Relational Therapists in Ottawa, ON

Geneviève Fontaine

Geneviève Fontaine

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual In-Person

Hi, I'm Geneviève! I offer individual counselling and psychotherapy for adults. My approach to therapy is guided by the belief that every individual deserves meaningful human connection: to be seen, to be heard, and to be acknowledged. As a queer therapist, my role is to provide guidance, support, and practical tools that empower individuals to make choices that enhance their well-being.

Signy Fridriksson

Signy Fridriksson

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual In-Person

It takes a lot of courage to start a healing journey! I listen with empathy and respect as you explore the challenges that life has brought you. I am known to be warm, calm and non-judgmental. I provide a safe, reassuring environment, allowing you to grow in self-awareness, self-compassion and a sense of hope.

Zarifa Andani

Zarifa Andani

MPCC-P, RTC-C

Virtual

This work isn’t about fixing your parts—it’s about helping you feel more like your whole self again. We can work together to slow down, get curious, and listen deeply. Our internal body wisdom is an integral source of information that speaks more significantly than words. Real change is possible when ALL of you feels safe enough to be seen and supported, just as you are.

Shayesteh Zarieh

Shayesteh Zarieh

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

Let’s be honest—starting therapy isn’t always a bold, empowered choice. Sometimes it’s a quiet, messy, or reluctant one. Maybe you’re simply tired of pretending everything’s fine. This space is for the parts of you that don’t have to be impressive, productive, or put-together. The parts that are unsure, grieving, angry, numb, or just curious about what else is possible.

Jillian Ivany

Jillian Ivany

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

Life can feel overwhelming, leaving you anxious, disconnected, or stuck in painful patterns. I offer Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy in a warm, non-judgmental space where all parts of you are welcome. Together we explore your inner world with curiosity to support healing, clarity, and connection to yourself and others. I offer virtual/in person session. Free 15min consultations available.

Sophie Cohen

Sophie Cohen

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

Trauma-informed therapy available virtually

Haley Moore

Haley Moore

Registered Social Worker (RSW)

Virtual

Welcome to Therapy Uninterrupted, where your mental well-being is our top priority. We understand that life can be challenging, and sometimes we all need a little extra support. As a team of dedicated clinicians, we are here to help you navigate through your journey and find the strength within yourself to heal and grow.

Loreana La Civita

Loreana La Civita

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

I’m a Registered Psychotherapist in Ontario offering trauma-informed, attachment-based therapy for teens and adults. I support clients navigating anxiety, OCD, disordered eating, emotional dysregulation, and neurodivergence (ADHD/autism). My style is warm, collaborative, and insight-oriented, blending depth work with practical tools.

Carolyn Holmes

Carolyn Holmes

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

Offering affordable virtual sessions for infertility, ADHD, PMDD, grief/loss, stress, anxiety, and depression. Trained in DBT, CBT, humanistic/client led, solution focused, narrative therapy approaches. A warm, open counsellor to help with immediate availability.

Katharine De Santos

Katharine De Santos

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

Healthy Minds Psychotherapy was founded in 2018 with the mission of providing psychotherapeutic care to individuals from diverse backgrounds, fostering resilience in each person and our community as a whole.

Laura Atkinson

Laura Atkinson

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

I offer a warm, down-to-earth space to explore what’s really going on beneath the surface. I support adults navigating anxiety, overwhelm, self-doubt, and life transitions (like pregnancy and parenthood). Together, we’ll make sense of your emotions and help you feel more connected to yourself and those around you — one step at a time.

Mara Behan

Mara Behan

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)

Virtual

I help couples and individuals find growth, healing, and stronger connections. Using evidence-based and individualized approaches, I support those struggling with women's health concerns (e.g., pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, menopause), relationship concerns (e.g., resentment, infidelity), and life transitions (e.g., separation/divorce, parenting). I offer a free 15-minute consultation!

Nora Shapiro

Nora Shapiro

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

I'm a psychotherapist offering services both in-person (Toronto) and virtual (across Ontario). My focus areas include depression, anxiety, meaning, identity, relationship/family issues, values & ambitions, LGBTQ2IA+ mental health, gender, ADHD, and creativity & artistic practice. We can work to open new perspectives, build resilience, and create meaningful change for a more fulfilling life.

Rae Jardine

Rae Jardine

MA, RSSW, CC-PMH

Virtual

I'm currently accepting new virtual clients in Ontario as well as in-person clients in Toronto with immediate availability and no waitlist, including limited sliding scale spaces. Trauma, Perinatal, 2SLGBTQQIA+, Neurodivergence

Lisa O’Donovan

Lisa O’Donovan

Registered Psychotherapist

Virtual

I offer Psychodynamic, trauma-informed therapy for adults and couples in-person in Burlington and virtually. I support clients navigating complex trauma, relationship difficulties, addiction and recovery, family dysfunction, and life transitions helping to uncover and understand emotional and relational patterns, process experiences, build greater self-awareness in a safe, compassionate space.

Carol D.B. Whaley

Carol D.B. Whaley

Psychotherapist

Virtual

I am a Vancouver based Psychotherapist in a diverse and inclusive Private Practice offering both in person and virtual sessions. I have over 22 years of extensive clinical experience working with individuals, couples, families and groups. I work with all ages on any issues that are getting in the way of the client experiencing life to its fullest in the very personal way they want to live.

Jessica DeMille

Jessica DeMille

Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), MACP, B.Sc (Hons)

Virtual

I work with individuals, couples, families, and children (10+), providing a safe, supportive space for exploration and growth. Using an integrative, client-centered approach, I help clients navigate anxiety, depression, relationships, and life transitions, fostering resilience, self-awareness, and meaningful change. Together, we explore tools and strategies to support emotional well-being.

Maria Yaglovski

Maria Yaglovski

Registered Psychotherapist/ Canadian Certified Counsellor

Virtual

Hi, I’m Maria, a Registered Psychotherapist and Canadian Certified Counsellor. I provide a supportive, non-judgmental space to explore patterns, beliefs, and challenges. Through mindfulness and evidence-based approaches, I help you gain clarity, shift perspective, and create meaningful, lasting change.

Megan Gauthier

Megan Gauthier

Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist

Virtual

*Accepting new client in-person in Guelph and virtually across Ontario* Therapy for people who struggle with self-doubt, overthinking, and repeating painful relationship patterns.

Therapy Collective

Therapy Collective

Registered Psychologist/Counselling Therapist/Certified Counsellor

Virtual

We are a group practice with psychologists, CCC's, CT's, and a therapy dog who offer counselling and formal psycho-educational assessments. We cover a broad range of presenting concerns for children, youth, families, couples, and individuals. We offer a variety of approaches as well: EMDR, Cognitive-Hypnotherapy, Art Therapy, Play-Based Therapy, Internal Family Systems, Attachment-Based, Somatic.

How do therapists in Ottawa, ON compare?

Number of therapists listed

58

Average years in practice

5.9 Years

Currently accepting new clients

98 %

Therapists in Ottawa, ON who prioritize treating:

72% Anxiety
62% Relationship Issues
59% Trauma and PTSD
40% Depression
36% Emotional Dysregulation
33% Self Esteem
26% Stress
24% Grief

How therapists see their clients

7% In Person & Online
91% Online Only
2% In Person Only

Top therapy approaches used in Ottawa, ON:

100% Relational
67% Trauma Focused
67% Attachment-based
62% Person-Centered
60% Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
57% Internal Family Systems (IFS)
52% Cognitive Behavioural (CBT)
52% Psychodynamic

Frequently Asked Questions About Relational

What is relational therapy?

Relational therapy is a broad orientation in psychotherapy that places the therapeutic relationship at the centre of therapeutic change. Drawing on relational psychoanalysis, attachment theory, and interpersonal neurobiology, it understands psychological wellbeing and suffering as fundamentally relational — arising within relationships and healed within relationships. The quality of the connection between therapist and client — characterized by attunement, genuine presence, and authentic engagement — is itself therapeutic, not merely a vehicle for delivering techniques.

What distinguishes relational therapy from other approaches?

Relational therapy differs from classical psychoanalysis in acknowledging that the therapist is not a neutral blank screen — the therapist's own subjectivity is recognized and is part of the therapeutic field. It differs from CBT in that the relationship is the primary focus, not techniques. Relational therapists attend carefully to what happens in the therapeutic relationship in the moment — ruptures, repairs, moments of connection, and the enactments of the client's relational patterns within the therapy room. Authenticity and genuine contact matter more than neutrality.

What issues does relational therapy address?

Relational therapy is particularly suited to attachment difficulties, relationship patterns (repeating the same dynamics across different relationships), depression and anxiety with relational roots, the effects of early neglect or emotional unavailability (which often produce less visible but deeply felt wounds), personality difficulties, and the long-term effects of relational trauma. It is also valuable for people who have found more technique-focused therapies insufficient or who crave genuine human connection as part of their healing.

What is the role of the therapeutic relationship in relational therapy?

In relational therapy, the therapeutic relationship is not just the container for delivering treatment — it is the treatment. When a client who has been hurt in relationships encounters a therapist who is consistently attentive, honest, and genuinely caring, the experience itself begins to create new relational expectations. Ruptures in the therapeutic relationship (misattunements, misunderstandings) are important opportunities — the therapist acknowledges them and repairs them, modeling how ruptures can be repaired in ways the client may never have experienced.

Is relational therapy evidence-based?

The therapeutic alliance — the quality of the relationship between therapist and client — is one of the most robust predictors of therapy outcome across all approaches, supported by decades of research. Relational therapy is the approach most explicitly organized around this finding. While "relational therapy" as a distinct modality is harder to study in randomized trials than manualized approaches, the relational factors it prioritizes have the strongest evidence of any component of psychotherapy.