FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Many people have coverage to see a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) or a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC) through their health plan. Please contact or search your individual plan to clarify this. We do not provide direct billing at this point because all plans are so unique when it comes to providing counselling. However, you will receive an official receipt following your session that you can use for reimbursement or tax purposes.

Sessions are 50 minutes long and $160.00 before GST for individual sessions and $180.00 before GST for couples/family sessions. We follow the fee schedule recommended by the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors and take into account our practitioners extensive training and experience. If you do not have coverage and cost is a big concern for you, we have a practicum counsellor with whom we can offer LOW COST COUNSELLING while she completes her supervision requirements. This is only $60.00 per session before GST. *We are hopeful that the new legislation removing GST from psychotherapy services will apply to RCCs and CCCs working in BC soon (awaiting confirmation from the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors to give us permission to make this change), and when this happens, there will no longer be GST charged on counselling sessions at our clinic (yay!).*

Some people attend counselling very short term or for just a few sessions and some need it longer/more ongoing. At the beginning, it's typical for people to come once a week or once every two weeks and often people will taper off and attend less as life begins to feel more manageable or as they work on practicing tools and strategies introduced in counselling. It is completely up to the client how much they want to attend and for how long.

Counselling is completely confidential. What you share with your therapist stays with them alone. The 3 exceptions to this include if your therapist is concerned for your safety, if they are worried about someone else in immediate danger (for instance, a child), or if they are subpoenaed by a court of law. When counsellors consult on cases for professional support, they protect client's names and any identifying information. Counselling is a judgement free zone, so your counsellor will work hard to ensure you feel safe/accepted as you are. You can share as little or as much as you want. We will honour the pace you feel comfortable working at.

Counselling with a Registered Clinical Counsellor or Canadian Certified Counsellor is a valuable investment in your mental health and well-being. The cost of counselling reflects the extensive clinical training, education (average 7-9 years), and ongoing professional development required for a therapist to provide evidence-based and ethical counselling services. Additionally, the cost of running a private practice, including registration/licensing, office space, marketing, administrative costs, and insurance, contributes to the overall expense. Many people wouldn't think twice about spending over $100 for a physiotherapy, or acupuncture, or chiropractic appointment. Counselling is evidence based and effective when working with a trained therapist. This is certainly why it's all the more important to ask questions, understand the process, and find the best fit for you. Some of our counsellors will offer a sliding scale. Please inquire about this. If you can't afford one of our registered counsellor fees, consider booking with our amazing practicum counsellor at a MUCH lower cost!

Currently we offer clinical counselling for adults (men, women, lgbtqia2t+), couples, families, and youth. Some of our counsellors will work with older children (10+) on a case by case basis, but we do not currently offer therapy for kids under 10.

Our therapy services cater to individuals of all age groups, including adults, youth, and children 6+. We offer specialized counselling tailored to meet the unique needs of each age group. We also offer couples counselling & family counselling.

Yes, yes, yes! We have a low cost counselling program with our amazing intern therapists who have completed their educational requirements of their master's programs, but need to complete their remaining clinical hours with a supervised counselling site. Our clinical interns are skilled and work under the support of an RCC and their university faculty as well. They all offer a FULL free first session and subsequent sessions at $60 for 50 minutes. If the sessional fee of $60 is too much for you to afford, please reach out to our admin at admin@talkinghelpsheal.com and inquire about a further reduction. We are happy to accommodate this with total confidentiality to make counselling more accessible to you.