Centre For Interpersonal Relationships (CFIR) - Ottawa

I was charged $190 to have a counselling session with a therapist who works under a registered psychologist. Note that I had no actual interaction with a psychologist, just that this therapist works under their tutelage. It does not add up and it makes for very questionable business practices. The first session was only an assessment so a person would not get anything out of it besides answering a series of questions - at the very not low cost of $190. Will not return.

Cancelled my appointment via voicemail the day of the consultation. This was for a free 1st session which I was told l should take. I really hope this is rectified for the sake of other people trying to access your services. It's not OK to convince people to book a free consultation if you don't have the resources to provide one then tell them to pay from the 1st session.

Lately I've been struggling with a lot of issues, and talking to someone here really opened up a lot of doors for me that I didn't know I had. The front desk staff is really nice, but it would be better if people answered calls. They always call back though, so that's nice.

Where to start... I am going to start off by saying it is almost impossible to reach them by phone. My ex and I were looking for couple counseling and I found that place on Google. I tried to call a few times and never got any answers other than the voicemail. I then decided to leave voicemail and waited...waited and waited. I tried to call again after few days until I finally gave up and went somewhere else. After few WEEKS, I finally got a call back. It was too late as we already had a new therapist but it was really expensive so we decided to go ahead and make an appointment with them. We had our first session, together as a couple, when we learned that the therapists were actually students but reasure us that a psychologist was overseeing everything which made us more confident. First therapy was good. We explained what our concerns were and goals we wanted to accomplish. We went ahead and book our second appointment, which was simply being alone in room answering hundreds of questions on a tablet device. Third appointment was to discuss about the results of the previous test, once again individually. Everything seemed to be fine at this point until my ex came back from her individual appointment with a broken up speech. Basically we stopped seing a therapist where we were making progress to go there as it was cheaper and we didn't even have one session as a couple and our relationship was over. The bottom of it is that I was upset at the time for few weeks but I still decided to go there again to work on myself and regain confidence. Prior to everything they sent me a link where we can make appointments online which would save us time but I had never tried it as I was usually booking with the receptionist after each appointments but when I tried to book one online, the link didn't work. I tried to call but of course....no answers for weeks. They called me after few weeks but it was too late again. Long story short it is a great place for budget friendly compared to other places however cheaper isn't always better as it is almost impossible to make an appointment unless you show up at the door.

I cannot comment on the services offered by any of the psychologists, because it was so difficult to make an appointment that I decided to look elsewhere. - I filled out the online form to book a free consultation. The form gave me the names of three specific psychologists/therapists, so I did some research and picked one that seemed to best fit my needs. When they called me back, none of those doctors was offering free consultations. What was the point of giving the names if they aren't accurate? - They never, ever answered their phone. Instead I would be on hold for a minute or two, then sent to voicemail. - They only ever tried calling me back once after each voicemail - meaning if I missed their return call because I was in a meeting or away from my phone for a moment, I had to call them back, wait on hold, leave another voicemail, and wait for them to call me back. - I ended up having to call from a different phone one of the times I called them, but I left the number for my cell phone in my voicemail and requested they call me back at that number. They did not call me back at the number I provided, instead leaving a voicemail on a phone that I didn't always have access to - this felt significantly unprofessional with something as sensitive and private as therapy. - They say they will return all voicemails within two business days. I called on a Friday and by the Thursday morning of the next week had not heard back. - I first called in early January. I was told the therapist I wanted to see was not available until February. I didn't book an appointment immediately because I needed to consult with my husband. By the time I managed to actually speak to someone there a second time (after all of the issues above, where we played telephone tag for about 2 weeks), I was told the therapist was not available until March. Fair enough if they are busy, but since it was their own poor booking system that had caused the delay, I then decided to look elsewhere.

I am actually shocked on how slow the service is. I have been extremely fair and lenient waiting on my results. I have paid for all of my services on time and have yet to hear back from my therapist. I feel like I have been left high and dry. Very discouraging for me as a first timer. Do not recommend here at all.

Horrible service. Everytime I have tried to reach then I have had to wait 1 month minimum. I am currently unable to reach them after 3 voice mails a week apart. They owe me a sum of money but are in no rush to reach back. Last year they made several invoicing error. They even made me pay someone else's account. I ended up seeing some other clients personal info. The psychologists are nice. But the admin is a nightmare. I would not recommend this spot.

First contacted them 2 weeks ago. Have not been contacted regarding our first or second intake forms. Have not been called back after leaving voicemails. Have not been emailed back regarding follow up on lack of response to intake forms. I really was hoping they could provide some relief to my relationship but we have been ignored. Heartbreaking.