It is Your Health, Your Wellness Day presented by J&M Memorials.
We are taking time to chat with Avril Ferguson, Founder, and CEO of Norfolk County Counselling & Psychotherapy.
She started the business back in September 2021, noting that a lot of therapists started to branch off during this time as virtual care came into play and little overhead was needed.
While it was working, she found out quickly that more and more people wanted to go back to in-person care, and by June, she had a site for people to come for in-person visits.
Almost immediately, the demand grew.
From starting off alone in her basement, she quickly increased to a 3-therapist team and now has 8 therapists on board, and they have worked with almost 1000 people so far in our community.
One of the big reasons why Ferguson wanted to start Norfolk County Counselling was after years of working with other social services agencies; she saw the waitlists grow and funding stayed still.
While you get excellent help at these settings, she wanted to offer a quicker way – as through her current model, there is no waitlist, and people could see a therapist very quickly.
She knew there was a need in the community for people willing to either pay out of pocket or through insurance, and the demand for service proves that was right.
You do not need a doctor referral to contact them, and they can be contacted over the phone or online.
They also offer free consultations.
They believe that it’s important that you find the right therapist for you, so they want you to feel comfortable with the person before moving forward.
One thing Ferguson noted is while they offer a variety of services from individuals with anxiety and depression to couple counseling, they also want to help prenatal and postpartum individuals.
She said she saw a gap in the community specifically here and is proud to offer help.
She said it was also important to make the space feel warm and comfortable.