MARY BENEDETTI, B.A. (Hons High Distinction), M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual, Couple and Family Therapist

As a social worker and mental health professional at Toronto’s world-renowned Hospital for Sick Children, Mary Benedetti spent five+ years helping both children and parents navigate life-changing health and mental-health challenges. She was also co-supervisor of the SickKids’ Family Therapy Seminar (which was led for 12 years by Your Therapy Lead Clinician Anu Chahauver), offering family-therapy training to psychiatry residents, psychology interns and students in the University of Toronto’s Masters of Social Work program.

In her private practice, Mary works with adults, children, teens and families facing a variety of relational and mental-health challenges. She brings a personable and collaborative strengths-based approach, drawing on, and building from, each individual’s core values and strengths, to help them discover opportunities for growth and healing. Although family, work and personal situations can be messy and bring many challenges, Mary believes we can all build lives with greater purpose, connection and fulfillment.

Mary also has a passion for life-long learning in both her professional field, and a variety of other subjects, including arts, culture and science, especially ecology, which goes along with her love of spending time outdoors hiking and swimming.

MARY BENEDETTI, B.A. (Hons High Distinction), M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychother... Read More

Julie Blair (she/her) M.S.W., R.S.W.

Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual Therapist

An Anishinaabe woman, and graduate of the University of Toronto’s Master of Social Work Program in the Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency Field, Julie’s practice with adults and youth centres trauma- informed, culturally humble, person-centred and strengths-based relational therapeutic approaches. She works with people on their recovery journeys from anxiety, depression, substance misuse and childhood trauma. Julie supports her clients with an open, collaborative and compassionate approach, employing mindfulness, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy, Motivational Interviewing along with Indigenous understandings of wellness In addition to offering psychotherapy at Your Therapy, Julie is a social worker at Women’s College Hospital, specializing in group and individual trauma therapy, working with survivors of childhood trauma and neglect. She has also co-developed and led workshops for Indigenous frontline workers and community members who have experienced complex grief and intergenerational trauma. Julie is also a

lecturer at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, teaching a graduate-level course on trauma-informed classroom practices from Indigenous perspectives. When Julie isn’t working, she spends her time relaxing with her cats, kayaking, gardening and connecting with her community at arts- based and ceremonial gatherings.

Julie Blair (she/her) M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual Therap... Read More

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Anu Chahauver, B.A. (Psych), B.S.W., M.S.W., R.S.W. Lead Clinician, Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual, Couple & Family Therapist

Many people find their calling over a long period of experimentation and false starts. Others, like Anu, follow a less winding path. Long before she could have imagined her current role at SickKids hospital, Anu was a college student studying social work, when a job placement changed her life. Tasked with counselling a young man who had serious substance-abuse issues, Anu was privately doubtful she could help, since his problems seemed so overwhelming.

So she simply asked a few questions and listened as he opened up and told his tale. To the rookie counselor’s surprise, her client’s relief was palpable, and Anu saw, firsthand, how simply being listened to in a safe, non-judgmental way could make a difference in someone’s life. When this man eventually graduated from his substance abuse program, he told Anu that their initial conversation had been a turning point for him.

Shortly after, Anu worked with another client—an educated, cultured elderly gentleman in his 60s. In a matter of months, this once-successful man had lost everything—his home, his job, his wife—due to untreated major depression. For Anu, this experience gave a face and a name to the devastating impact of mental illness. These two encounters, one hopeful, one sobering and both powerful, inspired her to become a therapist.

While pursuing her Masters at the University of Toronto, Anu also learned the value of evidence-informed treatment, which is now a cornerstone of her practice. Research shows that meaningful change comes from building a therapeutic alliance between client and therapist. Using a standardized form, Anu asks clients to give her regular feedback. This keeps her accountable to you, and helps create a feeling of collaboration, as client and therapist develop and work toward their goals.

Those clients, by the way, also include children, from toddlers all the way up to teenagers. During the 14 years she spent with Toronto’s SickKids hospital, Anu developed a special focus on helping young people through their medical and mental health challenges using a variety of therapeutic methods, including play therapy. And today, many young clients still come to her via referrals from pediatricians and child psychiatrists.

More than ever, Anu believes in the power of the therapeutic relationship and the strengths-based model to effect lasting, positive changes in the lives of families, couple and individuals. Opening up your life to a therapist is not an easy step, but as you work toward a happier, more satisfying life, Anu is honoured to take this journey with you.

Anu Chahauver, B.A. (Psych), B.S.W., M.S.W., R.S.W. Lead Clinician, Registered Social Worker, Psy... Read More

Mana Gebreyohannes M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual and Family Therapist

Mana has over eight years of experience working with children, adolescents and their families, including those struggling with anxiety, depression, emotional regulation, self-harming behaviours, body image concerns, trauma, loss, family conflict and crisis. Mana’s practice is informed by her extensive experience working with diverse backgrounds in various settings, such as community, child protection and hospitals, both in Nova Scotia and Ontario. In addition to her role as a psychotherapist at Your Therapy, Mana has the privilege of working with children, adolescents and their families in the in-patient Psychiatry and Eating Disorders program at Toronto’s world renowned Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids).

Mana’s practice is also significantly informed by her personal experiences living in an immigrant household, among a vibrant African Nova Scotian community, and later, living in multicultural Toronto. These experiences enable her to work from a cultural-humility stance, practicing through an anti-oppressive, trauma-informed, client-centered, collaborative lens, aiming to amplify the innate strengths and resilience of her clients. Mana deeply believes that clients are the experts in their lives, and she aims to create a safe, non-judgmental space where they can explore and increase self-awareness as a means of growth towards treatment goals.

Mana Gebreyohannes M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual and Family... Read More

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Maura is a Clinical Social Worker with over 12 years experience helping youth and parents navigate life-changing physical and mental health challenges at the Hospital for Sick Children and Markham-Stouffville Hospital.

She uses a compassionate, trauma-informed, and attachment-based approach to work collaboratively with clients to explore their goals and harness their innate strengths to effectively create change in their lives. Maura works with children of all ages, families and adults who are seeking support for mood concerns, anxiety, interpersonal relationship issues, and parenting/life transition challenges. She also provides support to adults who are struggling with disordered eating and is certified as a Mental Health Provider for children and adults living with Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes.

Maura draws from her extensive training in a variety of evidence-based modalities including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT), Narrative Therapy, and Infant Mental Health.

Most importantly, as the mother of three adult children, she deeply understands the challenges faced by modern day families and is committed to creating a warm, safe, and non-judgmental space for healing and growth.

Maura is a Clinical Social Worker with over 12 years experience helping youth and parents navigat... Read More

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Kathy Netten, B.Sc. (Psych), M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual, Couple & Family Therapist

A Clinical Social Worker with over 20 years of experience, Kathy Netten provides psychotherapy to people on their journeys through the challenges of parenting, trauma, grief and bereavement. She also specializes in providing support for children, teens and adults facing a variety of mental health challenges, including anxiety, depression and adjusting to chronic illness and disability.

Kathy has been a healthcare provider in the Toronto area for over 25 years, first with the University Health Network, and then joining the city’s world-renowned Hospital for Sick Children in 1996. Kathy has worked in a variety of roles and departments at SickKids, and is currently a social worker in the Complex Care Program. In his position, she’s a co-Supervisor of The Family Therapy Treatment Seminar, providing strengths-based family therapy, while mentoring social work students in this treatment modality.

Outside of her psychotherapy practice, Kathy enjoys spending time with family, friends and pets, and especially values time outdoors gardening and watching wildlife. Kathy’s active kids have also kept her up to date on 21st century teenage culture, introducing her to Instagram, anime and PlayStation.

Kathy Netten, B.Sc. (Psych), M.S.W., R.S.W. Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist Individual,... Read More

Simone Newstadt, B.A. (Hons) Licentiate, Speech and Drama – Trinity College of London Intake Worker

Simone has worked as a research assistant and transcriptionist in the world of healthcare, particularly that of paediatric psychosocial care, for the past 14 years. Before that, she taught Speech and Drama to kids and teens for 8 years. She has witnessed, over and over again through her work, how the right therapy can be lifechanging for individuals, couples, and families. Simone’s role at Your Therapy is to meet you at the beginning of your therapeutic journey, to understand your needs, and to book you an appointment with the right therapist on our team.

Simone is an urban mother of two young adults who have been her most prolific teachers about human nature, our educational system, the worlds of social media, and current music, to name just a few areas of learning. Simone is a balletomane who is passionate about the arts in all forms. She is a longstanding member of a community choir and loves to sing. She is also an avid swimmer who is unafraid of freezing cold water.

Simone Newstadt, B.A. (Hons) Licentiate, Speech and Drama – Trinity College of London Intake Work... Read More

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