What to Expect
Taking the first step is an act of courage and you won’t be doing it alone.
Whether you reach out by phone, text, or email, our team is here to walk alongside you.
Understanding Your Needs
We’ll ask a few questions to understand what you're navigating and determine eligibility. Our services are suited for those without access to insurance or financial resources to afford private therapy. There are no fees for our intern-led counselling.
Relational Matching
You’ll be thoughtfully matched with one of our Counselling Therapist Interns, based on your needs, goals, and preferences. During this process, we’ll also introduce our supportive and relational approach to therapy, which centres on connection, safety, and collaboration.
Beginning Therapy
Healing doesn’t mean being “treated” — it means being heard, understood, and supported. Our interns are here to walk with you through your experiences, not to “fix” or “diagnose” you. Informed consent is central to our process, and we’ll ensure you feel clear and comfortable before beginning.
Call or Text: 902-707-4414
Email: intake@couchofhope.com
Supportive and Relational Therapy
Couch of Hope's Therapist Interns use Supportive and Relational Therapy as the basis of their approach. Supportive and Relational Therapy is rooted in the belief that healing happens through human connection. Supportive and Relational Therapy brings together two complementary approaches to healing: one grounded in empathy and connection, the other in stability and practical support. Rather than focusing solely on diagnosing or “fixing,” it prioritizes being deeply connected with someone offering presence, empathy, and emotional safety.
Relational Therapy
Relational therapy is based on Relational-Cultural Theory, which recognizes that disconnection and isolation are often at the core of emotional suffering. Healing emerges through relationships grounded in authenticity, mutual respect, and empathy (Miller & Stiver, 1997). The therapist is not a distant expert, but a real, engaged presence who supports clients in rebuilding trust in themselves, and in others.
Supportive Therapy
Supportive therapy focuses on stability, validation, and coping. Rather than intensive analysis or deep reconstruction, it meets clients exactly where they are offering reassurance, encouragement, and practical tools to help manage stress, grief, anxiety, or life transitions. It is especially helpful during times of overwhelm, when someone needs grounding more than exploration.
Together, these approaches create a space where clients can exhale, feel seen, and slowly rebuild their inner strength.
Humanistic Foundation
Every person has inherent worth and potential. We honour your capacity for growth and self-understanding.
Client-Centered
You are the expert of your own experience. We follow your pace, your needs, and your readiness.
Core Features of Our Approach
Relationship at the Core
Decades of research show the therapeutic relationship is the strongest predictor of healing — more than any technique or model.
Emotional Support & Validation
We provide space to be heard without judgment, offering steadiness during times of uncertainty or distress.
Strengths & Autonomy
We focus on resilience reinforcing what is already strong within you, not what is “wrong” with you.
What Research Says
The Power of Relationship in Healing
Research shows that up to 80% of therapeutic success is attributed to the quality of the therapeutic relationship, while specific techniques account for about 20% (Norcross & Lambert, 2011; Wampold & Imel, 2015).
Relational and community-based services have been shown to:
- Reduce hospitalizations and crisis escalation
- Improve long-term mental health and quality of life
- Foster recovery through belonging and connection
- Offer cost-effective, early intervention that prevents future distress
Healing does not occur in isolation. It happens in relationship when someone sits with us and says, “You don’t have to carry this alone.”
Who Can Access This Service?
Individuals aged 10 and older are welcome to access relational and supportive therapy through our service. We support a wide range of emotional experiences, including anxiety, grief, loneliness, identity exploration, stress, relational challenges, and general mental health concerns.
Important to Know
- We are not a crisis, diagnostic, or psychiatric treatment program
- Our therapists are Counselling Therapist Interns Master’s-level trainees fulfilling their practicum hours under supervision
- We focus on relational support and foundational skills, not intensive clinical intervention
How We Support Our Therapists
To ensure safe and high-quality care, our interns receive:
- Weekly clinical supervision with experienced Registered Counselling Therapists and Social Workers
- Ongoing training and consultation in trauma-informed and humanistic approaches
- Peer collaboration and mentorship within our community
References
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.
Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. Basic Books.
Horvath, A. O., Del Re, A. C., Flückiger, C., & Symonds, D. (2011). Alliance in individual psychotherapy. Psychotherapy, 48(1), 9–16.
Jordan, J. R. (2017). Relational–cultural therapy. In Oxford Bibliographies in Psychology. Oxford University Press.
McKay, M. M., Gonzales, J. E., Stone, S., Ryland, D., & Kohner, K. (2021). Community-based mental health services. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 91(3), 301–312.
Miller, J. B., & Stiver, I. P. (1997). The healing connection. Beacon Press.
Norcross, J. C., & Lambert, M. J. (2011). Evidence-based therapy relationships. In Psychotherapy Relationships That Work (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.
Pinsker, H., & McCullough, L. (2010). A primer of supportive psychotherapy. American Psychiatric Publishing.
Rogers, C. R. (1957). The necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic personality change. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 21(2), 95–103.
Wampold, B. E., & Imel, Z. E. (2015). The great psychotherapy debate (2nd ed.). Routledge.
This ensures clients receive ethical, compassionate care while therapists grow in skill, mindfulness, and relational depth.
Next Steps
If this approach resonates with you, we would be honoured to support you.