Questions people usually ask first.

Clinical counselling is a structured therapeutic process delivered by a trained practitioner. Sessions provide a confidential space to examine the thoughts, emotions and patterns behind a difficulty, and to work on them using established therapeutic methods rather than advice. The aim is insight into what is happening, practical strategies for managing it, and change you can sustain outside the room.

Counselling gives you a confidential setting to examine what you are carrying, with a clinician whose role is to help you understand it rather than to judge or direct it. In practice it tends to do three things: it clarifies what is actually driving the difficulty, it builds specific coping and regulation strategies you can use day to day, and it makes deliberate change possible where things have felt stuck. It is useful for a diagnosable difficulty, and equally useful for a period of life that has become hard to manage alone.

There is no threshold you have to meet first. The common indicators are persistent difficulty coping with ordinary daily demands, emotions that feel disproportionate or unmanageable, recurring conflict in close relationships, changes in sleep or appetite, or withdrawal from things that previously mattered to you. If any of that has been going on for weeks rather than days, it is reasonable to seek professional support. Counselling is also legitimate as a considered choice rather than a last resort — many people come while functioning perfectly well, to work on something specific.

RCC is a protected designation granted by the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors. Registration requires a master’s degree in counselling psychology or a closely related field, a period of supervised clinical practice, and adherence to the association’s code of ethics and standards of clinical practice, with continuing professional development required to maintain it. Registrants are accountable to a formal complaints process. Practically, it means the practitioner’s training and conduct are verifiable against a public register rather than taken on trust. Ravi Teja is a registered Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) with over 30 years in clinical practice, and her standing can be confirmed on the BCACC register.

Yes. Sessions are available by telephone and by secure video, and can be used for the whole of your therapy or alongside in-person appointments. This is often the practical option where distance, work patterns, caregiving or health make attending in person difficult, and it extends access to anywhere in British Columbia rather than the Surrey area alone.

Yes. The first conversation is a complimentary 15–20 minutes consultation, by telephone or video. It is a chance to describe what has brought you, hear how the work is approached, and ask anything you need to before committing to a session. There is no charge for it and no obligation to book afterwards. Enquiries are answered within 24 hours.

Yes. The practice runs seven days a week: Wednesday to Sunday all day, and Monday and Tuesday evenings. That covers most schedules without needing time away from work, school or caregiving. Indicate the times that suit you when you send a request and an appointment will be scheduled around them.

Individual counselling is $165 CAD for 60 minutes. Couples counselling is $190 CAD for 60 minutes and $250 CAD for 90 minutes. Family counselling is $190 CAD for 60 minutes and $250 CAD for 90 minutes. Counselling funded by ICBC, WorkSafeBC or the Crime Victim Assistance Program is billed to that programme rather than to you. Requested letters and written reports are $190 CAD. Fees are agreed with you before the first session, and there is no charge for asking a question first.

If you're unable to afford counselling, there are still options available to you. You can explore low-cost or free counselling services offered by community organizations, universities, or non-profit agencies in your area. Additionally, some therapists offer sliding-scale fees based on income, so it's worth reaching out and inquiring about affordable options.

How payment works is agreed with you before your first session, along with the fee and when it is due, so there is nothing to work out on the day. If you are claiming through extended health, a receipt is provided for every session. If your counselling is funded by ICBC, WorkSafeBC or the Crime Victim Assistance Program, approved sessions are billed to that programme rather than to you.

Most commonly: anxiety and depression, trauma and post-traumatic stress, relationship and family conflict, grief and bereavement, difficulty regulating anger or other strong emotions, substance use, disordered eating, and adjusting to significant life change such as migration, separation or a change in health. People also come without a defined presenting problem, aware only that something is not working. That is a legitimate reason to attend, and clarifying what is actually going on is part of the early work rather than a prerequisite for it.

Yes, as a Registered Clinical Counsellor, I am required to keep everything that is discussed in counselling in the strictest of confidence, unless you give me voluntary written consent to do otherwise. There are 3 exceptions to this rule: 1. If your counsellor feels that you are a serious danger to yourself or others. 2. If your counsellor, or your counselling file is officially subpoenaed in a court case. 3. If there is information shared about current child or elder abuse.

They are three distinct regulated professions with different scopes. A Registered Clinical Counsellor provides psychotherapy — structured talking therapy for emotional, relational and behavioural difficulties — and does not diagnose or prescribe. A registered psychologist can additionally carry out formal psychological assessment and diagnosis, using standardised testing. A psychiatrist is a medical doctor specialising in mental illness, who can diagnose, prescribe medication and manage complex or severe presentations. The three work alongside one another rather than in competition, and where what you need falls outside counselling, you will be told so and referred on.

Online counselling can be just as effective as in-person counselling. Various research from PubMed and PsycINFO show that it can lead to similar outcomes in terms of symptom reduction and client satisfaction. Plus, it offers added convenience and accessibility, allowing you to receive support from the comfort of your own home.

Progress in counselling is usually quieter than people expect. Rather than one moment where everything lifts, you tend to notice small changes first — in your sleep, your reactions, the thoughts you keep returning to, or the behaviours that make everyday life feel a bit lighter or more manageable. Trust your gut: if you are feeling more hopeful, more supported, or more able to handle what comes up, counselling is making a positive difference. It is also worth saying out loud in a session if you feel it is not working — that is useful information, not a complaint, and it is often what changes the direction of the work.

Yes, and they are worth stating plainly. Working on distressing material can temporarily intensify symptoms before they ease — it is common to feel worse for a period after sessions that touch on trauma or grief, and to find that difficult memories become more present for a time. Therapeutic work can also change how you see significant relationships, which can itself be unsettling. These effects are anticipated rather than a sign something has gone wrong, and pacing the work to keep them manageable is a clinical responsibility, not something you are left to absorb alone. Anything you find difficult should be raised in session so the approach can be adjusted.