Psychotherapy

When people seek help from a psychologist, it is not because they want things to stay the same – it is because they want things to change. Psychotherapy is “talk therapy”, a term for a range of therapies that can help with emotional challenges and mental health issues. Typically, the goal of psychotherapy is to help clients to understand and change certain habitual and/or maladaptive patterns of thinking, feeling and/or behaving. Psychologists are trained to ask thoughtful questions that facilitate meaningful discussions, to help people find new ways of looking at, and dealing with, past problems. Confidentiality plays an essential role in helping clients to feel comfortable and safe to disclose and discuss personal information

Significant challenges, struggles and obstacles in our lives can be difficult to discuss, even with close friends or family members, much less to work through and resolve.  Engaging in psychotherapy offers an opportunity to discuss troubling personal issues in a safe, non-judgmental environment. It can help people get “unstuck” and start to move toward positive change.

It is common for people to disconnect, or lose touch with their strengths when they are not feeling their best.  Typically, old patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving no longer work, and people need to acquire new skills to help them get unstuck and move forward. Dr. Seidman helps her clients to access and reconnect with their strengths as a way to work through and resolve their difficulties.  While in treatment, clients tend to improve their coping and stress management skills, and have more control over their thoughts, emotions and behaviours.

Onward Psychology Clinic uses evidence-based therapies such as Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) with adjuncts to psychotherapy when deemed appropriate. Adjuncts to psychotherapy can include training in mindfulness, meditation, brain training and yoga.

Dr. Seidman is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200) with Yoga Alliance, which acknowledges the completion of a 200-hour Hatha/Vinyasa Flow yoga teacher training (YTT) with a Registered Yoga School (RYS). Dr. Seidman has an interest in integrating gentle yoga with breathwork and trauma-informed yoga into her practice. “Why yoga?”, one might ask. Yoga has been recognized for its healing and therapeutic benefits for thousands of years. Our minds and bodies are intricately connected; when the body is out of alignment, the mind may be imbalanced. The word “yoga” means “union” — the union of mind, body and spirit.  Yoga integrates the body and the mind, helping to restore balance and feelings of calmness and well-being.