Counselling for International Students in Ontario
Counselling Services for International Students in Ontario
Academic Stress & Adjustment
Navigating a new academic system while managing pressure, language barriers, and cultural differences. Therapy helps you build resilience without burning out.
Visa & Immigration Anxiety
The stress of visa renewals, permit deadlines, and immigration uncertainty creates a constant background anxiety that therapy can help you process and manage.
General Mental Health & Wellbeing
Depression, loneliness, ADHD, relationship stress, or simply feeling lost - sessions offer a grounded, culturally aware space to process and grow.
What Students Often Share
"I have never felt at home here, but I can't go back either."
"School, friends, money... everything felt like too much to hold alone."
"The silence here does not feel like peace. It feels like isolation."
"I feel like I should be grateful, but I just feel overwhelmed and guilty."
"You can never truly understand what this feels like unless you've lived it."
"You are allowed to feel tired. You deserve to be heard."
What Is Counselling for International Students?
Counselling for international students is a form of psychotherapy tailored to the unique mental health challenges of living and studying abroad in Canada. It addresses culture shock, academic pressure, homesickness, immigration anxiety, loneliness, identity conflicts, and family expectations – with a therapist who understands both the clinical and cultural dimensions of these experiences. At Hap Therapy Care in Ontario, sessions are available in English and Tamil with Hareesma Amutha Venkatesan, Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying), CRPO #17974.
Quick Self-Check
Take a moment to reflect on how you are feeling. This is not a diagnosis - it is a gentle starting point for international students considering counselling in Ontario.
5 quick questions to help you understand where you are right now. Completely anonymous.
Why Choose Hap Therapy Care?
Hareesma Amutha Venkatesan, Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) – CRPO #17974 – is a Tamil-speaking therapist and former international student from India. She holds an M.A. in Counselling Psychology from Yorkville University and is a member of the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) and the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA). She offers online psychotherapy in English and Tamil for international students, South Asian adults, teens, and mothers across Ontario, with lived experience in immigration, cultural identity, and motherhood. Learn more about Hareesma →
- South Asian therapist & former international student - no need to over-explain
- Tamil-speaking psychotherapist - one of very few in Ontario
- Sessions day, evening, or Saturday - no waitlist, no referral needed
- Fully virtual - accessible anywhere in Ontario by phone or video
- Strictly confidential - PHIPA-compliant & CRPO-registered
- Reduced-rate and pro bono spots available for financial hardship
- Sessions may be covered by university health benefit plans
Our Students Say They Now Feel…
A little lighter inside
Kinder toward themselves
Calmer than before
Clear about what they feel
Able to say "no" without guilt
Supported instead of alone
What We Work on Together
Anxiety & Academic Stress
Academic pressure in a new country — with a new language, grading system, and social norms — is one of the most common reasons international students seek therapy. You're not failing. You're adapting under extraordinary pressure.
Culture Shock & Adjustment
Culture shock is more than finding the food strange or the weather cold. It's the disorientation of living inside a social world whose unspoken rules you haven't learned yet. Therapy helps you name what you're going through and build a bridge between your two worlds.
Identity & Belonging
When you move countries, you often ask: who am I here? The person you were back home doesn't quite fit, but the person expected of you here doesn't feel authentic either. We explore what it means to hold all of who you are — without erasing your roots.
ADHD & Focus Challenges
Moving countries, navigating unfamiliar systems, and managing everything alone can make ADHD symptoms significantly worse. Sessions focus on practical routines, emotional regulation, and strategies built for your brain — not a generic system.
Loneliness & Isolation
Loneliness is the quiet epidemic of international student life. You're surrounded by people, but the deep connection — the kind where you don't have to explain your background — can feel impossible to find.
How to get started
Simple, private, and at your pace. Click each step to learn more.
What International Students Say About Counselling
FAQs - International Student Counselling in Ontario
Counselling for international students is a form of psychotherapy tailored to the unique challenges of living and studying abroad – including culture shock, academic pressure, homesickness, immigration anxiety, loneliness, and identity conflicts. At Hap Therapy Care, sessions are offered in Tamil and English by Hareesma Amutha Venkatesan, a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) and former international student from India.
Yes. Hap Therapy Care offers counselling specifically designed for international students in Ontario, addressing the unique challenges of living and studying abroad – culture shock, identity stress, academic pressure, and more. The service is also open to recent graduates and South Asian adults who came to Canada for studies.
Sessions are available in both Tamil and English. You can speak in whichever language feels most natural, or switch between both within a session. Hareesma is one of the very few CRPO-registered Tamil-speaking psychotherapists in Ontario.
Individual 50-minute sessions are $130 CAD. Extended 80-minute sessions are $210 CAD. A free 15-minute consultation is available before committing. Reduced-rate and pro bono spots exist for international students experiencing financial hardship – email hareesma@haptherapycare.com to ask.
Book your free 15-minute consultation at haptherapycare.janeapp.com. No referral is needed. Choose your preferred format – phone or video – and a time that suits you, including evenings and Saturdays. Sessions are available virtually across all of Ontario.
No. All sessions are strictly confidential under PHIPA (Personal Health Information Protection Act). Nothing is shared with your university, family, or community. The only legal exception is if there is immediate risk of serious harm – this is explained fully before sessions begin.
Hap Therapy Care is led by Hareesma Amutha Venkatesan, a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) who is herself a former international student and immigrant from India. She offers culturally fluent, Tamil-language sessions with flexible scheduling including evenings and Saturdays, no waitlists, and no referrals needed – unlike most campus counselling services, which are often limited to a small number of sessions.
Important: Crisis Support
Hap Therapy Care does not provide crisis intervention or emergency mental health services. If you are in immediate distress or at risk of harm, please contact the 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline (call or text 9-8-8, available 24/7 across Canada) or go to your nearest emergency department. For community and social services, contact 2-1-1 Ontario.
Take The First Gentle Step
- Select a time that works - evenings & Saturdays available
- Choose phone or video, Tamil or English
- Talk to Hareesma - no referral, no waitlist
Book Your Free Consultation
- Available in Tamil & English
- Evenings, daytime & Saturdays
- Phone or video - virtual across Ontario
- PHIPA-secure & fully confidential
- No referral & no waitlist