Stress Counselling & Stress Management

Support for work pressure, burnout, life changes and periods when everything feels like too much.

Stress is a normal response to pressure, but it can become difficult when the demands keep coming and there is little room to recover. Therapy can help us understand what is keeping the stress cycle going and identify practical, realistic changes.

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When Stress Starts Taking Up Too Much Space

Stress can show up during demanding seasons at work, caregiving, relationship strain, financial pressure, health concerns, major decisions or periods of change. Sometimes there is one clear source. Other times, several smaller pressures build until it feels difficult to switch off.

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health describes stress as a response that can affect our thoughts, emotions, behaviour and body. When stress is intense or ongoing, it can become harder to recover between demands.

You do not need to decide whether your stress is “serious enough” before bringing it to therapy. If pressure is affecting your concentration, sleep, relationships, energy or ability to feel present in daily life, it can be worth talking through.

COMMON WAYS STRESS CAN SHOW UP

How Stress Can Affect Daily Life

Stress does not look the same for everyone. You may notice changes in how you think, feel, physically carry tension or respond to the people and responsibilities around you.

Thoughts & Attention

Your mind may keep replaying problems, jumping ahead to what could go wrong, or struggling to focus on one task at a time. Decisions that are normally manageable can start to feel unusually draining.

Emotions

You may feel more irritable, impatient, restless or easily overwhelmed. Small frustrations can take up more space when you are already carrying a lot.

Body & Energy

Stress can be accompanied by muscle tension, headaches, fatigue, restlessness, disrupted sleep or difficulty settling after a demanding day.

Daily Life & Relationships

You might procrastinate because everything feels urgent, work longer without feeling caught up, withdraw from plans, or notice yourself snapping at people you care about.

PRACTICAL & PERSONALIZED SUPPORT

How Therapy Can Help With Stress

Stress counselling is not one fixed method. Together, we can look at what is creating pressure, what is within your control, how you are responding, and which changes are realistic for your life. Depending on your goals and therapist, work may draw from approaches such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).

Make Sense of the Pressure

We can slow the situation down enough to identify the main demands, recurring triggers, expectations and decisions that are taking the most energy.

Build More Workable Responses

Therapy may include problem solving, boundary setting, communication, recovery routines or coping strategies that fit your circumstances rather than adding another list of things you “should” do.

Work With Thoughts & Emotions

We can explore self-criticism, perfectionistic rules, worry or habits that keep stress running, while making room for difficult feelings that cannot simply be switched off.

Review What Is Actually Helping

A useful plan can change as your situation changes. We can review what feels useful, what is not working, and where the focus of therapy needs to shift.

WHEN WORK NEVER REALLY ENDS

Work Stress, Burnout & High-Functioning Overwhelm

It is possible to keep getting things done while feeling increasingly depleted. Work stress can show up as difficulty switching off, dread before the week starts, pressure to keep performing, or the sense that rest has become something you have to earn.

Therapy can provide room to examine workload, uncertainty, perfectionistic standards, conflict, people-pleasing, caregiving demands or other pressures that may be overlapping. The aim is not to force a simple productivity fix onto a complicated situation.

We might explore

What can realistically change: workload, expectations, boundaries, communication or the way responsibilities are shared.

What needs a different relationship: uncertainty, difficult emotions, self-criticism or circumstances you cannot immediately change.

What supports recovery: rest, routines, connection, meaningful activities and decisions that make more room for what matters outside the pressure.

WHAT SESSIONS CAN LOOK LIKE

A Collaborative Stress Counselling Process

You do not need to arrive with a perfect explanation or a list of goals. We can start with what has been happening recently and build the focus together.

Start With What Is Happening

We can talk about the situations, responsibilities or patterns that are taking the most energy, and what you would like to feel different.

Agree on a Useful Focus

Together, we can identify a manageable focus such as work stress, boundaries, sleep-disrupting worry, relationship strain, decision fatigue or a period of major change.

Try, Review & Adjust

You may experiment with a new response, skill or boundary between sessions. We can review what happened and adjust the work rather than treating one technique as the answer for everyone.

MEET OUR THERAPISTS

Find a Therapist Who Fits Your Needs

Stress can overlap with anxiety, relationship concerns, trauma, self-criticism and periods of major change. Our therapists bring different training and approaches to that work. You can use their profiles to learn more before deciding where to start.

LONDON, ONTARIO

Hannah Steyaert

Hannah is a Registered Psychotherapist whose profile focus includes young adults experiencing anxiety, stress and relationship concerns. Her primary approach is psychodynamic therapy, and she also offers CBT and ACT among other confirmed approaches.

View Hannah’s Profile

BURLINGTON, ONTARIO

Hailey Steyaert

Hailey is a Registered Psychotherapist whose profile emphasizes individual counselling, trauma and anxiety. She has specialized training in ACT and trauma-focused therapy, along with additional trauma-informed expertise and DBT-informed tools.

View Hailey’s Profile

Access options: Hannah offers in-person counselling in London and Hailey in Burlington. Both therapists also offer online and phone appointments across Ontario. Free parking is available at both offices.

A SIMPLE PLACE TO START

Explore Individual Therapy

If stress is the main concern bringing you to counselling, individual therapy is often the simplest starting point. You can learn how one-on-one sessions work, what you can bring to therapy, and how care is adapted to your goals.

Learn About Individual Therapy

COMMON QUESTIONS

Questions About Stress Counselling

These answers cover common questions about starting therapy for stress. You can also use a free consultation if you would rather talk through your options before booking a full appointment.

Stress counselling is therapy focused on the pressures, patterns and circumstances that are making daily life harder to manage. The work can include understanding what is driving stress, building practical coping responses, working with thoughts and emotions, and making realistic changes where possible.

There is no threshold you have to meet. You might consider therapy if stress is affecting concentration, sleep, energy, relationships, work, decision-making or your ability to recover between demands. You can also come to therapy simply because you want help thinking through a demanding period.

Work stress and burnout-related concerns can be discussed in therapy. The focus may include workload, boundaries, difficult workplace relationships, perfectionistic expectations, uncertainty, recovery outside work and decisions about what needs to change. Therapy cannot control every workplace condition, but it can provide space to clarify what is happening and how you want to respond.

Sessions are collaborative. You can start with what has been happening recently, what feels most difficult and what you would like to be different. Your therapist may help you identify patterns, practise a skill, think through a decision or explore the emotions and expectations connected to the stress. The focus can change as your needs become clearer.

The approach depends on the therapist, your goals and what is contributing to the stress. Hannah offers approaches including CBT and ACT, while Hailey has specialized training in ACT. Both therapists also bring other confirmed approaches to their broader work. You can ask during a consultation how a therapist would approach the concerns you want to discuss.

Yes. Steyaert Counselling offers online therapy across Ontario. Online sessions can be useful if you live outside London or Burlington or prefer meeting from home. Your therapist can discuss whether the format fits your circumstances and the type of support you are seeking.

You do not need to arrive with a diagnosis to talk about stress in therapy. You can begin by describing what you have been experiencing and what you would like help with. If you are using insurance, check your plan for any referral or coverage requirements that apply to Registered Psychotherapists.

There is no single session count that applies to everyone. The length of therapy can depend on what is contributing to the stress, your goals, whether the situation is changing, and the type of work you and your therapist decide to focus on. It is reasonable to review the plan as therapy progresses.

Current fees and insurance information are available on our Therapy Cost page. Receipts are provided for insurance reimbursement, but coverage depends on your individual plan. Steyaert Counselling does not offer direct billing.

READY WHEN YOU ARE

Book a Free 15-Minute Consultation

A free consultation gives you a chance to ask questions, briefly describe what has been weighing on you and consider whether the available therapist and appointment options feel like a good fit.

Book a Free 15-Minute Consultation

The Jane booking system will show the current consultation and appointment options before you confirm.

HAVE A QUESTION?

Contact Us Before Booking

Have a question or unsure where to start? Send us an inquiry below. We review messages and forward them based on your location or preferred therapist. If you have a preference, please mention it.

You do not need to include a detailed personal or clinical history in your first message. Sending an inquiry does not reserve an appointment.

Prefer to call? London and general inquiries: 226-970-2861 | Burlington: 647-970-1790

Reliable Information About Stress

If you would like to read more before reaching out, these resources provide general information about stress and practical ways to respond to it.

CAMH: Stress

Read the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health overview of stress, including common signs and when stress may become harder to manage.

APA: Stress Management

The American Psychological Association offers practical information about reducing stressors, building support and responding more flexibly to pressure.