would get in one of our offices. Your therapist will work with you through whatever emotional, mental or behavioural struggles you are facing, give you room to have your story heard, and work with you to set goals and a treatment plan. They will sometimes suggest techniques or tools to use between sessions.

Call (905) 319-1488 and an Intake Specialist will match you with the right therapist, or book online. A short intake conversation gathers what is relevant about what you are seeking help with, and pairs you with someone trained and experienced in that area.

Credentials vary with education and additional training, and each province sets its own registration requirements. Every therapist's profile on this site lists theirs, or you can ask an Intake Specialist when you book. They will tell you both the credentials and the area a therapist focuses on.

You can join a session from anywhere, but we strongly recommend somewhere other than work: a workplace rarely gives you the privacy a session needs. If it is your only option, use a personal device rather than a work one, which reduces the risk of accidental sharing or interruption, and find somewhere you will not be overheard, such as a room with a door that closes or your car.

Face-to-face, online and phone sessions all carry the same expectations. Informed consent means what you share with your therapist is kept secure and private, and is not shared with anyone without your explicit consent. There are a few situations, set by regulatory bodies and by law, where a therapist must break that confidentiality with or without your consent: if anyone's safety is at risk, including your own; if a child's safety is in danger; if a medical professional is behaving in a way that risks the safety of others; or if a judge issues a subpoena for session notes. Your therapist may also consult another psychological professional about your care to improve your treatment plan. Those professionals are bound by the same confidentiality, and identifying details are excluded.