What to Expect in Anxiety Therapy
You've already done the hardest part. You decided you wanted help.
Starting therapy for anxiety can feel like its own kind of anxiety. The not-knowing. The wondering what you'll say, what they'll ask, whether you'll do it “right.” That's normal. And it's worth naming, because the process of getting help shouldn't feel like another thing you have to white-knuckle through.
This page is here to walk you through exactly what happens, from the first phone call to the weeks and months that follow. No vague reassurance. Just the real, practical details so you know what you're walking into.
If you're ready now, you can book a free 15-minute consultation. If you want to keep reading first, that's fine too. This page isn't going anywhere.
Before your first session
The free 15-minute consultation
Before anything else, you'll have a short conversation with Leanne. It's 15 minutes, it's free, and it's not therapy. Think of it as a chance to ask questions, get a sense of her voice, and see whether it feels like a fit.
You don't have to be ready to dive into your story. You don't have to know what kind of therapy you need. You can say “I've been anxious and I don't know where to start,” and that's enough.
This consultation can happen by phone or video, wherever you're most comfortable. If you're in Kitchener-Waterloo, sessions can be in person. If you're anywhere in Ontario, virtual therapy is available too.
There's no pressure to book after the call. It's genuinely just a conversation.
Paperwork and intake forms
If you decide to move forward, you'll receive a short set of intake forms before your first session. These cover the basics: your contact information, a bit of background, consent to treatment.
They're straightforward. You don't need to write an essay about your mental health history. You don't need to have a perfect narrative. The forms are just a starting point so Leanne has some context before you sit down together.
You don't need to have your “story” prepared
A lot of people spend the days before their first session trying to rehearse what they'll say. Trying to organize their anxiety into something clean and presentable.
You don't need to do that.
You don't need a timeline. You don't need to rank your symptoms. You don't need to sound articulate or composed. Therapy isn't a presentation. It's a conversation, and it starts wherever you are.
You don't need a diagnosis
You don't need a referral. You don't need to have been formally diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. You don't need to meet some invisible threshold of “bad enough.”
If anxiety is affecting how you live, how you sleep, how you show up in your relationships or your work, that's enough. You can read more about how anxiety therapy works and the different ways it can show up, including high-functioning anxiety, chronic worry and overthinking, and panic attacks.
Your first full session
What the space looks like
If you're coming in person, the office is quiet and comfortable. There's a couch, soft lighting, and nothing that feels like a hospital or a waiting room from a movie. It's a small, private space designed to feel calm.
If you're meeting virtually, Leanne will send you a secure video link before your appointment. You can be in your living room, your car, wherever feels private. A lot of people find that starting with virtual sessions helps ease the nervousness of beginning therapy for the first time.
What happens in the room
Leanne will ask what brought you here. But she won't push you to go further than you're ready to go. You set the pace.
Some people come in knowing exactly what they want to talk about. Others sit down and say “I don't even know where to start.” Both are completely fine.
You might talk about what's been going on recently. You might talk about something from a long time ago. You might spend most of the session just getting comfortable being there. All of it counts.
It's okay to not know what to say
Silence is allowed. Pauses are allowed. Changing your mind mid-sentence is allowed.
Therapy isn't a performance. There's no script, no right answer, no expectation that you'll be eloquent about something you've never said out loud before. Leanne is trained to sit with you in the uncertainty. That's part of her job, and she's good at it.
It's okay to cry. Or to feel nothing.
Some people cry in their first session. Some people feel numb. Some people laugh because they're nervous. Some people leave and aren't sure what they feel at all.
None of these responses are wrong.
The first session isn't about solving anything. It's about beginning to feel safe. That might sound small, but for someone whose nervous system has been in overdrive, it's actually a significant shift.
The first session isn't about solving anything. It's about beginning to feel safe.
What therapy looks like over time
Session frequency and length
Most people start with weekly sessions. Each session is about 50 minutes. Weekly rhythm matters in the beginning because it allows enough continuity for trust to build and for patterns to start becoming visible.
Over time, some people shift to biweekly sessions. That's something you and Leanne will talk about together based on what feels right.
The first few sessions
The early weeks are about building a foundation. Leanne is getting to know you. Not just your anxiety, but you. How you process things. What your life looks like. What you've already tried. What feels safe and what doesn't.
You'll start to notice patterns together. Not because Leanne is analyzing you from a clipboard, but because she's paying attention. And she'll help you pay attention too.
You might feel worse before you feel better
This is one of the most important things to know, and one of the least talked about.
When you start therapy, you're often opening doors you've kept shut for a long time. That can stir things up. You might feel more emotional than usual, more tired, more aware of things you'd been pushing down.
This doesn't mean therapy isn't working. It often means the opposite. You're starting to feel what you've been managing, and that takes courage. It also takes support, which is exactly what the therapy space is for.
Progress isn't linear
Some weeks you'll leave feeling lighter. Others, you'll sit with something hard. Both mean it's working.
There's no straight line from “anxious” to “not anxious.” Healing looks more like a spiral. You might revisit the same themes from different angles. You might have a great stretch and then a hard week. That's not failure. That's the process.
If you've been living with anxiety for a long time (and many people who seek anxiety therapy have been), it took a while to build those patterns. It takes time to learn new ones.
Leanne's approach
Leanne's work isn't built around worksheets, homework assignments, or scripts for managing your thoughts. It's built around relationship and presence.
Her approach is relational, somatic, and trauma-informed. In plain terms, that means she pays attention to what's happening in your body, not just your thoughts. Anxiety doesn't only live in your mind. It shows up in your chest, your jaw, your shoulders, the way your breath gets shallow when you talk about certain things. Somatic therapy works with all of that.
She also works relationally, meaning the connection between you and her is part of the healing. The experience of being truly heard, without judgment, in real time, is not a small thing. For a lot of people, it's the thing that makes therapy different from every other conversation they've had.
You can learn more about Leanne's training, background, and philosophy on her about page. And if you're exploring what kind of therapy might be right for you, individual therapy is a good place to start.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is completely normal to have questions before reaching out.
That's more common than you'd think. Sometimes the approach wasn't the right fit. Sometimes the relationship didn't feel safe. Sometimes the timing wasn't right. A previous experience that didn't work doesn't mean therapy doesn't work. It means that particular experience wasn't what you needed.
No. Therapy with Leanne isn't about labeling you or handing down a diagnosis. It's about understanding what you're experiencing and why, and finding ways to move through it that feel true to you.
It depends. Some people come for a few months. Some stay longer. There's no predetermined number of sessions. You and Leanne will check in along the way about what's working and what feels right. You'll never be kept in therapy longer than you need to be.
No. You don't need a doctor's referral or a diagnosis. You can book directly.
Yes. Virtual sessions are available across Ontario. Many people start with virtual therapy and find it works well, especially for a first session when the idea of going somewhere new feels like a lot.
Whenever you're ready
You don't have to have it all figured out. You don't have to feel ready in some complete, confident way. You just have to be willing to start.
If you've been sitting with this tab open, reading and rereading, wondering if now is the time, here's what I'd say: the fact that you're here already tells you something.
Book a free 15-minute consultation and we'll start with a conversation. That's it. No commitment, no pressure, just a chance to ask your questions and see how it feels.
And if you're not quite ready for that, you can start with the free guide, Softening the Edge. It was written specifically for people who manage everything well on the outside but carry a lot on the inside.
You've already done the hardest part. The next step is smaller than you think.