Parenting asks a lot of us. The expectations can feel endless, while the support around us seems to get smaller and smaller.
We offer individual therapy for parents in Hamilton and virtually across Ontario, helping you navigate parenting guilt, anxiety, overwhelm, and the patterns you don't want to pass down to your children.
Our attachment-focused approach helps you better understand your triggers, develop more compassion for yourself, and build a parenting relationship that feels more connected and secure. You don't have to get everything right to be a good-enough parent.
Sarah Kennedy, Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), specializes in supporting parents, children, and youth through the difficult parts of family life.
Parenting Therapy in Hamilton
Ready for Support in Navigating Parenting?
Your guilt and anxiety are sky-high; you never know if you’re ‘doing it right’
You had high hopes that you would never repeat certain patterns from your own childhood, and yet, you find yourself sounding like your parents in ways you don’t like
You want your child to feel safe, understood, and connected to you
You often feel overstimulated & under-resourced
You’re overwhelmed; you’re pulled in too many directions
You’re highly critical of yourself
You struggle with exhaustion, low mood, and anxiety symptoms
You often struggle to feel good-enough & worthy
Your child is struggling, and you're trying to figure out how to support them while taking care of yourself, too
You're ready to understand yourself more deeply and build a more connected relationship with your child; you’re ready to expand your village to include professional parenting & attachment support
How Parenting Therapy Can Support You
Parenting therapy isn't about judging your choices or telling you how to parent. It's a space to understand yourself, make sense of your reactions, and explore what might help your family.
We start by getting to know you. Our first sessions focus on your experiences, your family dynamics, the challenges you're facing, and what you hope will change.
We explore your triggers and patterns. Together, we look at the moments when parenting feels especially difficult, what gets stirred up for you, and how your own experiences may shape your responses.
We take an attachment-focused approach. We explore what you and your child may need to feel more connected, understood, and secure, while recognizing that every family is different.
We make room for self-compassion. Parenting can bring up guilt, frustration, anxiety, and self-doubt. Therapy offers a space to work through these feelings without shame.
We work toward meaningful change. As you develop a deeper understanding of yourself, you can begin to practise new ways of responding to your child and caring for your own needs.
You don't have to navigate every difficult moment alone. We're here to support you, meet you where you are, and help you find your own way forward.
Sessions are 50 minutes and are available in person in Hamilton or virtually across Ontario.
Meet Your Parenting Therapist in Hamilton
virtual across Ontario
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Sarah Kennedy
Registered Psychotherapist, Qualifying
Parenting can bring up some of our most vulnerable feelings. Sarah supports parents, children, and youth as they navigate anxiety, life transitions, difficult experiences, guilt, and self-criticism.
With a warm, nurturing, and compassionate approach, Sarah offers a space where you can feel understood rather than judged. As a mom of two young children, she also brings personal experience of the complexities of parenting to her work, while recognizing that every family's experience is unique.
Anxious about getting started? A free meet & greet is a no-pressure way to check if we’re a good fit.
Frequently Asked Questions
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I charge $175 per 50 minute session.
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We accept credit card or e-transfer.
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We do not direct bill to insurance companies. You will pay at the end of each session and your therapist will provide a receipt you can use to make a benefits claim with your provider.
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We are located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. We see individuals virtually across Ontario and in person at 57-B John Street South, Hamilton, ON.
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Maggie and Summer work with individuals age 18+. Sarah works with adults, as well as children (Age 6+) and their parents.
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Phase 1 – Get to Know Each Other + Assessment
In this phase, your therapist’s role is:
to get to know you and help you feel comfortable, validated, seen, and heard
to assess your history, your needs, and develop a tentative plan for our work together.
Your role here is to simply be open and honest, to assess if you feel like you and your therapist are a good fit for each other, and to pin down your focus/goals for therapy.
Phase 2 – The Work
In this phase, you begin to actively work on the symptoms, patterns, and challenges that brought you into therapy. This is when your therapist may mindfully push you into a zone of discomfort.
This phase will look different for everyone depending on what you decide to work on together. This may include new insights into your experiences and behaviours, new perspectives and skills, body based interventions, and/or visualizations. The work may include “homework” for you to practice out in the world.
Phase 3 – Maintenance
Once you feel a shift in your mental wellness, you may see your therapist less frequently or you may choose to take a break from therapy. During this time, the focus is on keeping up the gains you have acquired during your time together.
Alternatively, you may choose to focus on an area you have not tackled yet. If so, you cycle back into “the work” for another round.
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As frequently as once a week and as infrequently as once a month. It is recommended you attend weekly or bi-weekly for the first few months of therapy.
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Each therapy session is up to 50 minutes and begins on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Whether you decide to commit for a number of weeks, a number of months, or a number of years depends on your personal needs and goals.
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Your therapist belongs to a regulated college of heath professionals authorized to practice psychotherapy under the Psychotherapy Act of Ontario.
As a member of one of these colleges, we are mandated to continually engage in professional development, peer consultation, and supervision with mentors.
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Your therapist is trained in any number of attachment oriented therapy modalities, such as:
Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT)
Attachment Focused Therapy (DDP)
Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT)
Family Systems Therapy
Child & Adolescent Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy
As well as other modalities such as:
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)