Trudi Jane Wyatt, MA, RP, CCC
Registered Psychotherapist (Ontario)
Psychotherapy over the telephone for individual male and female adults in Ontario, Canada. (I call from Alberta.)
416-901-0994 No text; if emergency 911; see ‘Resources’.
By appointment only. Weekdays, daytime (M-F) or evening (M-Th).
FAQs
1. Are your services covered by my private health insurance / employee group benefits plan or health spending account (HSA)?
Plans with the following insurers tend to cover the services of a Registered Psychotherapist or Canadian Certified Counsellor but all plans are different (even from the same insurer), plans are often updated over time, and other insurers might cover the services too, so I would encourage you to check into your particular current plan, and also to inquire about coverage for services delivered over the phone.
2. How much do sessions cost?
The fee for each 45-minute telephone session is $140 including the government’s tax. Payment is by credit / debit card or e-transfer.
3. When are sessions offered?
Monday to Thursday: Daytime or evening.
Friday: Daytime.
If you require weekend availability, perhaps consider finding an RP with weekend availability via: http://www.psychotherapyontario.org/find-a-therapist
4. Is “Registered Psychotherapist” on the CRA list of eligible medical expenses for income tax?
“Registered Psychotherapist” is listed on The Government of Canada Website as an authorized medical practitioner for the purposes of the medical expense tax credit, for residents of Ontario. To access this list, you can click on the following link and search for “Registered Psychotherapist” or just skip to page 5:
Authorized medical practitioners for the purposes of the medical expense tax credit
That said, this website is not tax advice / information. If you are seeking such services, consider consulting with Canada Revenue Agency and/or an Accountant.
5. Are your services covered by OHIP/do I need an OHIP card?
No. I do not and cannot bill OHIP / MOHLTC (Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care) for my services.
6. Will I be given a mental health diagnosis like “PTSD” or “Generalized Anxiety Disorder” or a “Personality Disorder” if I access your services?
NO.
Firstly, please see my (borrowed) blog, “Psychiatric ‘Diagnosis’ vs. Medical Diagnosis” to understand what is being discussed here.
Secondly, note that in Ontario, only a few categories of health care professionals are legally permitted to communicate a diagnosis identifying a disorder as the cause of a person’s symptoms, such as Psychologists or Psychiatrists. Registered Psychotherapists are not, so you won’t be labelled with a mental health “diagnosis” if you see me. As a Registered Psychotherapist, I work with people to help them discover and address life and intra-personal issues that are often the cause of feelings of anger, depression, stress, anxiety, etc.
That said, if you wish I can certainly help connect you with a suitable provider of formal psychological/psychiatric/medical assessment services, either whilst continuing to work with you on addressing your issues, or even if you choose to then continue your work with the assessing clinician.
7. Will you just prescribe me medication if I access your services?
No.
Prescribing drugs is another “controlled act” in Ontario and thus only a few health care professionals such as physicians & surgeons, and nurse practitioners, are legally permitted to carry out this act; psychotherapists and psychologists are not.
That said, in the example of “antidepressant medications” that are often prescribed for depression and anxiety:
I strongly encourage anyone curious about medication to discuss this option with their physician and to ask their physician for all of the information (e.g., long term /short term risks, long term / short term benefits, evidence, alternatives, mechanism of action / what’s being treated, etc.) in an “informed consent” process. Similarly, I encourage people to visit their doctors for regular check-ups, and for ruling out or identifying and addressing any medical factors impacting or overlapping with mental health (e.g., to rule-out cardiac issues if someone has increased heart rate with anxiety).
8. Can I speak with you from outside of Ontario?
In general, the Ontario regulation is that the client must be geographically located in Ontario (whereas the RP does not have to be, and actually I am geographically located in Alberta but I maintain my virtual Ontario practice from here).
9. Can psychotherapy help?
Likely. “It has been found that psychotherapy or ‘talk therapy’ in its many forms is generally effective. It is estimated that approximately 80 percent of those undergoing psychotherapy improve as a result of it” (Erwin 1997, p.144, in Raabe 2014). This is about consistent with what I see in my practice.
10. Do I have to commit to a lot of sessions?
Absolutely not. It is always up to you to decide whether returning for another session is what you want to do. Freedom and autonomy are two of the values that guide my work.
11. How can I benefit from psychotherapy?
I think almost everybody can benefit from psychotherapy. This is why I do what I do.
Many people facing emotional distress do so because: they don’t know how to interact with a difficult person; they hold unhelpful, unclear, and/or inaccurate beliefs; they are unsure of what they actually value; etc. I aim to help people examine and address these issues so as to help them take informed steps that can lead to happier and more fulfilling lives.
12. I already tried psychotherapy and it didn’t help me very much. Is there any point in trying again?
Probably. It might be that:
13. Do you provide psychotherapy by video (Skype, Zoom, etc.) or text?
No. For virtual psychotherapy, I am more comfortable offering services by the phone, and there is evidence supporting the effectiveness of this modality (as well as of video; the research for text-based therapy is in the early stages but it might certainly demonstrate usefulness in some situations). For example, I find video is not really like in-person (e.g., eye contact isn’t really possible), and there can be technical issues, so I think it’s more comfortable for both the client and for myself just to speak on the phone. Also, once in a while you hear of new security issues with different video platforms, so I’d prefer to just steer clear of them. That said, many practitioners do offer psychotherapy sessions by video, and there is research supporting the efficacy of this, so I encourage anyone interested to continue to consider it and find a suitable practitioner.
14. After the pandemic, will you be offering in-person psychotherapy services?
Not in Ontario, as I will continue to be geographically located out-of-province (but maintaining my virtual Ontario practice).
15. Where can I get more information?
Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions; and/or, other sources of information / resources include:
Note that this post is not psychotherapy / counselling; please contact me or another professional if you require these services. If you need urgent support, consider Toronto Distress Centres at 416.408.4357. If you need immediate help, call 911 or go to your local Emergency Room. Note this post is for information only, does not imply that a professional relationship has been established with readers, is not advice, and does not imply intent to provide professional services to readers. Intended audience: Current adult residents of the Canadian province of Ontario only.
Trudi Jane Wyatt © 2020