Confidential counselling for business owners, founders, and leaders who want space to think about how the work is affecting the rest of their life. Registered Psychologists, Provisional Psychologists, social workers regulated by the Alberta College of Social Workers (ACSW), and counsellors certified by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA). Psychologists regulated by the College of Alberta Psychologists (CAP). In-person in Edmonton and St. Albert. Virtual sessions across Alberta.

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You Might Be Wondering Whether Counselling for Entrepreneurs Is Right for You

You may be wondering whether what you are feeling is just the price of running a business. Maybe nothing has collapsed, and from the outside things look fine. So it can be hard to tell whether the strain you carry is serious enough to talk to someone about, or whether you should keep pushing through the way you always have.

Perhaps you lie awake running numbers, or replaying a conversation with a client or a co-founder. You might answer messages at the dinner table and then feel short with people at home who have done nothing wrong. Some people notice they cannot remember the last day that felt fully off, or that the business has quietly become most of who they are.

These patterns make sense when one person holds a lot of responsibility, uncertainty, and decision-making for a long stretch of time. They are understandable human responses to sustained pressure. They do not mean you are failing, and they do not mean something is permanently wrong with you.

If you are trying to decide whether speaking with someone could help, this page may be a useful starting point. It explains what counselling for entrepreneurs looks like here, what it is not, and what you can expect if you decide to reach out.

Who We Help

Running a business can involve responsibility, uncertainty, and frequent decisions. People come to this kind of counselling at different stages and for different reasons.

This service may be a good fit if you are:

• a business owner, founder, self-employed professional, or leader who wants a private place to talk about the personal side of the work
• feeling stretched between roles such as owner, manager, partner, parent, or caregiver
• carrying worry about money, risk, or a major decision and finding it hard to set down (you may also find our page on financial risk stress helpful)
• going through a change such as growth, a setback, a closure, a sale, or a succession plan
• part of a family business where work and family relationships overlap (see family business and succession support)
• not looking for a diagnosis, and simply wanting space to think more clearly about what matters to you
• reading on behalf of a partner, co-founder, family member, or friend. You are welcome to share this page or call the administrative team with questions. The choice to begin counselling stays with the person themselves.

This service may not be the right fit if:

• you are in immediate danger or thinking about ending your life. Please use the crisis resources below first.
• you need business, financial, tax, legal, investment, or human resources advice. Those needs sit outside counselling, although a therapist can help with the personal side of those decisions alongside the right professional.
• you need a forensic report or support for a legal matter. Those needs are outside this therapy service.
• you are looking for a psychological assessment. Assessments are a separate service and are not part of this counselling.

If You Need Help Right Now

Counselling appointments are booked ahead of time and are not set up to respond to emergencies. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, or you are thinking about suicide, please contact one of these services now:

• Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department if there is immediate danger.
• Alberta Mental Health Help Line: 1-877-303-2642 (24/7)
• Access 24/7 (Edmonton crisis line): 780-424-2424 (24/7)
• 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline: call or text 988 (24/7)

Wholesome Psychology is not an emergency or crisis service.

What This Service Is

Counselling for the psychological cost of entrepreneurship is talk-based support for the personal side of running a business. Counselling can offer a private, collaborative space to explore work-related concerns. Sessions may explore topics such as boundaries, workload, relationships, values, and work-life patterns. You do not need a diagnosis, and the work does not assume something is clinically wrong with you.

A few boundaries are worth knowing up front. This service:

• is not business coaching, consulting, financial planning, or tax, legal, investment, or human resources advice
• is not a legal service or an investigative process
• is not crisis intervention (see the crisis resources above)
• does not include a psychological assessment, which is a separate service
• does not promise changes in your business performance, income, or decisions

You set the pace. Your therapist will not push you to talk about anything before you are ready, and you can change direction at any point. What you share is confidential, with limits explained in the Confidentiality and Privacy section below.

Each clinician works within the scope of their own training and professional regulation. If something you raise falls outside what counselling can address, your therapist can talk with you about other kinds of support. This page offers general information only. It cannot assess your situation or replace individual care.

Signs the Psychological Cost of Entrepreneurship May Be Affecting You

For some people, the demands of entrepreneurial work can affect how they feel, relate to others, or manage daily routines. Here are some patterns people describe. You might recognize one or two of them, or none exactly.

• Feeling unable to switch off, even on evenings, weekends, or holidays
• Carrying a steady background worry about cash flow, clients, or staff
• Second-guessing decisions long after they have been made
• Snapping at, or pulling away from, people at home who have not done anything wrong
• Feeling isolated because there is no one at work you can be fully honest with
• Sleep that gets lighter or shorter when the business is under pressure
• Feeling physically tense, worn down, or like you are running on empty
• Losing touch with friendships, interests, or parts of yourself outside the business
• Tying your sense of worth closely to how the business is doing

Work conditions can be relevant to conversations about wellbeing and support. The World Health Organization's classification system, ICD-11, lists employment conditions and burnout among the factors that can influence health status (World Health Organization [WHO], n.d.). That listing does not mean you have burnout or any diagnosis.

These experiences are understandable reactions to sustained pressure, not permanent features of who you are. Structured support can give you room to look at them more closely. If day-to-day pressure is the main concern, our page on stress management for entrepreneurs may also be relevant.

How Treatment Works Here

• Find your therapist. You can use the Match with a Therapist tool or browse Our Therapists to read about each clinician's background and focus. If you would rather talk it through, the administrative team can help you consider therapist options at 780-904-4880.
• Book your first session. You can book through the online booking system. In the first session, your therapist explains confidentiality and its limits, reviews consent, and asks what has brought you in and what you would like from counselling. You can ask about their approach too.
• Build your plan together. You and your therapist create a plan around your priorities, schedule, and pace. It is shaped collaboratively around your goals and can change as your needs change.
• Ongoing sessions. Sessions are 50 minutes. They typically happen weekly or every two weeks, and frequency can be adjusted to fit your workload.
• Progress check-ins. Your therapist checks in with you regularly about what is helping and what is not. The plan adapts as things shift.

There is no fixed number of sessions. Counselling is collaborative, and your voice matters at every stage, including when you want to slow down, shift focus, or take a break. You can read more on our Getting Started with Therapy page or learn about our approach.

Evidence and Approaches

We want to be clear about what the research gathered for this page can and cannot tell you. The sources below support treating work as a legitimate topic for counselling. They do not measure whether a particular counselling method works for entrepreneurs, and they include no Edmonton data, so this page makes no prevalence or outcome claims. Your therapist can describe the specific methods they use and the research behind them.

Collaborative, Client-Centred Counselling

What it helps with: It offers a private, collaborative space to talk through work-related concerns and decide which ones matter most to you.

Evidence summary: ICD-11 lists employment conditions among the factors that can influence health status, which supports treating work as a legitimate subject in health care conversations (WHO, n.d.). This listing describes a category of concern. It does not evaluate any counselling method.

Workplace Mental Health Context

What it helps with: It places your experience within the wider picture of how work and mental wellbeing interact.

Evidence summary: Canadian and international organizations have published on mental health at work, including Workplace Mental Health: A Review and Recommendations (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health [CAMH], n.d.), Going It Alone (Canadian Mental Health Association [CMHA] & BDC, n.d.), and Mental Wellbeing at Work (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence [NICE], n.d.). This page does not summarize their specific findings or recommendations.

What Results to Expect

Progress in counselling is rarely a straight line. Some weeks may feel clearer and others harder, especially when the business is going through a busy or uncertain stretch. That can be part of the process rather than a sign that counselling is not working.

Some people notice changes within a few months. Others find longer-term work more useful, particularly when several pressures overlap. Outcomes vary, and no therapy can guarantee a particular personal, professional, or business result.

What you get from counselling can depend on:

• what you are carrying now, and for how long
• your current circumstances, including workload and support outside work
• how well you and your therapist fit
• what you want counselling to focus on

Fit matters. If the match does not feel right, you can change therapists or try a different approach at any time, and the administrative team can help with that.

Confidentiality and Privacy

What you share in counselling is confidential. That includes details about your business, staff, clients, investors, and finances, not only personal matters. Confidentiality does have limits, and your clinician will explain them clearly in your first session as part of informed consent.

Psychologists at Wholesome Psychology are regulated by the College of Alberta Psychologists (CAP) and follow the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) Canadian Code of Ethics for Psychologists. Registered Social Workers are regulated by the Alberta College of Social Workers (ACSW). Each clinician follows the privacy and record-keeping obligations of their profession.

Two Alberta privacy laws are relevant. The Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) generally governs how private clinics collect, use, disclose, and store personal information, and consent is central to it. The Health Information Act (HIA) applies to health custodians, such as Alberta Health Services, and to clinicians who work for or are contracted by them. Your clinician can explain which rules apply to your records.

A clinician may need to share information without your consent in a small number of situations:

• a serious risk of harm to yourself or someone else
• suspected abuse or neglect of a child, which Alberta law requires to be reported
• a court order

You are welcome to ask questions about privacy before you share anything personal. You can also ask how your records are stored and who can see them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to go into detail about my business, my finances, or what has happened?

No. You decide what to share and when. Some people start with what is happening now, such as sleep, workload, or tension at home, and only go into background or specifics if it feels useful. You can also tell your therapist that a topic is off the table for now, and that choice will be respected.

Is what I share kept private?

Yes, with some limits. Counselling is confidential, including what you say about your business and the people in it. Exceptions include a serious risk of harm, suspected abuse or neglect of a child, and a court order. Your therapist will go over this in your first session, and the Confidentiality and Privacy section above explains how PIPA and the HIA apply in Alberta.

How many sessions will I need?

There is no set number. Some people come for a short stretch to work through a specific decision or transition, while others prefer longer-term support. Your therapist will review progress with you regularly, and you can adjust frequency or pause when you need to.

What if the therapist is not the right fit?

That happens, and it is fine to say so. Fit matters, and you can ask to see a different clinician at any time without having to explain yourself in detail. The administrative team at 780-904-4880 can help you find someone whose style suits you better. New clients may access their first session at 50% off to help find the right therapeutic fit.

Can I have sessions online?

Yes. Virtual sessions are available across Alberta, which can make counselling easier to fit around a full schedule. The same confidentiality standards apply as for in-person sessions. Availability depends on the clinician, and you can read more about online counselling.

Is this business coaching or consulting?

No. This is counselling. Your therapist may help you look at how work is affecting you and how you approach decisions, but they do not give legal, accounting, tax, investment, human resources, or business-management advice. Counselling can sit alongside those supports rather than replace them.

Do I need a diagnosis to book?

No. People seek counselling for a range of concerns and goals, including work pressure, relationships, transitions, and boundaries. A diagnosis is not assumed or required, and this counselling service does not include a psychological assessment.

I am worried about someone else who runs a business. What can I do?

You are welcome to share this page or call the administrative team with questions about how counselling works. Starting counselling is that person's decision to make. If supporting them is wearing on you, counselling for yourself is also an option. If you believe they are in immediate danger, call 911.

Meet Your Clinicians

Wholesome Psychology's team includes Registered Psychologists (including senior psychologists and specialists), Registered Provisional Psychologists, Registered Social Workers, Canadian Certified Counsellors, Mental Health Therapists, and Student Therapists. All psychologists are registered with the College of Alberta Psychologists. Provisional psychologists practise under the supervision of a senior registered psychologist. Student Therapists are Master's-level practicum students.

Each clinician's profile describes their areas of focus, so you can look for someone who works with work-related stress, leadership, relationships, or life transitions. You can browse Our Therapists, use the Match with a Therapist tool, or call 780-904-4880 for guidance. Related support is described on our entrepreneur mental health support and operational challenges for entrepreneurs pages.

Children and Youth

For some families, the business is part of home life too. If you are concerned about how a child or teen in your family is doing, Wholesome Psychology also offers counselling for children, adolescents, and young people. Therapists who work with younger clients use age-appropriate approaches and work with parents and caregivers to support the child at home. You can learn more about child and youth counselling.

Taking a Next Step

If you would like to learn more or begin, you can start in whichever way feels easiest:

• Book a session online
• Match with a therapist
• Call 780-904-4880
• Email info@wholesomepsychology.ca
• Read Getting Started with Therapy

Starting the conversation is enough.

New clients may access their first session at 50% off to help find the right therapeutic fit.

References

• Canadian Mental Health Association, & BDC. (n.d.). Going it alone.
• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. (n.d.). Workplace mental health: A review and recommendations.
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. (n.d.). Mental wellbeing at work.
• World Health Organization. (n.d.). ICD-11 for mortality and morbidity statistics.