- (249) 516-6398
- 420 George St N, Peterborough, ON K9H 3R5
You’re still showing up. Still submitting assignments, still making it to class, still functioning by most definitions of the word. But something isn’t right, and you know it.
Maybe you can’t focus the way you used to. Maybe the anxiety that was manageable in high school has become a background hum that won’t quit. Maybe you’re not depressed exactly, just flat, going through the motions without knowing why things that used to feel worthwhile now feel like effort.
Or maybe things have genuinely started to unravel: grades slipping, relationships strained, motivation gone, and you’re not sure how you got here.
Either way, this is exactly what therapy is for. Not just crisis. Anywhere between “deep struggle”, “fine” and “great” is a legitimate place to get help.
The stakes feel higher than they ever have. One bad exam, one failed course feels like it could unravel everything. We work on what’s actually in your control, your preparation, your response to pressure, your ability to recover, and separate that from the outcome spiral burning your energy before you’ve even sat down.
University and college remove most of the external structure that kept things manageable in high school. No one’s checking in, no one’s reminding you, and the flexibility that sounds like freedom can become paralysis. This work isn’t about trying harder. It’s about building systems that work with how your brain actually operates, not against it.
You’re supposed to know what you want. Everyone around you seems to. But the more you look at the path ahead, the less certain you feel, about your program, your relationships, who you actually are outside of who you’ve been told to be. That uncertainty is normal, and working through it with someone who won’t rush you toward an answer is more useful than it sounds.
It doesn’t always look like crisis from the outside (sometimes it does!) The kind that looks like sleeping too much, skipping things you used to enjoy, watching your own life from a slight distance. We work on releasing the thoughts and actions that maintain it, not just how to push through it.
CBT and DBT are practical by design, understanding the patterns driving your experience and building real skills to change them. That’s a good fit for students, who generally want to understand what’s happening and have something concrete to work with, not just a place to vent.
The Stoic philosophy behind my work is especially useful here. What’s actually in my control, and what am I wasting energy on, is one of the most useful questions a student under pressure can sit with. It doesn’t make the pressure disappear. It changes your relationship to it.
I also spent twenty years working with young people before I became a therapist. I’m not going to pathologize normal growing pains, and I’m not going to minimize real struggle.
My office is in Peterborough, close to both Trent and Fleming, for in-person sessions. I also offer online and phone sessions for students anywhere in Ontario, which works well during exams, reading weeks, or when you’re home for the summer and want to keep the continuity going.
My practice is private pay. Many students are covered in part or in full through a parent’s benefits plan or their own student insurance, it’s worth checking before you assume it’s out of reach. What you’re looking for is coverage for a “Registered Psychotherapist”. If you’d like to talk through fees before booking, that’s a completely reasonable thing to bring up in the free consultation.
This Approach May Be a Good Fit If You:
• Are a Trent or Fleming student, or a young adult in Peterborough or anywhere in Ontario
• Are functioning on the outside but running on empty on the inside
• Are dealing with anxiety, ADHD, low motivation, or a loss of direction
• Want practical tools, not just someone to listen, though there’s space for that too
• Have tried to push through on your own and it hasn’t been enough
• Are ready to understand what’s driving the pattern, not just manage the symptoms
The free consultation is a no-pressure conversation, a chance to ask questions, talk about what’s going on, and see if this feels like the right fit.
