Art therapy combines psychotherapy and the creative processes of art! Art therapy can aid in self-expression, exploration, and understanding. It is appropriate for all ages.

Since children may not be able to process and express their own emotions in the adult world, the therapist joins the child in their own world, on their level. Play therapy allows the therapist to observe the child in a setting in which they are comfortable and build a strong therapeutic relationship (Pietrangelo, 2019). While the therapy may look like ordinary play, much more is being observed by the therapist!

Attachment-Based Therapy looks at early childhood relationships to determine how they have impacted you now. This approach explores how our childhood experiences have impacted our ability to create meaningful bonds in adulthood. This may address subconscious lingering issues from childhood that impact our relationships today.

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, otherwise known at DBT, focuses on two important yet opposite strategies: acceptance and change.

DBT supports that our experiences and behaviours are valid but that we can also make changes in our lives to manage our emotions in order to move forward. Using skills acquired in DBT, allows for clients to effectively cope with difficult day to day situations.

The pandemic is a new concept that one did not predict and is unsure when it will end. As a result, we have lost a sense of control, which can be distressing.

Control is being able to know how a situation will play out. It is normal to want control. It gives us a sense of structure and can take away from the anxiety that unpredictability can cause. Control can feel quite liberating! But life is unpredictable, even without the pandemic, and putting too much emphasis on control can cause a lot of other struggles for an individual.

​Bipolar disorder can be long lasting.

It affects the individual's mood, and in turn, can cause disruptions to their day to day and relationships.

Identifying and working on bipolar disorder symptoms as soon as possible can be very beneficial.

Perinatal loss includes loss in stillbirth, miscarriage, and neonatal death, which are different depending on how far the pregnancy is. Perinatal loss can create many psychological effects on a person, just as any grief. However, the social support may not be the same due to how society may perceive the loss. Also, with perinatal loss, studies struggle to find the best way to say goodbye and saying goodbye is a massive part of processing grief.

Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is more than just "eating too much" it is accompanied by the feeling of not having control when eating and feelings of guilt and distress around overeating (Marzilli, Cerniglia, & Cimino, 2018). There are many different possible causes for BED such as low self-esteem, perfectionism, lack of control in life, family factors such as a focus on weight, or disharmony in the family, or social pressure of looking a certain way (“Binge Eating: Breaking the Cycle A Self-Help Guide Towards Recovery,” 2015).

Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy Inc. offer psychotherapy and Naturopathic services at Vaughan and York region cities like Concord, Maple, Woodbridge, Kleinberg, Markham, New Market, Richmond Hill. This blog is about Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS), which is one of the many things a Naturopath Doctor, such as our in house naturopath, Dr Newry, can help with.

ADHD is Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Symptoms of ADHD present themselves in different ways. The person can seem restless, fidgety, having a hard time focusing, sensitive, irritable, and/or acts impulsively - acts without thinking through the consequences that follow (Wilens, & Spencer, 2010). ADHD can last one’s life span - the high activity and impulsiveness decreases, but those with ADHD continue to struggle with the inability to focus (Wesemann, & Van Cleve, 2018).

Sometimes one does not have the motivation to change their habits to healthier behaviour. Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy Inc. has multiple therapists in Vaughan and York region cities such as Concord, Maple, Woodbridge, Kleinberg, Markham, New Market, Richmond Hill that can assist. To learn more about motivational therapy (referred to as motivational interview) keep reading ahead.

Finding the right therapist in Vaughan and York region cities such as Concord, Maple, Woodbridge, Kleinberg, Markham, New Market, Richmond Hill can be hard, but we can help! For Individual, children family and couples counselling! We value finding good matches for a client and giving clients knowledge about mental health, which is why we post weekly blogs about mental health.

Emotion reactivity refers to long and intense emotions after certain situations. One with high emotional reactivity is not managing their emotions well – they are unable to recognize and understand if their emotional response is appropriate for the situation. There is emotional dysregulation, as their unable to maintain their emotions (Shapero, Abramson, & Alloy, 2016).

Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) typically develops during adolescence. BDD is when one cannot help but think about this believed flaw in their physical appearance, this can be any part of the body but is commonly a facial feature, skin, or hair (Singh, & Veale, 2019), or an overall feeling of being unattractive (Philips, 2004). BDD occurs around the world and similarly affects people however, the beauty standard the person is trying to reflect differs between cultures.

Mindfulness is bringing awareness to oneself and the moment (Davis, & Hayes, 2011). There are different types of Mindfulness-Based Therapy; Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction involves exercises such as yoga and meditation where clients focus on their body and breathing. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy is like Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) because it focuses on thoughts but instead of changing the thoughts, it is accepted, similar to acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), as ACT is also about acknowledging thoughts and emotions and finding peace with it (Pratikta, 2020). Mindfulness, CBT, and ACT are all modalities’ therapists at Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy Inc. are familiar with.

Social anxiety is the fear of situation where other people are present (Jefferson, 2001). There is general social anxiety, all social situations cause anxiety and non-general social anxiety, a specific type of social situation causes anxiety to a person (“Social Anxiety/Phobia,” 2019). The fear comes from the idea that others are judging and that they may embarrass themselves (Jefferson, 2001). The reason for social anxiety can be said to be evolutionary, to not misbehave in a way that will get you kicked out of the group (Jefferies, & Ungar, 2020), brain activity, family history of anxiety, or an experience such as being bullied for the way one had socialized (“Social Anxiety/Phobia,” 2019).

A cognitive distortion is an automatic thought, which is fast and does not give one time to consider logic, causing inaccuracies (Rosenfield, 2004). There are different types of cognitive dissociations.

In this video, Gauri, a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) from Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy Inc. gives quick tips on grounding oneself during a panic attack. We will look into panic disorder, a type of anxiety disorder, and how therapy can help long term.

Gratitude is the appreciation for experiences, relationships, deeds, and so forth. People have felt thankful before, but the idea we will be exploring is practicing gratitude where one consciously decides to be grateful (Ackerman, 2021). There are many ways to practice being grateful, sitting in a quiet place and thinking about what you are thankful for, writing thank you notes (whether you send it or not), or journaling, but in this post, the focus will be on journaling (“Giving Thanks Can Make You Happier,” 2021).

Self-esteem is not static, there are high and low moments for everyone, but the average is what we will be referring to in this discussion. Self-esteem is how one thinks about themselves and if they think of themselves as valuable, and worth respect from themselves and others. The therapists at Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy, promote the idea that everybody is valuable and deserve respect, no one person is better than the other (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2020).