What Makes Us Different
There are many qualified psychologists and psychotherapists in the Greater Montreal area, who have many years of experience or possess the necessary skills to help you. However, it could be helpful to you to understand what differentiates us so that you can choose the best fit for you.
First, our approach in understanding and treating a person’s struggles is different, and our ability to discern which elements of your story are essential and how they fit in the context of your struggles allow for better results. There are very few therapists out there who focus on the underlying reasons why we suffer the way we do. But we are some of the few who do. We look beyond the behaviour, and instead of telling you to change your habits, we work on the problem from the inside out. We focus on healing the source of your emotional pain first, and then, and only then, help you with establishing healthy habits.
Second, the approaches we use go beyond “just talk” – we take an active role in the work and teach new skills to truly help you make lasting changes. By teaching you how to manage your emotions, and work through your problems, you won’t need to avoid, distract or numb yourself. Because you’ve now found other ways to cope with life, and improved some of the situations that got you here in the first place, you simply won’t have as many emotional crises. Your symptoms will subside naturally, slowly at first, and when your strength recovers, you can work harder at developing healthy habits.
Symptom management and coping don’t work. Not because they are intrinsically wrong (of course having less anxiety or depression, for example, feels better than more) but because they don’t last. Many self-help books tell you what you are doing wrong and how to do it instead but depending on which one you choose, they often contradict one another which leaves you going in circles. This can be overwhelming for anyone, and can lead to more helplessness than you started with.
By working with us, you’ll not only break free from your emotional and psychological ailments, but you’ll become happier, healthier and more in tune with life. You’ll get to the true cause of your struggles, solving the problem at its root instead of on the surface. The changes will be lasting, meaning you’ll be free of the pain and suffering that’s been holding you back. A major side-effect of this process is that you’ll actually become a better, more well-adjusted person, which will affect everything else in your life, including your relationship with yourself and others.
In the end, you get to decide. Are you finally ready to have a more meaningful and fulfilling life that isn’t help back or consumed by cycles of emotional ups and downs? It won’t be easy and you will probably want to give up. You will likely face difficult emotions, memories or facts about yourself along the way. It will take a lot of hard work, and it will take time. But it will work, and you will get the results that you want and so much more. And besides, what’s the alternative? In many ways, by not healing your emotional pain, you’re setting yourself up for years of emotional, psychological and relational struggles, and even more pain. After all, don’t you deserve better?