Michèle Croteau

Registered Psychotherapist
RP, CTP Dipl
Availability:
Accepting New Clients
Session Format:
Online Therapy
Office Hours:
Monday to Thursday evenings, some day appts available
Clientele:
Adults
Email Michèle
  • Abuse
  • Addiction
  • Anger
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Dissociation and Dissociative Identity Disorder
  • Dream Work and Dream Interpretation
  • Intergenerational Trauma
  • Loneliness and Isolation
  • Loss and Grief
  • Obsessive and Compulsive Thoughts and Behaviours
  • Relationship Issues
  • Self-Destructive Patterns
  • Self-Esteem
  • Self-Harm
  • Sex and Intimacy Issues
  • Stress
  • Suicidal Thoughts and Attempts
  • Trauma
  • Body-focused Therapy
  • Client-Centred
  • Dream Work
  • Eclectic
  • Intersubjective
  • Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
  • Relational
  • Contact Information

    Email:
    mcroteau@rogers.com

    You may be experiencing fear, loneliness, despair. Perhaps your relationships are conflict- or anxiety-ridden or your work life is unsatisfying, dehumanizing or deeply stressful. You may have lost a loved one and find yourself in the grip of grief, or sustained a traumatic experience that affects all or various aspects of your life. In other words, profound suffering – or even a gnawing feeling of unease or disappointment – may suffuse your work life and/or relational experiences.

    Gaining insight into the workings of your mind and emotions can lead to a sense of well-being and vitality as you free the physical, emotional and psychic patterns and energies that have been used to create and maintain walls and defenses around debilitating pain. Developing mindful awareness, compassion and self-knowledge can enhance your life in a meaningful and fulfilling way, and empower you to live your life authentically.

    As the French novelist Marcel Proust wisely said … “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

    It takes courage to take the first step toward psychotherapy, or to re-engage with this unique self-inquiry process. Are you ready to commit to your own self-healing and join me in this unique collaborative experience?

    We will typically meet once a week for a 60-minute session, and start each session with where you’re at, at that moment in time.

    Every aspect of your life can be material for exploration. This includes mental imagery, fantasies, dreams, feelings, memories, events (personal, social or global), flashbacks, sexual experiences, body sensations, silences, artwork, writing, etc.

    Through engaging in a mindful and compassionate exploration of your past and present life experiences within the safe container of the therapeutic relationship, we can gradually shed light on the inner dynamics and patterns of behavior that may have been of help to you in the past, but which have now become counterproductive and, at times, self-destructive or self-sabotaging, in some or all areas of your life.

    Overall, my vision is to accompany you through the rich and varied topograpy of your inner explorations. The process of psychotherapy can help you create the kind of life you have imagined for yourself but have not been able to fully manifest thus far, by encouraging you to activate and make use of your inherent strengths and abilities, your potential for a compassionate acceptance of those parts of yourself that you struggle with or dislike, your increasing knowledge of your self, and your renewed vitality and spirit.

    Like many others, I have sought throughout my life to make sense of the difficulties and various traumas I have experienced from very early on in my childhood. My search has taken me on numerous paths of body-mind-spirit exploration, personally and professionally.

    In particular, my studies in several bodywork modalities, my explorations of Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism, my involvement in yoga, mindfulness meditation and, most importantly, my personal therapy process have profoundly changed my life. They are what led me to train as a psychodynamic psychotherapist later in life. My therapy practice, informed by a relational and intersubjective framework, is therefore influenced and inspired by my lifelong learning process, my healing journey, and the help I received from many compassionate teachers and therapists.

    I am a graduate of the Centre for Training in Psychotherapy (CTP) program and a member of the Canadian Association for Psychodynamic Therapy (CAPT). I continue to engage in a self-directed learning process by reading and attending trainings, workshops and conferences related to my work as a therapist.

    I have been working as a psychotherapist since 2011 and became a Registered Psychotherapist and member of the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) in June 2016.

    I am fluent in French and English, and work in both languages.

    Finding a therapist who you feel safe and comfortable with is crucial to your therapeutic process. To this end, I offer a 30-minute no-fee consultation by videoconference. This gives us a chance to meet each other, and discuss your reasons for pursuing therapy. You can also ask me any questions you may have about the process and how I work as a psychotherapist. Ultimately, we can use this time to decide if we would like to work together.

    I offer sessions remotely through a secure videoconferencing platform.

    If you would like to know more about psychotherapy and how I work, or would like to schedule an initial 30-minute free consultation, please contact me at mcroteau@rogers.com. I look forward to hearing from you.