What is Psychotherapy?

Cedar Tree Therapy offers psychotherapy provided by Occupational Therapists in Whitby, Ontario. Virtual Sessions are available to anyone living in Ontario. You do not need a referral from a doctor to make an appointment.

Psychotherapy refers to a type of talk therapy that can come in many forms. Psychotherapy is based on the relationship and regular interactions between the client and therapist where the goal is working together towards positive change for that client.

Therapy for Anxiety

Sometimes a little anxiety can push us forward. Sharpen our focus, nudge us to prepare, and keep us safe. But there’s a line where it stops helping and starts hurting. When anxiety crosses that line it becomes heavy and constant: a pit of dread that settles in your stomach, a relentless buzzing in your mind, a thousand worrying thoughts that loop and multiply until you feel exhausted and hollow. It steals moments you used to enjoy, interrupts sleep, hurts relationships, and makes ordinary tasks feel overwhelming. You may find yourself avoiding situations, second-guessing every choice, or carrying a low-grade terror that something terrible is always about to happen.

In therapy for your anxiety, you’ll learn to identify the thoughts and patterns that fuel the anxiety, develop skills to calm the body and steady the mind, and practice new ways of responding that gradually reclaim your confidence and freedom. Over time, the pit grows shallower, the thoughts quiet, and you begin to feel like yourself again. Able to notice life’s small joys without being overshadowed by fear.

Eating Disorder Treatment in Whitby

Whether you’ve just graduated from day treatment, or if you would like to begin to model a more positive relationship with food for your young children, we work with everyone along this spectrum of disordered eating.  Together, we address feelings of not being good enough, feeling unworthy, feelings of guilt and shame for just being yourself that might be stopping you from engaging in the things you want to do. Maybe you are finding it difficult to be in a social setting without being preoccupied about your physical “imperfections”. Maybe a part of you believes the the eating disorder keeps you safe from the judgement and criticism of others. We will learn to acknowledge and work with these parts of your mind with compassion and curiosity. Dana is listed as a National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC) provider. Click here to learn more.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Treatment

You have obsessive thoughts that intrude into your mind that you feel like you can’t control. The only way you can feel safe is to engage in rituals or compulsions that calm your anxiety. Cedar Tree Therapy offers the evidence based gold standard for OCD treatment, Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) as well as adjunctive treatments such as ACT and I-CBT.
Dana is a member of the International OCD Foundation. Learn more about this here.

Therapy for Relationship Struggles

Relationship struggles might include: You are divorced or are considering divorce, are going through a separation, marriage conflicts, mother-daughter conflicts, in-law conflicts, friendship betrayal, relational trauma, among many others. If you’re feeling at a loss for what to do or how to handle certain relationships in your life, it might be time to get support with that. Maybe certain relationships have you feeling frustrated, sad and disappointed. Others seem so happy and content in their relationships and you find yourself wondering, “Why can’t that be me?” Often, it can be helpful to have a neutral third party such as a therapist assist you with being able to see these situations more clearly.

Mental Health Occupational Therapy 

Why choose a mental health Occupational Therapist that practices psychotherapy as your mental health practitioner? An Occupational Therapist brings something different to the table than standard therapist. Occupational Therapists believe that healing comes from doing, so we are naturally drawn to concrete, actionable goals. Whether it be engaging in an activity you really used to enjoy again, or working up the courage to order a coffee. Our therapy is based in doing.

Not sure what to expect in your first therapy session?

Click the link below to read more about what your first session will be like.