At Ripple, We Start with You

Most psychotherapy and counselling websites focus on symptom relief, diagnosis and treatment, or the path to healing. And it’s true—many people who reach out to us are looking for support to feel better, understand their condition more clearly, and develop strategies to manage it. At Ripple, we absolutely help with all of that. But here’s the thing: we start from a very different place.

We begin by exploring: Who are you? What are your strengths? What has worked for you in life? What are your values and beliefs? 

From there, we can begin to truly know the unique person that you are—and understand what motivates you to reach out. Without these questions, we’d have no way of knowing what your agenda for the process is, or what you would consider success.

Years ago, a client came to me with a long list of life struggles—concerns about her future, unsatisfying relationships, persistent stress. But when I asked what she wanted to focus on first, she said, “I’m terrified of bugs.” Left to my own devices, I would have started with the issues that felt most urgent to me—but they weren’t her priority.

What’s fascinating about that story is this: I might have assumed that once she addressed her larger life stressors, her fear of bugs would fade away. Maybe it was a stand-in for something else. I could have led her in several different directions using various techniques—but if I hadn’t truly listened, I would have missed what mattered most to her in that moment.

At Ripple, we believe that people will lead you to their health if you’re willing to follow. That belief is fundamental to our approach.

In fact, years later, that same client told me that her fear of bugs had actually been a test. She wanted to see if I was any good at my job. If I could help her with something that seemed minor and manageable, she could trust me with the bigger, more complex struggles she was carrying underneath. And it worked. Trust, after all, begins with feeling seen and taken seriously—no matter how small something might seem on the surface.

Knowing the unique person that you are is our priority. Symptoms, diagnoses, and life challenges are deeply shaped by our social location and the time we live in. These things change. As a society, we evolve in how we understand the human experience. As individuals, we have different values around what it means to “fit in,” what success looks like, and what it means to live a good life.

As a thought experiment, imagine who you are in this moment suddenly transported back 100 years. Maybe the way you dress, how you speak, your marital status, or other aspects of your identity would mark you as different—or even pathologized. What does that tell us about how identity and mental health are defined?

Humans are complex, ever-evolving beings. We are always expanding what’s possible, exploring identity in deeper and more vibrant ways. Take tattoos, for example. When I was young, tattoos were associated with gang members, sailors, or Holocaust survivors. Today, they’re often seen as a rite of passage or a form of self-expression.

We are a species constantly seeking meaning and unpacking the social constructions of identity. Look at the Neurodiversity Pride movement or other human rights movements that challenge oppressive norms. They reflect our ongoing effort to ask why? Why do we accept certain standards, and who benefits from them?

At Ripple, we encourage dialogue that asks the big questions—and, more importantly, that asks you questions: What do you think? What matters to you? What do you imagine for your ideal life?

So—does it matter if you’ve been diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety, Depression, ADHD, Autism? If you’re grieving, uncertain about the future, or questioning your identity? Of course it matters. These experiences are absolutely real and important.

But what matters most is what they mean to you. That’s where we begin.

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