Fika Mental Health

At Fika, you can expect a non-judgemental space where your needs and goals are treated as unique - never a "one-size-fits-all" approach. For some people, therapy lasts an average of 6 to 8 sessions, but for others, this might be more (and you're welcome to as many as you need). You are never forced to share more than you are ready, and you are always in control of the pace of your work. Your therapist will do their best to provide a space for your experiences and difficulties to feel heard, and to discuss past experiences/daily life, teach coping skills and tools, and educate you. Our hope is that your work with us leaves you feeling more empowered, more self-aware, and more able to understand your feelings, thoughts, urges, and actions. Outcomes in therapy are never "guaranteed" as these experiences are subjective to each individual.

As psychotherapists, social workers, and counsellors, we do not diagnose but our Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner is able to assess and diagnose mental health conditions. Your therapist is able to assess for certain issues, but only at an informational level, or for measurement purposes. You do not need a diagnosis with us to begin therapy. If you are interested in diagnosis, you may choose to begin therapeutic work together, and we can help you find the resources to seek out this out. You do not require a referral to get started.

Psychotherapists, counsellors, and social workers are commonly covered under insurance benefit plans, but this is plan-dependent. Please check with your insurance provider to see which clinicians you have coverage for prior to beginning therapy. We do not bill directly, but always provide accurate receipts for you to submit to your provider afterwards.

When it comes to psychotherapy/counselling - very minimal! Our clinicians are all licensed by their appropriate provincial governing bodies, and some provinces have different titles used for the practice of psychotherapy/counselling. All of our therapists have, or are currently at the end of completing, education at the Masters degree level, and are trained and supervised in a way that would create the foundation for what we hope is a positive therapy experience.

If you are looking to explore a diagnosis for something like ADHD, we are happy to support you in how to begin the assessment process and what you may want to have to support diagnostic appointments with our Nurse Practitioner. We also recommend beginning therapy while exploring this, as this allows us to provide you with education and understanding, suggest and teach daily coping skills, and build self-esteem.

EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing, is a type of therapy that was developed by Francine Shapiro and has shown strong success in accessing and processing difficult or traumatic memories, experiences and beliefs, creating a more adaptive or "neutral" feeling afterwards. This is done through a series of "back and forth" movements of the eyes, tapping of the hands, or sounds, and assists in reorganizing the "stuck" memories we have stored in the wrong place in our brain, back to where they no longer feel triggering. We also provide relaxation and grounding tools through EMDR prior to beginning processing.

Therapists are trained to provide you with a neutral space, education, help you build skills and awareness, and meet your overall wellbeing goals. Because we aren't a friend in your day-to-day life, we do not come in with the same biases or judgement that someone close to you might already have.