Ground & Growth Therapy

Autism is often still imagined through a narrow set of stereotypes: a young boy who avoids eye contact, has obvious social difficulties, dislikes change, and has intense interests in things like trains, numbers, or technology. While this presentation can be true for some autistic people, it does not capture the full range of autistic experience. In particular, autism in women and girls is frequently missed, misunderstood, or diagnosed much later in life (Kreiser & White, 2014

When people think about ADHD, they often think about difficulty focusing, forgetfulness, procrastination, or hyperactivity. What gets talked about far less is the emotional side of ADHD, the part many people quietly carry for years without fully understanding. For many individuals, ADHD is not just about attention. It is also about shame. Frustration. Emotional overwhelm. Feeling deeply affected by criticism. Feeling “too much” in relationships, but somehow also feeling like

Many people describe overthinking as feeling trapped inside their own mind. A conversation is replayed again and again. A small decision becomes exhausting. A text message is analyzed from every possible angle. A mistake from the past suddenly feels impossible to let go of. Even when part of you knows that thinking more is not helping, your mind keeps returning to the same questions: What if I made the wrong choice? What if they are upset with me? Why did I say that? What doe

For many military members, veterans, first responders, and public safety personnel, psychological distress does not come from a single “bad day.” It can build over time through repeated exposure to danger, loss, high-stakes decisions, traumatic events, and situations where a person is required to keep functioning even when their nervous system is overwhelmed. The term operational stress injury, often shortened to OSI, was developed in Canadian military and public safety conte

Walking into a therapy session for the first time can feel surprisingly intimidating. Many people assume they should arrive with a perfectly organized explanation of their problems — a clear timeline, a polished narrative, or a complete understanding of why they feel the way they do. Some even worry they need to “prove” that their struggles are serious enough to deserve support. In reality, therapy rarely begins with certainty. As therapists, we often meet people at moments w

Over the past several years, virtual therapy has shifted from being viewed as a temporary alternative to becoming a well-established form of mental health care. What has surprised many clinicians, however, is not simply that therapy can work online, it is that some people appear to open up more in virtual sessions than they do in traditional face-to-face therapy. Research on telepsychology increasingly suggests that therapeutic alliance, the sense of trust, collaboration, and

When people search for support from ptsd therapists ottawa, one of the most common questions they ask is: “How do I know whether I have PTSD, complex PTSD, or anxiety?” These terms are often used interchangeably online, but clinically, they are not the same thing. While there can be overlap in symptoms, such as difficulty sleeping, irritability, racing thoughts, hypervigilance, or avoidance, the underlying mechanisms, causes, and treatment approaches can differ significantly.

One of the most common misconceptions about autism is the idea that special interests are simply “obsessions.” From a clinical perspective, that framing is often inaccurate—and at times harmful. While autistic special interests can be intense, deeply focused, and emotionally significant, they are frequently sources of joy, regulation, identity, learning, and connection rather than symptoms that need to be eliminated. For many autistic individuals, special interests are not ju

Trauma is often misunderstood as simply “something bad that happened.” Clinically, trauma refers to experiences that overwhelm a person’s ability to cope, leaving the nervous system reacting as though danger may still be present long after the event has ended. Many people living with trauma describe: feeling constantly on edge struggling to relax, even in safe situations emotional numbness during conflict feeling disconnected from their body intense anxiety without knowing wh

Many adults do not begin to question whether they may have ADHD until years of struggling with burnout, chronic overwhelm, anxiety, work instability, relationship stress, or a persistent sense that everyday life feels harder for them than it appears to for other people. In clinical practice, this is increasingly common. What is often described as “late-onset ADHD” is usually better understood as late recognition. The symptoms were frequently present all along, but they were o

Therapy for Level 1 autism often focuses on challenges that may not always be obvious from the outside. Many individuals with Level 1 autism are able to manage school, work, relationships, or independent living while still struggling internally with anxiety, sensory overload, masking, burnout, executive functioning difficulties, emotional exhaustion, or chronic stress. Because of this, therapy for Level 1 autism is usually less about teaching basic life skills and more about

PTSD counselling Ottawa services are designed to help individuals regain a sense of stability after overwhelming or traumatic experiences. Many people who seek support describe not just distress, but a deeper feeling that their mind and body are no longer responding in predictable ways. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is best understood not as a weakness, but as an adaptive response. The brain learns quickly in the presence of threat. For some, the difficulty is that it

If you are searching for Depression Ottawa, you are likely looking for effective, local solutions to manage depression and start feeling better. Ottawa offers a wide range of therapy options, and understanding how each one works can help you choose the right support for your needs. Depression is complex and affects people differently, which is why therapy is not one-size-fits-all. Some approaches focus on changing thought patterns, while others explore emotions, identity, or

Virtual therapy significantly expands access to care, reaching remote or underserved patients, including individuals living in rural areas or those with mobility limitations (Canadian Psychological Association [CPA], 2023). It also improves continuity of care. One large study found that after telehealth adoption, patients experienced fewer gaps between therapy sessions, with median intervals dropping from 27 days to 14 days, and clients were more likely to return for follow-u