What to expect in your first session
The first time meeting a psychologist or psychiatrist can feel daunting. Rest assured, all of our staff are well trained and have experience in their field. They approach each and every session with care, empathy, warmth and courtesy.
The first session is a meet and greet and you won't be expected to say or answer any questions that you don't feel comfortable with. The goal of the first session is always to make sure that you feel safe, listened to, and respected. In the first session, it's likely that you will be asked questions about what's brought you to your clinician, and what you hope to achieve by continuing to meet with that clinician. These may be designed in the form of goals, and this is what you and the clinician would work on in future sessions. Goals don't have to be agreed in the first session, and normally over the course of the work together, you may change your goals. Within the first session, the clinician will be trying to develop a formulation that explains the reasons why you are feeling the way you are, and this informs the treatment plan that you will create together.
For children, your parent can be with you for the first session, and every session if you wish. For adults, if you want to have a trusted person present with you that's no problem as well.
Our main focus is to make sure that you feel comfortable and content, so we can work together on helping you to problem solve or challenge whatever the concerns are.
We provide a friendly and safe environment for you, and our primary focus is making sure that you feel heard, respected and understood.