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Psychotherapy in Markham
Confidential, evidence-based therapy for anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, and life transitions. In person in Markham or online across Ontario.
A Confidential Space to Work Through What Is Not Working
Psychotherapy is a supportive, evidence-based treatment that helps you understand your emotions, thoughts, and behaviour, then change what is not serving you. Sessions happen in a safe, confidential, and non-judgmental space, which matters more than any technique, because nothing useful happens until you can speak plainly. Treatment draws on several established approaches, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, mindfulness-based therapy, psychodynamic therapy, EMDR, and art psychotherapy, chosen for what you bring rather than applied from a single fixed model.
Therapy at Northville Rehabilitation Centre comes from Liyan (ChrisB) Liu, MSc, RP, who holds a Master of Science in Art Psychotherapy from Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, registers as a Registered Psychotherapist in Ontario and as an Art Psychotherapist in the UK, and trained as an EMDR therapist. Her practice is person-centred and trauma-informed, which shapes the pace and the questions rather than only the technique. Being part of a multidisciplinary clinic matters more here than it sounds. Chronic pain, injury, and recovery carry a psychological weight that rarely gets addressed, so patients already seeing our physiotherapists or chiropractors can add therapy without starting again somewhere new. Sessions run in person at our Markham clinic or by secure video anywhere in Ontario, whichever suits the week you are having.
What to Expect :
- A first session spent understanding what brought you in, what you have already tried, and what you want to be different, at whatever pace feels manageable, in person or by secure video
- An approach matched to you, drawing on CBT, mindfulness-based work, psychodynamic therapy, EMDR, or art psychotherapy rather than one method applied to everyone
- Regular sessions built around goals you set together, with room to change direction as things surface
- Practical tools you can use between sessions, so the work continues in the week rather than pausing until the next appointment
We work with anxiety, depression, trauma and PTSD, grief and loss, anger management, coping skills, self-esteem, relationship difficulties, family conflict, life transitions, spirituality, support for marginalized communities, and the psychological effects of motor vehicle accidents. Sessions are available in person in Markham or online anywhere in Ontario. Psychotherapy by a Registered Psychotherapist is exempt from HST in Canada, and many extended health plans cover it. Call 905-534-8666 and our front desk will check your coverage before you book.
Why CHoose Us
Therapy That Fits Into the Rest of Your Health Care
Liyan Liu, MSc, RP holds registration with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario, which sets the training, supervision, and ethical standards behind the RP title and behind an insurance-eligible receipt.
Trained as an EMDR therapist, a structured and well-established method for processing traumatic memory. Also a UK-registered Art Psychotherapist, which offers a route in for people who find words difficult or who have talked something through many times without it shifting.
Sessions run at our Markham clinic or by secure video anywhere in Ontario, and you can switch between them week to week. Therapy also sits in the same building as the physiotherapy and chiropractic care treating the physical side, since pain and injury leave psychological marks that standard rehabilitation never touches.
Psychotherapy from a Registered Psychotherapist has been exempt from HST across Canada since June 2024, so the fee you are quoted is the fee you pay. Most extended health plans reimburse RP services, and we will confirm yours before your first session.
Talking it through should not be the last thing you try.
Anxiety that has become the background hum of your week, low mood that has outstayed its cause, grief with nowhere to go, a car accident you have not stopped replaying, or a pattern you keep repeating and cannot name. None of it needs to reach crisis point before it is worth an hour. Book a confidential session with our Registered Psychotherapist, in person in Markham or online anywhere in Ontario, or call 905-534-8666 to ask anything first.
Patient Testimonials
Markham Patients Who Got Moving Again
Here’s what recovery with our chiropractic, physiotherapy, massage and osteopathy team actually looks like.
Frequent Asked Questions
You talk, and your therapist listens, asks, and offers a framework for what you are describing. The first session is mostly history and goals. Later sessions go deeper into patterns, beliefs, and specific difficulties, with practical tools alongside. Nothing is forced, and you set the pace on what you are ready to discuss.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, a structured therapy used for trauma and distressing memories. It uses bilateral stimulation, often guided eye movements, while you briefly attend to a memory, which helps the brain reprocess it so it carries less charge. It is well established for PTSD and does not require describing the event in detail.
Therapy that uses image making as part of the work, guided by a trained art psychotherapist. It requires no artistic skill and nothing gets judged as art. It suits people who find words difficult, who have talked a problem through many times without it moving, and anyone whose experience sits somewhere language has not reached yet. It can run alongside conventional talk therapy rather than replacing it.
A Registered Psychotherapist provides talk therapy and is regulated by the CRPO. A psychologist can also provide therapy and additionally administer psychological testing and formal diagnoses. A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who can prescribe medication. Check your insurance wording, because some plans reimburse only certain titles.
Most extended health plans include a mental health benefit, though some specify which practitioner titles they reimburse, so it is worth confirming your plan covers a Registered Psychotherapist rather than psychologists only. Psychotherapy is also HST-exempt in Canada, so no tax is added. Call 905-534-8666 and we will check the details with you.
Yes. Registered Psychotherapists are bound by CRPO confidentiality standards, and what you discuss stays between you and your therapist. There are narrow legal exceptions, including risk of serious harm to yourself or someone else, suspected child abuse, and court orders. Your therapist explains all of them in the first session so you know where you stand.
It varies more than in physical treatment. Some people come for a specific difficulty and finish within six to twelve sessions. Others continue longer, particularly with trauma or long-standing patterns. You and your therapist review progress as you go, and stopping is always your decision.
No. Book directly with our Markham clinic. Some workplace plans and insurers request a physician’s note before reimbursing, so check your policy wording if coverage matters to you.
Almost everyone asks a version of this. You do not need a diagnosis or a crisis to justify the appointment. People come because of stress that will not lift, a decision they cannot make, a relationship that keeps stalling, grief, or a sense that something is off. Any of those is reason enough.
Yes. Sessions run either in person at our Markham clinic or by secure video, and you can move between the two as your schedule changes. Online therapy is available to clients located anywhere in Ontario, which suits people outside Markham, anyone without easy transport, and parents who cannot reliably get out of the house. The therapy itself is the same, and most extended health plans reimburse virtual sessions on the same terms as in person.
Yes, and it is more common than most people expect. Motor vehicle accidents frequently leave anxiety about driving, intrusive memories, disrupted sleep, and low mood, all alongside the physical injury. Because our physiotherapy and chiropractic teams often treat the same patients, the physical and psychological recovery can run together.