Therapy Toronto: Psychotherapy Self-referral Service for Toronto and the GTA

How to Find a Therapist

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Sara Trought Andre Turcotte Andrea D'Onofrio Stephen van Beek
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Since you have clicked on this page, it is likely that you are looking for a therapist for yourself, or perhaps for a loved one.

If you would like to go ahead and select a therapist, click here.

If you would like to find out more about Phone or Online Therapy, click here.

Here are some things to consider as you make your choice of a therapist.

How do you go about finding a psychotherapist?

  1. Think about what brings you to therapy. Is there a specific situation that you are dealing with such as a divorce or increased stress from a job transition? Are you dealing with a more general mental health issue such as anxiety or depression? Do you feel that your old patterns of coping are no longer helping, and want to explore the possibility of change? Or do you just feel that you need an empathetic listener to talk to?
    People come to therapy for all sorts of reasons, some of which may not even be clear at the beginning, which is perfectly fine, but if you have a particular issue you're looking for help with, it can help to narrow down your choices when you're searching for a psychotherapist.
  2. Studies have shown that the success of psychotherapy has more to do with the therapeutic relationship than the specific modality, so unless there is a specific approach that you favour, the important thing is to find a psychotherapist you feel you might be comfortable working with. (Note that all of our psychotherapists on Therapy Toronto are Registered Psychotherapists or Registered Social Workers who are licensed to practice psychotherapy in Ontario.)
  3. Visit their website and get a feel for who they are before contacting them. Many psychotherapists have online profiles that you can read to see if there is an aspect of their approach or personal story that resonates with you. Make notes of what appeals to you about the various therapists to help you narrow it down.
  4. Many therapists offer a free initial consultation. This is usually not a session per se, but an opportunity for you both to determine whether it is a good therapeutic fit and to ask questions about the process, timing, credentials, etc. (For more information, see our "Why a free consultation?" page here).

Finding a psychotherapist on Therapy Toronto

  1. If you know your issues or areas of concern (depression, anxiety, anger, loneliness, relationship difficulties, parenting, addictions etc.), you can use our Specialties page to find psychotherapists who focus on the issues you are concerned with. You will also see each therapist's specialties appear under their names when you go on their profile page.
  2. If you would like to start by looking at our gallery of psychotherapists, click here or on "Find a Therapist" in the menu above. Clicking on a photo will take you to the profile of the therapist.
  3. If you want to find a therapist near home or near work, consult Therapists by Location for the ones nearest to you.
  4. If you are looking for phone or online therapy, click here for a listing of psychotherapists who offer that option.
  5. Take your time to explore the profiles of psychotherapists you might be interested in working with.
  6. When you have narrowed the field down to one or two psychotherapists, contact them to set up a consultation.

Why choose a psychotherapist from Therapy Toronto?

While all of the psychotherapists featured on Therapy Toronto work within the broad field of the psychodynamic tradition that defines psychotherapy, we offer many variations of therapy. At the same time, our site has some features that make it quite different from other find-a-therapist sites.

  1. All psychotherapists on Therapy Toronto have done their own personal psychotherapy and continue to work on their professional growth. This is your best guarantee that we will approach our work - and you - in a professional and relational way. Interestingly, the new Ontario regulatory body known as the College of Registered Psychotherapists does not demand that all its members have a history of personal psychotherapy, but we do, as we believe in the importance of a therapist having had their own experience of what it is to be a client.
  2. We come from a variety of training backgrounds. We have been educated in therapy by other professionals in a wide variety of training institutes and schools, so we offer a wider range of therapeutic modalities than you will find on sites representing just one training approach. You can read up on our Policies and Standards here.
  3. We think it's only fair that you should get to know something about us as people before you get to the point of telling us about yourself in therapy. There is a tendency for many psychotherapists to remain distant, but the truth is that we are all as individual and unique as you are, and you will find, upon reading the profile pages, that you may feel more drawn towards some of us than others, perhaps because something they wrote sparked your interest, or because their profiles resonate more with your feelings and concerns.
  4. It is a good thing to allow your feelings to guide you in your choice. This also gives you the opportunity to start your therapy on the right foot by being responsible for your own choice. This is what makes this site the best psychotherapist self-referral site in the Toronto GTA area!
  5. We do not operate on the old "quota, rota, roster, next-name-on-the-list" basis that so many other referral sources work on. Instead, we provide you with the information you are likely to need when you visit our site, and we leave it to you to exercise your own choice. We feel that choosing your own psychotherapist is more self-empowering than being assigned (often for a fee) by a third party to a faceless therapist whose interests, personality and philosophical outlook remain obscure until you show up for a (paid) appointment.
  6. In order to help you ensure that your self-referral is the right fit for you, we offer free consultations for individual therapy so you can discuss issues and get the 'feel' of what it might be like to work with a particular psychotherapist. This is backed up by our policy of referring you to another therapist on the site if the therapist you are having a consultation with feels a colleague would be more suitable for you. For more details about consultations, click here.
  7. We treat you as a respected guest to our site, deserving of privacy and consideration. We never capture personal data or email addresses, trade them, or sell them. We all pay for this site out of our own pockets, refusing all outside advertising. We want you to feel as comfortable as possible in visiting us here . We'd like you to feel secure in making a choice among us. You can read up on our Code of Ethics and Privacy here.
  8. Our psychotherapists are situated across greater Toronto and the GTA, many in wheelchair-accessible offices. There is likely somebody near where you work or live who can help you. Our practice hours accommodate most schedules. Our rates are reasonable and several of us offer a 'sliding fee scale'.
  9. Most of us offer the option of phone or online therapy. Click here to explore this option.
  10. We can be reached easily by email. All the therapists on this site have an email address, and many of them can be reached by private phone. We also maintain a live presence in terms of phone assistance, at 647-723-5274 extension 201, where you can speak to the Site Manager. The site manager will guide you should you have questions about making a choice of therapist; this service is available from 9am to 9pm every day.

Some other useful links for choosing a Therapy Toronto therapist:

  1. If wheelchair accessibility is an issue, see the Accessibility page for a list of therapists whose offices are wheelchair-accessible.
  2. If you want to learn more about Fees, click here.
  3. To learn more about Free Consultations, see here.
  4. For general phone assistance, call 647-723-5274 extension 201 to speak to the Site Manager from 8 AM to 10 PM every day. The site manager will guide you should you have questions.
The psychotherapists appearing on this site are independent. They are not employed nor controlled by therapytoronto.ca. therapytoronto.ca is acting solely as a listing service for the convenience of those seeking the services of psychotherapists.

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