FAQs

1. What are your hours?

Monday to Thursday (Downtown or telephone): 8am to 11am, 12pm (noon) to 4pm

Friday (Downtown or telephone): 8am to 11am, 12pm (noon) to 3pm

2. 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:

• Green Shield Canada
• SunLife
• Manulife
• Desjardins
• Great West Life
• Insurers offering Health Spending Accounts (HSA’s, HCSA’s)

But each plan is different so please check with your particular provider and plan about coverage details.

3. Is “Registered Psychotherapist” on the CRA list of eligible medical expenses for income tax?

“Registered Psychotherapist” is now 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.

4. 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.

5. 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.

6. 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:

• “Medications are only one way of treating depression and anxiety. Talk therapies, such as interpersonal psychotherapy and cognitive-behavioural therapy, can be just as effective. Peer support, school and job counselling, and housing and employment supports can also help to deal with problems that may trigger or worsen depression or anxiety…
• While these [medications] seem to help…, the brain is a very complex organ and the reasons why these drugs work are not yet fully understood…
• All medications can have side-effects. Some people experience no side-effects. Others may find the side-effects distressing…
• When starting medication treatment for depression, people may be at an increased risk of suicide. Most cases of increased risk of suicide were observed in adolescents and young people. One possible explanation is that it may be related to the increase in energy that comes early in treatment, before improvement in mood. In other words, antidepressants may give some people the energy to act on their suicidal thoughts.
• Some antidepressants can also cause feelings of agitation, restlessness and detachment. These feelings may resemble symptoms of anxiety and may add to, rather than relieve, feelings of hopelessness and despair. Some people may become suicidal or violent. This reaction to antidepressants is thought to occur in about four per cent of people who take them, with the risk being highest in the first few weeks of treatment…” (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, accessed 06May2019)

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).

7. 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.

8. 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.

9. 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.

10. I already tried psychotherapy and it didn’t help me very much. Is there any point in trying again?

Probably. It might be that:

• This time another approach would suit you better
• This time you are more motivated for change
• You took a big step last time, and are ready to take another now
• This time you know more about what kind of “fit” you seek with a therapist

11. Do you provide psychotherapy over the internet, phone, or Skype?

If appropriate (please see “Telephone” tab), I offer some sessions by telephone following at least 1-2 in-person sessions. I do not offer psychotherapy over the internet or via Skype/video conference.

12. Where can I get more information?

Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions at all, and/or if you would like to schedule a free initial telephone consultation.

Other sources of information / resources include:

• International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry: Views the experience of “mental illness” as a natural human reaction to extraordinary and painful life circumstances, and is dedicated to humane ways of helping people who struggle with the difficult issues that arise in life.
• Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.  Canada’s largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, which also has a state-of-the-art emergency facility for mental health crises.
• Kids’ Help Phone
• 211 (Community and social services in Ontario)
• Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association
• The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario
• Ontario’s Community Care Access Centres
• Your physician or a physician at a walk-in clinic

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 © 2019