Frequently Asked Questions

1. What kind of issues do you provide counselling and therapy for?

2. How long does counselling or therapy take?

The length of counselling or therapy can depend on a number of factors including the issues that are bringing you to therapy and what your goals are. Often people find that they can accomplish what they want in 5 or 6 sessions of counselling. For other people in different circumstances, therapy might take 10-15 sessions, and sometimes people will want to come for longer periods.

You are never under any obligation to come for a set number of sessions, and throughout your course of therapy, we will discuss the progress you have made and how much longer you might wish to continue.

3. What about confidentiality?

All information that you share with me is confidential and will not be communicated, directly or indirectly, to a third party without your informed and written consent. The only exceptions are when I have a legal, and/or ethical obligation to:

• Inform a potential victim of violence of a client's intention to harm them.
• Inform an appropriate family member, health care professional, or police if necessary of a client's intention to end his or her life.
• Release a client's file if it is subpoenaed by a court.
• Inform Child and Family Services if there is suspicion that a child under the age of 16 is at risk or in need of protection due to neglect, or physical, sexual or emotional abuse.

Report a regulated health professional who has sexually abused a client to the professional's regulatory body.

Other than in these rare exceptions, any information that you disclose will be kept strictly confidential. 

4. Are your services covered by my medical plan?

Counselling services are not covered by MSP plan. However, you may have coverage through your employer's extended health care plan. Clients have an obligation to consult their insurance company before coming to therapy.

WILL INSURANCE COVER MY COUNSELLING?

Many people have access to extended health insurance plans through their employers.  If you are one of the lucky ones, you may even have counselling coverage as part of your plan.  You may be able to use these benefits to cover all or part of the costs of counselling.

First, you will need to check with your particular insurance company and group plan to ensure exactly what type and amount of coverage you have. The plans differ dramatically from one to another so that even within a specific insurance company, there will be many different types of coverage.

You will need to ensure that your coverage provides for counselling services provided by either a Registered Clinical Counsellor or a Canadian Certified Counsellor. If you have this type of coverage you simply need to provide the receipt that you get from Lege Artis Counselling to your insurance company and they will reimburse you at the rate outlined in your plan.

WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE COVERAGE FOR AN Registred Clinical Counsellor or Canadian Certified Counsellor?

If your insurance plan does have counselling coverage but does not acknowledge the professional counselling services of a Registered Clinical Counsellor/Canadian Certified Counsellor it may be possible to have your employer make a small change to the insurance plan.

You may wish to speak directly with your Human Resources department and ask that they make an amendment to the company extended benefits plan. Most employers like to increase the amount of benefits that their employees can access, especially when it does not cost the employer any additional fee.

It may also be helpful to craft a letter to your Human Resources department making the request to alter the counselling coverage.  Please use the link below to a document with the information you will need to put into your own letter when making the request.

   Click here to download the Letter   

5. What is E-mail Counselling and how it works?

As we do not see or hear each other, the words become our method of communication. This has both advantages and disadvantages.     There are fewer chances of us missing or misunderstanding something because we can always re-read an e-mail or asks questions  about it.

Some people find that an in person counselling session makes them anxious, but they have found that working online like this, they can write about things they can not say to someone's face.

Some people have had to make complex arrangements to attend the session and this can be on their minds at the same time.

Some clients worry about their counsellor's reaction to what they say and try to 'please' them (telling the counsellor what they think s/he would like to hear) this does not seem to happen online.

Some online clients have said to me, they felt freer to write whatever. They wanted because they could not see my reaction. You can write and send your email, when you feel ready; you do not have to save it up until your next appointment with your counsellor.

However, you do not receive my response to your email immediately, I normally take between 24 and 48 hours to send my reply. Many clients have reported that once they have sent me an email they feel unburdened, knowing I will respond within an agreed period of time.

Please remember, you have to manage emotionally painful feelings on your own while you are waiting for my answer. If you are not able to wait or have an urgent situation, please, call to Crisis Line or 911.

6. What can I expect from first counselling session. How it looks like?

Are you about to go to a counsellor for the first time? Whatever your reasons for seeking help, you will be more at ease and get better results if you know what to expect. In your first session, the counsellor typically will ask certain questions about you and your life. This information helps him/her make an initial assessment of your situation. Questions he/she might ask include:

    Why you sought counselling? A particular issue probably led you to seek counselling. The counsellor has to understand your surface problem(s) before he/she can get to the deeper issues.

    Your personal history and current situation. The counsellor will ask you a series of questions about your life. For example, because family situations play an important role in ‘who you are’, he/she will ask about your family history and your current family situation.

    Your current symptoms. Other than knowing the reason, you sought counselling. The counsellor will attempt to find out if you are suffering from other symptoms of your problem. For example, your problem might be causing difficulty at work.

The counsellor will use this information to understand better your problem. In addition, while he/she may make a diagnosis at the end of your first visit, it is more likely that a diagnosis will take a few more sessions.

    Do not just sit there. Counselling is a team effort. If you do not take an active part in the session, you will not find the counselling experience valuable. Here are some things you can do to make your first session as successful as possible.

    1. Be open. Counsellors are trained to ask the right questions, but they are not ‘mind readers’. The counsellor can do his/her job more effectively if you answer the questions openly and honestly.

    2. Be prepared. Before you get to the session, know how to describe “what’s wrong,” and to describe your feelings about your problem. One way to prepare, to write down the reasons you are seeking help. Make a list and then read it out loud. Hearing yourself say it a few times will help you describe things more clearly to the counsellor.

    3. Ask questions. The more you understand the counselling experience or how counselling works, the more comfortable you will be. Ask questions about the counselling process, and ask the counsellor to repeat anything you do not understand.

    4. Be open and honest about your feelings. A lot will be going through your head in this first session. Listen to your own reactions and feelings, and share them with the counsellor. You will both learn from these insights.

    5. Be sure to go to your first session with realistic expectations. Counselling is not a quick fix for your problem(s), rather it is a process. With some effort on your part and a strong relationship with your counsellor, it can be a successful tool toward resolving problems.

If you have no found the answer for your question on this page,

you can ask me using a special form on the contact page.

"Curiosity is one of the permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous mind"

Samuel Johnson