ADHD and Rejection Sensitivity
For people who take criticism hard, and spend the evening replaying it.
✓ Same-week ✓ Direct billing ✓ Sliding scale ✓ Licensed therapists
Book a free consultationFor people who take criticism hard, and spend the evening replaying it.
✓ Same-week ✓ Direct billing ✓ Sliding scale ✓ Licensed therapists
Book a free consultationEvery clinician is registered with a regulatory college — the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO), the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW), or the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO).
We want therapy to be financially accessible for everyone. Reduced rates are available case-by-case based on need and availability.
We submit directly to most major insurers, so you don't pay out of pocket upfront.
Our office is in Ottawa. All client records are stored in Canada and handled under PIPEDA and PHIPA.
Therapy is a space to slow down and look at what's underneath. These are some of the patterns people bring into the room.
FOR WHEN SOMETHING FEELS OFF
One line of feedback and your chest is hot, your ears are ringing, and the day is over. People who don't get it call it overreacting; people who do know how physical it is.
A conversation from Tuesday is still running on a loop, always with the worst reading of it. Replaying feels useful, but it never actually settles anything.
Not applying, not asking, not posting, not raising your hand. When every judgment might become a flood, avoiding judgment starts making your decisions for you.
Therapy for rejection sensitivity works on the spiral itself and on what built it. In the moment: learning to recognize the reaction for what it is, fast and overwhelming but temporary, and building ways to ride it out without firing off the resignation letter or the 2am apology text.
Underneath: revisiting the accumulated history of correction that trained the alarm, and slowly recalibrating how much a raised eyebrow is allowed to mean. Expect Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and skills from Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) for the intensity, and self-compassion work for the shame, which often drives it.
Rejection sensitivity also tangles with people-pleasing, perfectionism, and avoiding feedback altogether, so the work often widens to include how you protect yourself and what it costs. Where it's affecting a partnership, our ADHD and relationships page covers that side.
Email, phone, or fill out our booking form. There's no script and no pressure. You can share as much or as little as you want.
A real person, not a bot, will reply as soon as we can with a few options for a free 15-minute consultation.
We listen. You ask questions. No paperwork, no obligation. If we're not the right match, we'll point you toward someone who might be.
Direct billing where possible. Evening and weekend availability. Virtual or in-person in Ottawa.
Sessions are 50 minutes in length. Rates vary by therapist and are confirmed during your free consultation. We accept e-transfer and credit cards, and direct-bill most insurers.
Sliding-scale spots are available based on need. Ask during your free consultation.
Same 50-minute format, structured for two participants and shared concerns.
Registered Psychotherapist and Registered Social Worker services are covered by most extended health plans in Canada. We recommend confirming your specific coverage before your first paid session. Sun Life, Manulife, Canada Life, Green Shield, and most major insurers include coverage.
We direct-bill where your insurer allows it. Otherwise, you pay at the time of session and submit the receipt for reimbursement.
Every session generates a receipt listing the provider's license number, suitable for insurance reimbursement.
In-person sessions are held at our Ottawa office. Virtual sessions use a secure, PIPEDA-compliant video platform. You can switch between the two.
We ask for 24 hours notice on cancellations. Late cancellations and no-shows are charged the full session fee.
After the free 15-minute consultation, your first paid session is intake-focused. Bring questions, anything you have already tried, and any goals you have in mind.
QUESTIONS
Rejection sensitive dysphoria isn't a formal diagnosis in the DSM, but the experience it describes, intense and fast reactions to perceived criticism or rejection, is widely reported by people with ADHD. Therapy works with the pattern itself, whatever label it carries.
Social anxiety tends to be anticipatory (fear before and during situations) while rejection sensitivity is more often a sudden flood after a trigger. They can overlap, and both respond to therapy. Our social anxiety therapy page covers that pattern on its own.
Medication questions belong with your doctor or nurse practitioner; we don't prescribe. What therapy contributes is skills for riding out the flood, recalibrating what feedback is allowed to mean, and working with the history that trained the alarm.
No. You can book directly with a Registered Psychotherapist or Registered Social Worker without a doctor's referral. Some insurance plans ask for one before reimbursing, so it is worth checking your policy.
Psychotherapy with a Registered Psychotherapist or Registered Social Worker is not covered by OHIP. Many extended health and workplace benefit plans cover it, though plans differ on which credentials they reimburse. Check whether yours covers RP, RSW, or both.
Yes. Our therapists offer secure video sessions to clients anywhere in Ontario, and many people mix virtual and in-person visits depending on the week. Everything discussed stays confidential either way.
Therapy is a longer-term relationship. If you're in acute distress, please reach the services below first. They are free, confidential, and available right now.
