Clinicians at QPS offer psychotherapy (i.e., treatment) and assessment for:

  • Anxiety (panic attacks, social anxiety, separation anxiety, specific phobias, generalized anxiety)
  • Depression, low mood, and low self-esteem
  • Post-traumatic stress (PTSD)
  • Obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCD)
  • Trichotillomania
  • Body dysmorphia
  • Grief
  • Life transitions and work stress
  • Parenting challenges (see also the children and youth services page)
  • Relationship, sexual, and interpersonal problems (see also the couple services page)
  • Learning disabilities/disorders (see also the psychoeducational assessments page)
  • Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (see also the psychoeducational assessments page)
  • Intellectual disabilities
  • Autism spectrum

What to expect

Your clinician will strive to understand the nature of your current concerns during the initial meetings. Sometimes questionnaires and psychological measures are used to better understand your behaviours and social-emotional functioning. Your clinician will typically ask for:

  • Your description of the problem (for example, when did the problem start, what makes it better or worse, how does the problem affect your work, school and social life)
  • Information about your personal background (for example, details about your experiences growing up, education and work history, marital status and interpersonal relationships)
  • Health history (for example, review of any past or present medical conditions, the use of medication, alcohol or drugs)

Your clinician will review his/her overall clinical impressions with you and together (if continuing with intervention services) you will establish goals and outline a treatment plan.

The duration of services will vary depending on factors such as the nature of presenting concerns and goals of intervention. Most often, clients and clinicians meet weekly for 50 minutes, but sessions may become more spread out toward the latter stages of treatment and may be shorter or longer in duration, depending on your needs. After finishing intervention services, it is not uncommon for clients to return for occasional “booster” sessions.