Personality Disorder Counselling in Barrie, ON
If emotions feel overwhelming, relationships keep hitting the same walls, or you've spent years feeling disconnected from who you are — counselling can help. At Reset Counselling & Psychotherapy in Barrie, Ontario, our Registered Psychotherapists work with adults navigating the kinds of deep, long-standing patterns that personality disorders can create. We offer in-person sessions at our Barrie office and virtual psychotherapy across Ontario. With the right support, greater emotional stability, healthier relationships, stronger coping skills, and a clearer sense of self are all within reach.
Are Long-Standing Emotional or Relationship Patterns Making Life Harder?
You don't need a diagnosis — or even a label — to recognize when your emotional patterns are making life harder than it has to be.
Emotions, Identity and Self-Esteem
Some experiences are worth paying attention to:
- Emotions that shift quickly or feel disproportionate to situations
- Difficulty settling after conflict, rejection, or perceived criticism
- A persistent sense of emptiness, shame, or harsh self-judgment
- Uncertainty about who you are or what you value
- Strong fear of being abandoned or left behind
- Impulsive responses to distress or difficulty tolerating intense feelings
These experiences are not personal failures. They're patterns — and patterns can shift with the right support.
Relationships, Trust and Coping Patterns
Relationship difficulties often show up alongside these emotional experiences:
- Repeated conflict, volatility, or instability in close relationships
- Difficulty trusting others or allowing genuine closeness
- Sensitivity to rejection, criticism, or perceived disapproval
- Patterns of people-pleasing, withdrawal, dependency, or rigid control
- Ongoing challenges with communication or setting boundaries
- Feeling misunderstood or dismissed by people — including previous professionals
- Coping strategies that offer short-term relief but create longer-term problems
These experiences can be explored in therapy whether or not you have received a formal diagnosis.
How Personality Disorder Counselling Can Help
Personality disorder counselling focuses on building practical skills and deeper self-understanding — not just managing symptoms. Here is what meaningful progress can look like.
01
Build Emotional Regulation and Distress-Tolerance Skills
Counselling helps clients recognize what triggers intense emotional reactions, slow down automatic responses, and tolerate difficult feelings without acting on them impulsively. Over time, clients develop safer, more effective ways of responding to stress — ones that align with their actual goals and values.
02
Improve Relationships, Communication and Boundaries
Recurring interpersonal patterns can be examined and changed. Counselling addresses how past experiences shape current relationships, builds communication skills, supports conflict repair, and helps clients maintain genuine connection without abandoning their own needs.
03
Strengthen Identity and Understand Recurring Patterns
Therapy provides a consistent space to explore what you value, how earlier experiences may be influencing your present relationships, and how to make more deliberate choices. A personality disorder may be influenced by several developmental, relational, and individual factors — counselling helps make sense of that picture without judgment.
Personality Concerns We Support at Reset
Personality disorders vary widely. Presentations overlap, symptoms shift across contexts, and treatment works best when it's shaped around the individual — not just the diagnosis.
Do I Need a Personality Disorder Diagnosis Before Starting Therapy?
Starting therapy does not require a formal diagnosis. Many of the people we work with come in because something isn't working — not because they have a label to describe it.
Therapy at Reset focuses on the experiences, patterns, and goals that matter to you. A diagnosis is not a prerequisite. If emotional struggles, relationship difficulties, or long-standing behavioural patterns are causing real distress, that is reason enough to start.
When an Assessment or Referral May Be Helpful
Psychotherapy and formal psychological assessment are different services. Our Registered Psychotherapists do not conduct psychological assessments or prescribe medications. If diagnostic clarification, medication, or a more intensive level of care may be helpful, we will discuss that openly with you. Where appropriate, coordination with your family doctor, a psychologist, or a psychiatrist may be part of your care.
Our Approach to Personality Disorder Therapy
No two clients come to therapy with the same history, goals, or needs. Our therapists draw from several evidence-based approaches and tailor the work to fit your presentation, preferences, and pace.
DBT-Informed Therapy for Emotional Regulation
DBT-informed therapy draws from dialectical behaviour therapy — one of the most researched psychotherapy approaches for borderline personality disorder, according to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). It teaches concrete skills across four areas:
- Mindfulness — staying present with thoughts and feelings without acting on them automatically
- Distress tolerance — coping with crisis without making things worse
- Emotion regulation — understanding and managing intense emotional states
- Interpersonal effectiveness — balancing your own needs with healthy relationships
Our sessions incorporate individual DBT-informed techniques rather than a structured comprehensive DBT program.
Schema Therapy and Psychodynamic Therapy
Schema therapy targets deep-rooted emotional patterns — called schemas — that often develop early in life and quietly shape adult behaviour and expectations. Psychodynamic therapy explores how earlier relationships influence how you relate to others now, surfacing recurring patterns and creating space for genuine insight. Van Shanahan's practice integrates psychodynamic therapy as a core part of his work.
CBT and Other Structured Approaches
Van draws from cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT), solution-focused brief therapy, and strengths-based approaches. These methods help identify unhelpful thought patterns, build practical coping strategies, and focus on what is already working as a foundation for change.
Trauma-Informed, Relational and Individualized Care
The therapeutic relationship itself matters. Consistency, collaboration, and pacing are central to how we work. If a comprehensive DBT program, mentalization-based therapy, psychiatric involvement, or a higher level of care would better serve you, we will say so — and help you connect with those resources.
What to Expect from Counselling at Reset
We aim to make the process clear and manageable from the first contact. There are no surprises — just a steady, collaborative approach to getting started.
Why Choose Reset for Personality Disorder Counselling?
Registered Psychotherapists in Barrie
Our therapists hold registration with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) — the regulatory body that governs the profession in Ontario. You can verify any registrant's standing using the CRPO Public Register. Our practice is based in Barrie, with therapists who have focused training and clinical experience in personality disorders and related concerns.
Respectful, Non-Stigmatizing Care
Many people who come to us have been dismissed, misunderstood, or reduced to a label by previous systems or professionals. We work with the whole person — your strengths, goals, history, and capacity for growth — not just a diagnostic category. Personality disorder diagnoses describe patterns, not character.
In-Person and Virtual Continuity of Care
Consistent attendance makes a meaningful difference in therapy. We offer in-person sessions at our Barrie office and secure virtual sessions for clients located elsewhere in Ontario — so you can choose the format you can show up to reliably, without disruption to your progress.
Meet Reset Therapists for Personality Disorder Counselling
Van Shanahan, Registered Psychotherapist
Van is registered with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) and specializes in personality disorders and psychodynamic therapy. He draws from CBT, REBT, solution-focused, and strengths-based approaches to support adolescents (14+) and adults. His approach is collaborative and supportive.
Andi Atkins, Registered Psychotherapist
Andi works with teens (14+) and adults navigating trauma, self-harm and suicidal ideation, and relationship difficulties, along with depression and anxiety. With over a decade of clinical experience, Andi offers a warm, non-judgmental approach, using CBT and evidence-based tools and grounding and coping strategies. Sessions are available in person or by telephone.
Melanie Lockhart, Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
Melanie works with young adults and teens navigating intense emotions, overthinking, self-doubt, and the relationship patterns that can leave them feeling stuck. She brings a practical, CBT-based approach and helps clients build tools for managing anxiety and strong emotions, and a different relationship with their own thoughts and feelings, at a pace that feels manageable.
Personality Disorder Counselling in Barrie, Orillia and Simcoe County
Reset Counselling & Psychotherapy serves teens and adults in Barrie and across Ontario. Our Barrie office provides in-person access for local clients, while secure virtual sessions extend support across Simcoe County and the rest of the province, wherever consistent care is difficult to access in person.
Session Length, Location and Virtual Options
Sessions at Reset are 50 minutes long. In-person appointments are available at our Barrie office at Unit 201–151 Essa Road, Barrie, Ontario. Free parking is available on site. For directions visit our contact page.
Secure virtual sessions are available to clients in Orillia, Innisfil, Bradford, New Tecumseth, and communities across Simcoe County and Ontario, subject to therapist availability and clinical suitability. You can attend from home or any private location in Ontario.
Fees, Insurance and Referrals
Sessions are $170 (no tax) for 50 minutes. Private psychotherapy at Reset is not covered by OHIP, but some extended health benefit plans reimburse services from Registered Psychotherapists, so check your plan to confirm your coverage. We do not offer direct billing. Receipts are provided for reimbursement submission, and we accept Visa and Mastercard. No physician’s referral is required. You can book directly through our online booking platform at any time, or email info@resetbarrie.ca if you have questions first.
When Immediate or Crisis Support Is Needed
Reset Counselling & Psychotherapy is not an emergency or crisis-response service. If you are in immediate danger, please call
9-1-1. If you are thinking about suicide or are worried about someone else, call or text
9-8-8 — Canada's Suicide Crisis Helpline — available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Frequently Asked Questions About Personality Disorder Counselling
Common questions from people considering personality disorder therapy in Barrie and across Ontario.
Can Counselling Really Help with a Personality Disorder?
Yes — with realistic expectations. Research supports psychotherapy, particularly DBT and CBT, as effective for improving emotional regulation, relationship functioning, and quality of life. Progress is usually gradual. Consistent, individualized therapy produces meaningful change over time, though outcomes vary by person, disorder type, and engagement.
What Is the Difference Between BPD and Bipolar Disorder?
BPD involves frequent mood shifts often triggered by interpersonal events, alongside identity instability and relationship difficulties. Bipolar disorder involves longer, more persistent mood episodes (mania or hypomania and depression) that are less tied to relational triggers. A proper assessment by a qualified clinician is the appropriate way to distinguish between them.
Does Reset Offer DBT?
We offer individual DBT-informed therapy, which incorporates DBT techniques and skills within individual sessions. This is different from a structured, comprehensive DBT program — which typically includes a weekly skills group, individual therapy, phone coaching, and a therapist consultation team. We will discuss what format best fits your needs.
How Long Does Personality Disorder Counselling Take?
There is no fixed timeline. Duration depends on your goals, the complexity of your concerns, how often you attend, and your progress over time. Most clients begin weekly and adjust from there. Your therapist will check in with you regularly to ensure the work remains relevant and effective.
Can Counselling Help with Narcissistic Traits or NPD?
Yes. Therapy for narcissistic personality disorder or narcissistic patterns focuses on self-awareness, shame regulation, emotional tolerance, and building more sustainable relationships. Progress requires trust and a genuine therapeutic relationship — which our therapists work to establish carefully and without judgment.
Start Personality Disorder Counselling in Barrie, ON
You don't have to have everything figured out before reaching out. Reset Counselling & Psychotherapy offers in-person personality disorder counselling at our Barrie office and virtual psychotherapy across Ontario — including Orillia, Innisfil, Bradford, New Tecumseth, and communities throughout Simcoe County. Our Registered Psychotherapists are here to meet you where you are and help you build from there.
Prefer to reach us directly? Call 705-300-0077 or email info@resetbarrie.ca.