Therapists in West Toronto, Toronto, ON

I’m an open, compassionate, and curious psychotherapist that approaches sessions from a trauma-informed lens. As a creative and an intuitive, I practice integratively, curating my approach to each unique client’s needs, personality, and intersectionality. My experience includes the treatment of depression, anxiety, ADHD, OCD, burnout, PTSD, phobias, grief, relationship health, relationship ruptures & infidelity, ethical & conscious non-monogamy, and gender-specific issues. I also have background in tantra & kink and am very comfortable holding space to explore sexual issues, desires, and satisfaction.

Emotional pain is an inherent part of the human experience, but you don’t have to go through it alone. In our sessions, we will work through your struggles and together create a clear path for you to feel in control and content with your life. You'll enter a non-judgmental space where you can truly be you, with the ability to express your innermost thoughts and feelings. I will meet you where you are in your journey with acceptance and compassion. I work with anxiety, depression, self-esteem, trauma, attachment issues and interpersonal concerns such as work, family, relationships and friendships.

You’re the Black Sheep of the family, who doesn’t fit in anywhere and struggles with loneliness: The Outsider. You are talented and intelligent with ambitious business and/or creative dreams; but due to procrastination fueled by self-sabotage and addictions (e.g., cannabis, pornography, video games), you continually fail to achieve goals. You negatively compare yourself to others, can't forgive yourself for mistakes, feel like a failure, and wish you had the confidence to fulfill your true potential because you are meant for more than the mediocrity that most people settle for. Welcome, it's time to awaken the warrior within!

Welcome! I am a bilingual counselor and I specialize in couples counselling. In a safe, warm and non-judgmental manner, I can help couples improve their relationship, enhance communication, re-establish trust, and deal more positively with daily stresses such as finances, parenting styles and family conflict. I work in particular with couples trying to reconstruct their relationship after an affair.

As we go through difficult experiences, I believe that there is comfort in not being alone. I believe that a connection with another person can provide an opportunity to feel safe as we explore unknown parts of our lives. I am hopeful and believe that there are possibilities that are here to be uncovered in each of us. I bring generosity of spirit into my work and will meet you where you are at in your process and we will move forward in a way that feels right for you. I am open to sitting with whatever it is that you are experiencing, including those places that may feel scary, painful or overwhelming.

Life can often feel chaotic. The reality is that changes are presented to us outside of our control and we find ourselves faced with the task of making decisions and choices that will decide the course of our future. These untimely decisions and choices can leave us feeling bewildered and disoriented. To complicate things further, we can find ourselves stuck in emotional and behavioural patterns that inhibit and hold us back from making the decisions we would like to or that would be best for us. Sometimes it’s difficult to even know what we would like to do or what is best for us. What should you aim towards?

I am a registered psychotherapist and a certified expressive arts therapist. I have been a practicing psychotherapist for over 15 years and am interested in promoting self healing, relationships, growth and change. I have trained extensively in expressive arts, gestalt and developmental somatic psychotherapy and have pursued professional training in emotionally focused couples therapy (EFT), trauma informed therapy, narrative therapy and child and play therapy. I create a safe and interactive therapeutic atmosphere, and work from a resource oriented, somatic awareness based perspective, focussing on both short and long term needs.

In my private practice as an expressive arts therapist I use the arts along with conversation and reflection, to help clients get ‘unstuck,’ uncover resources for change and growth, live with suffering when necessary and celebrate the joy of life as we humans always have -- by making meaning through making art. Increasingly, I also draw on Internal Family Systems (working with our "parts") to support and inform a safe and effective healing environment. I work with clients suffering from anxiety, depression, self-esteem issues, creative blocks, eating disorders, physical illness, grief, trauma and sexual abuse.

It is seeming all too normal these days to experience feelings of disconnection. A separation from ourselves, our passions, our bodies, our communities, etc. We spend so much time in our heads trying to figure out how to survive when we so desperately want to be thriving. Where has our aliveness gone? How do we get our bodies and our senses back online and truly show up for our unique experience?

With 15 years of experience as the head counsellor at The Michener Institute, I offer professional support for anxiety, depression, grief, trauma and family challenges. My use of both Gestalt Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) gives me a wide range of options for support for both individual and couples. Gestalt focuses on the 'here and now,' our body experiences and childhood patterns and helps us be present in our relationships. CBT has been rigorously tested in over 1000 studies, and is a therapy that supports depression, attention deficit disorder (ADD), panic and anxiety, phobias and stress.

Clients come to me when they're feeling overwhelmed and exhausted from trying to "keep it together all the time". Often, they're suffering from a combination of burnout, stress, anxiety, depression, fears or low self-esteem. They feel disconnected from themselves and unable to navigate even the simplest of daily challenges. They want support in learning how to reduce the weight of their emotional and physical tensions and regain confidence in their ability to navigate their daily lives.

Dr. Sayyed Mohsen Fatemi completed his postdoctoral studies in the department of psychology at Harvard University where he has also served as a Teaching Fellow, an Associate and a Fellow. His publications appear in Springer, Wiley, Templeton Press, Routledge, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, Lexington publication, Roman & Littlefield, Palgrave McMillan, American Psychiatric Association, and Journals such as APA's Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology and International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis.

As a psychotherapist, I value growth, resiliency and creativity. I strive to support my clients with their inner growth, feeling grounded and reconnecting with themselves through the use of creative art-making. I believe everyone should be encouraged to have creative tools for self-reflecting, self-regulating and self-expression. I approach my understanding of clients from an individual perspective informed by their social and cultural contexts. I work from a psychodynamic and reflexive point of view and incorporate a strength-based approach into my practice.

I truly believe that everyone has his/her path in life and ability to walk it. I think that Life is an amazing journey. My role is to assist with navigation. I can help finding the tools to move forward or accompany a person along the way. I believe in our incredible passion for life and creative potential for fulfillment. "I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become" these words belong to Carl G. Jung. I choose to be a social worker, a psychotherapist and a resilient person.

You are on your way to deeper growth. I know because you are on this site, actively looking for support. Well done, you. Although, right now it may still feel a little rough. Fair enough. Being human is hard. Regardless of your very human issue: trauma from the past; stuckness in life; relationship issues; out of control anxiety and stress; chronic illness; career struggles; or just feeling lost and confused, the key to moving forward lies within you. Looking inward to see your own values and beliefs is the beginning to accessing your strengths to continue to grow and thrive.

Drawing on a wealth of experience, and on several traditions, I offer effective therapy that is tailored to my clients' needs. I bring to my work a non-judgemental, warm, and interactive style, which helps promote desired change. I work with adult individuals, couples, and adult families, on relationship issues, adjusting to separation, grief, traumatic loss, trauma and PTSD. I also work with work-life balance and burnout, unblocking creativity, anxiety and depression, and managing anger. In addition, I offer consultation services to clinicians.

In therapy, you have the opportunity to hit the pause button on life for a moment. During this time it’s all about you—your thoughts, struggles and dreams. It’s a space where you can be fully accepted without judgment, just as you are. As your therapist, my focus is on listening to you with empathy, curiosity and compassion. I’m here to help you uncover more about yourself and move towards what is meaningful to you. I work in English and French with diverse clients facing challenges such as anxiety, depression, relationship difficulties, life transitions and self-esteem concerns.

Over the past 19 years I have had the honor of supporting my clients' journeys of healing and growth. I provide deep listening, respect, and a safe space for clients to reflect and expand self-awareness. We work together to identify and achieve your individualized therapeutic goals. As a result of therapy, my clients have been able to: Improve decision-making, manage difficult emotions with integrity, have loving relationships with family, and let go of old fears and hurt, to enjoy life in the present.

As we move through our human lives, each of us will at times feel our mental and emotional health is compromised, catalyzed perhaps by seismic life events, emerging anxiety, a looming depression, or a stirring from our own depths. When compromised in this way, we may naturally fight hard to maintain the business as usual of our lives. However, sometimes things fall apart anyways and other times, a deeper part of us just doesn't want to hold it all together, but we don't know what else to do - or how to do it. This can be disorienting, depressing, anxiety-provoking, and lonely. We are in unfamiliar territory without a map or compass.