Mental Health Counselling

We are a collective of therapists with diverse backgrounds and areas of practice. We support Adults and Youth (12+) with mental health and recovery. We offer services in person in Calgary & Airdrie and virtual services across Alberta, Yukon, and New Brunswick. We are honoured that you are here and considering working with us. Please take the time to learn more about us below and see how we can help.

Mental Health Counselling
Services in Calgary & Airdrie

We Can Help You With:

  • Trauma & PTSD (using EMDR & Accelerated Resolution Therapy)
  • Anxiety & OCD
  • Problem behaviours (substances, gambling, eating disorders, codependency, media, etc.)
  • Depression & Mood Issues
  • Neurodivergence (ADHD & OCD)
  • Grief and Loss
  • Anger
  • Self-Esteem
  • Life Transitions
  • Stress
  • General Wellness

Book an Appointment With Us Today.

It would be an honour and pleasure to meet with you and discuss your journey of change, regardless of where you are at.

A FREE 15 minute consultation or full appointment can be scheduled through the online scheduling system anytime.

How Do You Know If You Need Help?

Mental health counselling is available to anyone at anytime. You can be in crisis, stable, or looking for ongoing continuing care. Mental health counselling is an opportunity to meet with a professional who is empathetic, non-judgmental, and there to support you in processing emotions and collaborating around strategies to help you support yourself.

At A Glance: Self Check

Have you struggled with any of these experiences in the past 3 months?

If you indicated that you are experiencing 2 or more of these symptoms within the past three months, then it would be important to explore mental health care and counselling.

These symptoms only tend to appear as mental health challenges progress. While they may still be minimal and mild for you, it would be best to get proper support to prevent the progression of these symptoms.

If you did not identify with any of these and are interested in counselling, great! It sounds like you are looking to be proactive and preventative with your health. We would be happy to help in either situation.

Our Treatment Approach

Our practitioners are all multi-dimensional and use a variety of treatment approaches to support change.

These therapeutic modalities may include:

  • Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
  • Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
  • Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART)
  • EMDR
  • Exposure Response Prevention
  • Gottman Method
  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
  • Solution-Focused Therapy
  • Narrative Therapy
  • Motivational Interviewing
  • 12-Step Facilitation Therapy and SMART Recovery training
  • Mindfulness
  • Internal Family Systems (IFS)

What Happens in Sessions?

You can anticipate that the first one to two sessions will involve gathering as much background information as possible about you, including, strengths, coping network and tools, as well as problems and challenges. Information is key to providing you with customized support and recommendations.

We are here to work with you to improve and maintain quality of life. If we encounter experiences that we are unable to help with, our practitioners will provide recommendations and resources so that you can continue your mental health journey.

For Family & loved ones

Mental health counselling can involve concerned family members or friends who want to participate in the process. This often means a joint appointment or series of appointments to establish healthy communication and boundaries that are optimal for support and mental health. Sometimes this will mean that the loved one comes in for their own support in conjunction with their loved one receiving support.

Sometimes we want to change before our loved one does and, rather than wait for them to do something, we would encourage you to consider supporting yourself in order to support those you care about. Living with and around mental health challenges is draining and can impact the healthiest of us and cause relationship issues. There is no shame in admitting that you are in need of some additional support at this time. In fact, it is a sign of strength and courage to acknowledge this and be open to outside support.

Sana Psychological would be happy to support you and your loved ones in improving your mental health.

Logistics

Counselling appointments are available in person in Calgary & Airdrie and/or through Virtual Counselling (video or phone sessions) in Alberta, Yukon, and New Brunswick. We invite you to contact us if you are interested in out of province support.

Payments that are accepted at Sana Psychological include cash, credit card, e-transfer, and direct billing with a number of insurance carriers (availability varies by practitioner).

No referral is needed. FREE 15 Minute Consultations and Appointments can be scheduled online at anytime. You are also welcome to email or phone us with additional questions and/or to book an appointment. We will aim to offer you timely appointments with our providers; however, this may vary depending on scheduling needs, chosen provider, and other factors.

Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate walk-ins or provide drop-in, 24/7, or crisis services.

Book an Appointment With Us Today.

It would be an honour and pleasure to meet with you and discuss your journey of change, regardless of where you are at.

A FREE 15 Minute Consultation or appointment can be scheduled through the online scheduling system 24/7.

We look forward to connecting with you!

Man talking to woman therapist.

Frequently Asked Questions

A: If this is on your mind, it might be worth talking to somebody. Anyone can benefit from counselling and we all have mental health. Nobody’s mental health is perfect and we all need to work on certain things from time to time. We like the ‘dental model’ of counselling- come in for periodic check-ins to ensure things are on track and you are living in accordance with your goals and health, rather than waiting for a crisis to hit. Certainly, if there is an acute crisis, that is an important point to seek support but being proactive has a lot of benefits for people.

A: If they are someone that you are close to and you feel comfortable sharing your observations and concerns in an assertive, compassionate, non-judgmental, non-controlling way, then this can be a helpful action step to take. However, sharing your concerns does not guarantee any change will happen on their part. We recommend that concerned loved ones engage in their own self-development and recovery. This supports you in your life and prevents burnout and drain, while also providing helpful modelling to those around you. When your loved one is ready, they will take the necessary steps to look after themselves. Counselling can help focus on appropriate boundaries, how to be a true support rather than controller or enabler, and developing healthy communication during a difficult time.

A: We hope we can help and offer something different than what you have encountered before. Obviously with counselling, there are no guarantees, but it is our hope to draw in our professional education, experience as well as lived experiences to best support you. All of our practitioners are passionate about drawing from evidence-based, modern counselling methods to support change. We aim to provide real world strategies and tools that you can incorporate in a practical way to support yourself. We can’t ensure that this experience with counselling will be different, but we will certainly try!

A: We wish that there was a way to step through or over the history gathering but that is an essential part of the counselling process. While we may not spend a lot of time focusing on the past if that does not fit with your goals or priorities, it may come up as we get to know you. We also like to understand people’s current life and context- their work/education, relationships, hobbies, coping, and so forth so that we can build on that. We will not jump into areas that you are not comfortable with and sometimes that can ease the pressure that comes with stepping into a new relationship with a new provider. If you decide to seek support from another therapist on the Sana Psychological team, with your permission your client notes can be shared with that provider which also helps reduce the amount of history taking and ‘getting to know you’ that needs to happen.

A: All of our providers have their own unique educational, professional, and personal history which combines to form something special. Some of our providers identify as BIPOC, others who are in recovery, some have had previous careers in other sectors, and more. Every provider is different in terms of what they are bringing to the connection. This intersection of personal and professional eclecticism is unique. We invite you to read through the bios of each of our team members on the About page and if you see someone that you are interested in, we hope that you’ll get in touch to learn more. 

A: No. Self-referrals are all that is required. We work with adults and youth age 12+ to improve health and wellness. Many of our clients’ experiences would not warrant a diagnosis or psychiatric label, yet they find a lot of benefit from the work that we do to improve their overall quality of life.

A: Our practitioners are counselling, not assessment, specialists. An informal assessment is done by every clinician in therapy; however, if you are looking for a diagnosis then we would encourage you to seek out a professional psychological assessment as this will include a more extensive clinical interview and psychological testing

A: Mental health tends to ebb and flow for people. There are natural periods where symptoms are more intense and harder to navigate, and times where things subside. Counselling can help prolong the quieter, less active periods and reduce the intensity of flare-ups. We obviously cannot guarantee what your personal outcomes will be since we have not even met yet! Change depends on a lot of individual factors combined with the therapeutic relationship and tools being recommended. If you show up with openness and willingness, there is a great chance that helpful change will occur for you.

A: For some people they are and there will be periods of greater activity followed by times of remission. For others, mental health symptoms may be in reaction to an acute stressor and subside after the stressor subsides. Time and experience will provide more information about which of the categories applies to you.

What's Next?

Information: You can learn about us through our website and schedule a FREE 15 minute consultation with your prospective therapist or an appointment online. If you are looking for more information, email or call us and we will get back to you Monday-Thursday

Forms: We aim to be paperless and send out initial consent forms to be completed electronically prior to your first appointment.

First Appointment: Mental health counselling usually begins with an initial appointment to gather background information and learn more about your goals.

Follow-up Sessions: Ongoing sessions generally involve the implementation of specific interventions and may include supportive suggestions and recommendations for you outside of the counselling sessions. This might include resources to read, activities to try, and/or questions to reflect on.

How Often Do Sessions Occur? Session frequency will be collaboratively decided between you and your therapist, taking into account your schedule, time needed for implementation of strategies, and benefits coverage.