Treatment

We are North Grenville's leaders in the provision of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and other evidence-based therapies for children and youth (ages 4 to 18).  Therapy services may be online or a combination of online and in clinic appointments.

We offer focused research-based programs for the following conditions:

• Anxiety

• Defiant behaviour

• ADHD (organization & compliance difficulties)

• Depression

• Sleep problems (insomnia, nightmares / night terrors, and sleep-schedule issues)

• School attendance issues

• ...and others (feel free to ask)

Some frequently asked questions include: 

1. How do I know if my child/teen needs treatment or psychotherapy? 

   • If you feel upset by any of the difficulties noted above, or are repeatedly avoiding doing things at home or school, speak to your family physician or call us for a consultation with a psychologist to discuss what next-steps you may want to consider. 

   • We commit to be straight-forward with you. If we don't think therapy will help your problem at this time, we will tell you and potentially provide some information that may help instead. We specialize in providing effective treatments for common childhood mental illnesses and DO NOT offer 'supportive counselling' or 'life coaching'.

     • What is supportive counselling? This type of counselling provides an empathetic environment for the youth, often about anything they would like. There is often no 'treatment plan' per se, and 'homework' from sessions is largely optional (if given at all). We don't do this, because there's no evidence it works to decrease symptoms of depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, ADHD, and so on. 

     • Psychotherapy  on the other hand is a treatment for individuals with identified mental health concerns (or mental illness) and/or their caregivers, includes a treatment plan (so parents know exactly what to expect), and requires between-session 'homework'. It often involves to some degree both the youth and parents at some point (see below for more details). 

     • Not all psychotherapy is the same, and people often tell us that the CBT we provide is much different than the counselling or psychotherapy they've received from other counsellors / psychotherapists. This is because we tend to follow treatment guidelines and manuals tested directly in 'randomized controlled trials' and proven to work better than another type of intervention like supportive counselling. 

2. How long can I expect to be attending psychotherapy?

   • Weeks, not years! Since we offer focused, research-based programs, psychotherapy is often concluded within 6 to 12 weekly sessions, with most goals met. 

   • You will receive a treatment-plan after the initial consultation with Dr. Armstrong  so the family and therapist know how we are going to try to reach the goals, and approximately how long it will take. 

3. What does it cost? 

   • The initial 30-50 minute consultation with a psychologist is $250 (for 50 minutes), after which the psychologist will send you a consultation note so you know what our team will provide, the risks and benefits, and other things you could try. You can continue in services with us after, or discuss this plan with other providers. Your physician or other health-care professionals may also wish to view this note.

   • The charge for psychotherapy afterwards is currently $195 with a psychotherapist under supervision of Dr Armstrong. 

4. Are caregivers a part of a child's psychotherapy?

   • Yes! Depending on the concerns, parents are often crucial in helping the child. Your counsellor can tell you exactly how that looks given the child's age.  A general guideline by most pressing concern is:

     • Anxiety & mood problems: For children ages 4-12, 50-75% of sessions are child-focused. For teenagers, approximately 80% of sessions are youth-focused. For those children that can't or won't attend treatment, we also offer treatments that are exclusively parent-focused. 

     • Defiance & anger problems: For children ages 4-12, 90-100% of sessions are parent-focused. For teenagers, approximately 60% of sessions are parent-focused, 40% youth. 

     • Sleep / tics / other: Children ages 4-12, approx 75% of sessions are parent-focused. For teenagers, approximately 75% of sessions are youth-focused. 

   • Youth and young adults often ask us more questions about confidentiality. We work to include the people youth live with in their care, but that doesn't mean we tell parents specifically what was discussed without the youth's approval. 

5. How do I know I'm getting the best type of therapy for my problem?

   • Great question! Ask us, and we'll tell you what we can offer whether it is indicated for your concern (along with any risks, as well). You can also verify if the information you receive from us or any other professional is accurate by comparing it against resources from the American Psychological Association, or the American Academy of Pediatrics. 

   • Even though you will receive a well-established effective therapy (unless otherwise discussed), these therapies to not work for all people and we can't guarantee it will work for you.  Approximately 1 or 2 out of every 10 people will drop-out before the end of the program, and there are a variety of reasons the service we provide may not be the right program or time. 

6. Can you work with my child's school to decrease their aggression or defiant behaviour at school?

   • We work with parents to reduce defiant and aggressive behaviour in the home. While we can provide general recommendations for schools, we believe school-based ABA or behaviour-support services are best provided by school-based staff.