Services Provided
In order to provide helpful psychological information and resources to the most people, Dr. Unger prioritizes providing services to organizations and groups as well as supervising others to provide individual services to children, adolescents, adults, couples and families.
Professional Consultations
and Workshops
Dr. Unger is able to provide consultation services to a variety of mental health and health care providers on an ongoing or one-time basis. In addition, she is able to provide workshops and presentations on a variety of topics such as stress management, anxiety, trauma, parenting, mental health in the workplace, children's mental health, picky eating, mindfulness, and attachment, among others. See her workshop page for more examples.
Mindfulness-based Groups
and Retreats
In addition to years of personal practice, training and workshops in mindfulness practice and therapy, Dr. Unger is in the process of becoming a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction facilitator. Based on interest and at various times of the year, Dr. Unger plans to offer mindfulness-based groups and retreats. This may include mindfulness offers for parents, families, organizations, and health service providers. Please feel free to contact her to express interest and for updated information.
Couple's Therapy
Emotion-Focused Therapy for Couples, an attachment-based therapy model, is the primary couple's treatment model used by Dr. Unger. The focus of this treatment modality is on helping couples understand the patterns of their interactions and become a safe and secure place to meet each other's emotional and relational needs. While 90-minute sessions are preferred for engaging in this work, 60-minute sessions can also be scheduled.
Family Therapy
In some situations, the family dynamics and patterns of relating to each other need to be the primary focus of treatment. While all therapy models will involve understanding and improving relational patterns, family therapy places the family as the primary focus and "client." An initial session is completed with the parents and other caregivers to collect background information. This process helps to place the parents and adult caregivers as the leaders of the family. A second intake session is then completed with the whole family to collect each family member's perspectives and develop a family treatment plan together.
While the majority of the sessions will likely involve all consenting family members, there may be times when individuals, dyads or smaller family groupings may attend sessions. Because of the number of people attending these appointments and the dynamic nature of the work, 90-minute appointments are typically scheduled.
Individual Psychotherapy
Individual psychotherapy, with adults, adolescents or children, begins with spending one to a few sessions collecting appropriate background information to develop an effective treatment plan. This may involve completion of forms and some measures to aid in providing the best possible service. It is a collaborative process and includes the selection of therapy goals and an appropriate evidence-based therapy model. In each psychotherapy session, the therapist works together with the clients to help them reach their goals.
Caregiver/Parent Consultation
and Coaching
As part of the child's individual therapy, parents, guardians and other child caregivers are provided with information, encouragement and strategies for supporting their children in treatment. These sessions can also be provided to caregivers where their children are not able, ready or willing to engage in treatment at this time. Parents and caregivers are one of, if not, the most important influences on a child's life. Often one of the best ways to help children is to help parents.
Child Psychological Assessments
Assessment, for children 6 years of age and older, are provided in the areas of intellectual abilities, learning, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, and mental health difficulties. The process will involve some combination of interviews with caregivers and children, cognitive testing with a psychometrist, completion of questionnaires, completion of a report, and a feedback session. Depending on the complexity of the issues involved, an assessment generally takes between 8 to 15 hours.
Adult Psychological Assessments
Assessments for adults are provided in the areas of intellectual abilities, learning, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and mental health difficulties. The process will involve some combination of interviews with caregivers and children, cognitive testing with a psychometrist, completion of questionnaires, completion of a report, and a feedback session. Depending on the complexity of the issues involved, an assessment generally takes between 8 to 15 hours.
For a full listing of Dr. Unger's service areas, feel free to view her Manitoba Psychology Society directory profile.