Individual Psychological Treatment Services
Online and In-Person
The Vancouver CBT Centre provides individual private (fee for service) assessment and psychological treatment for adults and teens experiencing anxiety, depression, and associated problems. Our services are available either in-person at our office or online via a secure network.
Our clinical team all have specialized training in CBT and other evidence-based therapies, as well as in treating complex or severe anxiety and depression. We also offer CBT for psychosis (and related disorders) and chronic disease/pain management. Below is a listing of the services we offer:
Depression
Depression is a mood disorder characterized by severe low mood and a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed, persisting most of the day, every day. Symptoms include changes in appetite and sleep, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness, concentration difficulties, and suicidal thoughts. Dysthymia is a milder, chronic form of depression lasting at least two years, with occasional brief periods of normal mood. Unlike normal sadness, both depression and dysthymia significantly impact daily functioning and relationships, casting a persistent dark cloud over one’s life.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) involves excessive worry about daily life events, with persistent “what if?” thoughts. People with GAD experience physical symptoms like restlessness, irritability, fatigue, muscle tension, and sleep problems. Despite often leading successful lives, they frequently feel melancholy and exhausted, always anticipating negative future events.
Illness Anxiety Disorder/Health Anxiety (Hypochondriasis)
Illness Anxiety Disorder, or Health Anxiety, involves an excessive fear of having a serious illness. People with this condition frequently consult doctors and check symptoms online. Despite brief relief from medical reassurance, they persistently scan for disease symptoms. This constant worry can lead to frustration and feeling less taken seriously by healthcare professionals.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is characterized by frequent and unwanted obsessions and repetitive and time-consuming compulsions.
Obsessions can be experienced as thoughts, ideas, images and/or urges that are difficult if not impossible to control. Compulsions are behaviors or acts that people feel driven to perform to reduce the anxiety related to the obsession and/or the possibility of harm. Common presentations include fears of contamination and excessive washing, repetitive doubting and checking, superstitious rituals, and repulsive unacceptable intrusions. These behaviors are time-consuming, distressing, and interfere with daily life, often leading to shame, concealment of symptoms and avoidance.
Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)
Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours (trichotillomania, compulsive skin picking)
Panic Disorder with or without Agoraphobia
Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder marked by unexpected panic attacks with symptoms like a racing heart, shortness of breath, sweating, and dizziness. These attacks often make individuals fear they’re having a heart attack or losing control. This fear leads to extreme anxiety about future attacks and may result in agoraphobia, avoiding places where escape might be difficult. Unlike occasional panic attacks triggered by stress or specific fears, panic disorder involves a persistent fear of the attacks themselves.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder triggered by traumatic events like assaults, accidents, combat, or natural disasters. Symptoms fall into three clusters: reliving the trauma through nightmares or flashbacks, avoidance of reminders, and heightened arousal like hypervigilance and irritability. While trauma is a prerequisite for PTSD, not everyone who experiences trauma develops it. Persistent anxiety symptoms lasting over a month post-trauma may indicate PTSD.
Social Anxiety Disorder
Social anxiety disorder is characterized by an excessive fear of social situations where one might be judged or negatively evaluated. Individuals with this disorder fear embarrassment and being perceived as foolish or boring, leading them to avoid situations like talking to strangers, socializing, participating in meetings, and being assertive. They may also fear daily tasks like eating or writing in front of others. Unlike normal shyness, social anxiety is more severe and can result in missed opportunities and social isolation.
Specific Phobias
Specific Phobia is an anxiety disorder involving an excessive and unrealistic fear of a particular situation, place, object, or event, leading to avoidance or extreme distress. Common phobias include needles, flying, animals, heights, enclosed spaces, and medical procedures. Unlike common fears, specific phobias significantly impact daily life, causing people to avoid essential activities like medical tests, dental visits, or eating solid foods.
Psychosis
Psychosis is the experience of losing touch with reality, which can include hearing or seeing things that others can’t, sensing that others are plotting to hurt you, believing that you possess extraordinary powers, or other unusual beliefs and experiences that may be difficult for others to accept. Psychosis may be associated with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or other serious mental health challenges.
Chronic Disease/Pain Management
Medical problems can be a significant source of stress in one’s life, having both a physical and a psychological impact. Some of the psychological challenges associated with medical illness include adjusting to major changes in lifestyle, dealing with high levels of uncertainty, and managing physical pain and discomfort. When health issues become more persistent or chronic, the toll on mental health can become even greater. In this case, individuals with chronic illness and/or pain may benefit from psychological treatment in addition to medical care.