The things people ask before they start.

For most of what people come to us with, including anxiety, depression, trauma, grief and relationship difficulty, the research consistently finds online work about as effective as in-person. What makes the difference is the quality of the relationship and whether the approach fits you, far more than whether you're in the same building. Some people genuinely prefer a physical room, and if that's you we'll say so honestly and help you find one locally.

Across Canada, and internationally. The thing that decides it is where you'll physically be sitting during the session, because counselling is regulated in the client's location rather than the counsellor's.

In Canada you can book online in any province or territory. Outside Canada we match you with a counsellor registered where you live — see where you are for the position in your country. If we can't lawfully work with you where you live, we'll tell you plainly and help you find where to look instead.

Everyone here works within their professional scope, carries liability insurance and takes part in ongoing clinical supervision, on top of their training in the presence-based approach we use. Where a counsellor holds a formal registration, the designation and number appear on your receipt, which is the detail your insurer will want. Ask at the first conversation and you'll get a straight answer.

We answer enquiries within two working days, and most people have their free conversation within a week. Private sessions with Maitreya are limited each month, so there may be a wait for those.

Your counsellor will ask what's brought you, what you've already tried and what you'd like to be different. Somewhere in there they'll go through confidentiality and how they work. You won't be asked to explain your entire history in an hour.

Tell us and we'll move you, at no cost and without any awkward conversation. Fit isn't a moral question. Around one person in five needs a second match, and that's a normal part of finding the right person rather than a sign that something went wrong.

Yes, within the legal limits every counsellor works under. Those are a serious and immediate risk of harm to you or to someone else who can be identified, reasonable grounds to suspect a child is being harmed or neglected, and a court order. Your counsellor will explain all of this in the first session, and our privacy notice covers how records are stored.

No to both. We don't carry out psychiatric assessment and nobody here prescribes. We're happy to work alongside your doctor or psychiatrist, and we can help you prepare for those appointments if you find them difficult.

It depends on how long the session is and which counsellor you see, and you'll know the exact figure before you book anything rather than after. Ask at the free conversation and you'll get a straight answer with no pressure attached. If cost is what's stopping you, please say so: we hold a small number of reduced-fee places, they aren't means-tested, and nobody will ask you to justify the request.

Not unless you ask us to. If you'd like a recording for your own use, say so and you'll have it within a day. Quite a few people find that listening again is where the session properly lands.

No. There's no tradition to join here and nothing you're expected to accept. Plenty of people come for grief or trauma and never go near the spiritual side at all. It's available if it's relevant to you and completely absent if it isn't.

The teachings at maitreyabuddha.com point beyond the personal, towards awakening and presence. Counselling works with the personal directly: your history, your body, your relationships, your grief. Some people do both, and we keep them as separate rooms deliberately.

We're not a crisis service and we can't respond urgently or out of hours. If you're in immediate danger, call 911. For free, confidential support at any hour in Canada, call or text 988. Our crisis page has lines for other countries too.

A device with a camera, a reasonably stable connection, headphones if you can manage them, and somewhere you won't be overheard. There's no app to install. Your counsellor sends a link and you click it.