Blog | psychotherapytoronto

Jul 17, 2018
4 min

How To Make Long Distance Relationships Work

Long distance relationships are becoming a very real reality for many people, for a variety of reasons. Who is to say that you will find your soul mate in a local coffee shop and not half way across the world while exploring a new city? What about the man/woman that you just met and fell head over heels for – what if they get a promotion and have to relocate to an office in another country? How easy is it now to connect online and fall in love with someone in a completely dif

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Therapist Reveals: Why Some Couples Don’t Make It Even After Couple’s Counselling

Clarinda Brandão

Aug 15, 2017
3 min

Let's Talk About Sex

"Let's talk about sex, baby. Let's talk about you and me. Let's talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be... Let's talk about.. Sex." - Salt 'N' Pepa I bet you still have that song in your head, I am sorry for that. But when I decided to write an article on sex for couples, that song sprang to mind. It made sense. The secret to a happy sexual relationship is being able to talk to your partner about your needs and desires. That means dropping the guar

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Art Therapy and Vulnerability: Slowly Learning to Love Ourselves

Mayson Edell, Art Therapist

Nov 17, 2016
2 min

Art Therapy and Vulnerability: Slowly Learning to Love Ourselves

Vulnerability has always been a big deal to me. Like many people, I worry if others will see my flaws with acceptance, understanding, and awareness of my strengths. Now as a mental health practitioner, I hope my clients will feel safe as they open-up and share their vulnerabilities with me. You might be wondering why there is a snail in a scribble for a segment about vulnerability. It is a reasonable question to ask, and there are surprisingly many reasons for it. Initially,

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Clarinda Brandão

Jun 2, 2016
3 min

Dating In Toronto Isn’t For The Weak

Dating in Toronto can feel like getting a root canal, after leaving an infection unattended for weeks. Dramatic? Perhaps, but for most single ladies (and gents), they are having a harder time meeting a potential mate more than ever. It can feel painful. So, what makes it hard to date in Toronto? For starters, Technology. We live in a world governed by technology. We are so connected and yet so disconnected. We are so used to communicating through text, emails and/or onli

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Clarinda Brandão

Jun 1, 2016
2 min

Healing a Broken Heart

How do you heal a broken heart? A bucket of ice cream seems to ‘work’ for most. But maybe thinking about a few things (with a carton of ice cream nested on your lap) might help put things into perspective. Relationships sometimes end. They can end for various different reasons, but how we cope after a relationship is key on how to take care of our broken heart. Every relationship is different and not all of them will end the same way or feel the same way. Healthier relation

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Clarinda Brandão

May 12, 2016
4 min

Let's Talk About Open Relationships

I often write articles about monogamous relationships; however, not all relationships look or are the same. I have worked with couples looking to add a third party into their sex life and others looking to add a third partner into their relationship. Both very different. In all relationships, whether it’s monogamous, open or polygamous, the key element is communication. Communication and boundaries. Setting up a healthy mix of both, can add a lot of pleasure and happiness

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Quality Time For A Healthier Relationship

Clarinda Brandão

Mar 13, 2016
2 min

Quality Time For A Healthier Relationship

With our busy schedules, it's sometimes hard to make time for our partners. People's routine is often about coming home and wanting to just shut down from their day with catching up on social media, playing games on their phone or television, watching TV or just wanting to be alone; however, over time this will impact their partner's emotional needs and connection. This doesn't mean you can't do that sometimes, but finding time for you and your partner from time to time is

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Clarinda Brandao

Mar 6, 2016
1 min

Upcoming Post: Talking About Open Relationships

As a relationship therapist I am often asked about several topics, one being "Open Relationships". There's more to it than you think. Stay tuned for my upcoming post later this week... In the meantime, I'd love to hear from you. If you have any questions or wonderings that you want me to include in my upcoming post, please email me. Stay Tuned. #openrelationships #relationship #relationshiptherapist #relationshipexpert #love #couples #coupletherapy #couplecounseling

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Things That New Couples Do That They Should Avoid

Clarinda Brandão

Feb 29, 2016
3 min

Things That New Couples Do That They Should Avoid

New relationships (whether you’ve been dating a few weeks or a couple of months) are supposed to the easiest part. But many times adapting to someone new and getting rid of old patterns from previous relationships can impede new ones. More so, certain reactions can often mislead your partner in a non-positive way. So, how does someone manage the beginning stages of a healthy relationship? Here are some important tips to keep in mind when you're starting a new relationship:

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Top 10 Behaviours That Can Drive Away Your Partner

Clarinda Brandão

Feb 1, 2016
3 min

Top 10 Behaviours That Can Drive Away Your Partner

Whether we do it intentionally or not, there are certain behaviours that can drive away your partner. Reality is no one is perfect. These tops 10 mistakes can create an unhealthy relationship if they're not addressed; Being Over Critical of Your partner: When you're constantly criticizing your partner or picking on them, it eventually starts to create a lot of hurt and uncertainty. So instead of asking them why they 'can't seem to do anything right' out of anger or frustrat

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Clarinda Brandão

Jan 3, 2016
2 min

Making A Man Feel Loved

We often read articles on how to make women happy, but what about men? I work with many men in individual therapy and/or coaching and have come to understand what men want in a partner. Here are some of things I've picked up over the years that men talk about and want. Make him feel like a man. I know we all want to feel independent and strong, but it's ok to let him open a jar of pickles or put up that shelf. Show that you need him. Small tasks make men feel useful and h

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Clarinda Brandão

Dec 16, 2015
2 min

How To Date As a Single Parent

Being a single parent is already a hard enough task all on it's own... add dating to the mix and it feels almost impossible. But it can be done. Meeting the right person to accept you and your child is a big deal. Enormous one, really. It's not something to take lightly and should be done with a lot of thought. 4 simple rules on dating as a single parent: Rule #1: Be upfront that you are a parent. I don't mean your first initial conversation, but let it be known soone

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Clarinda Brandao

Dec 15, 2015
2 min

Real Love Takes Time

We often catch ourselves rushing into relationships and somewhere down the line, we want it to grow into something big and fast. But let's just put the breaks for a minute and think about why it's so important to rush into something even when it doesn't feel right. People often settle because they don't think they deserve better or they give up on looking for better. But most often, they're giving up on themselves. In order to meet the right person, you have to be the righ

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My Top 10 Tips on Healing After a Divorce

Clarinda Brandão

Nov 17, 2015
3 min

My Top 10 Tips on Healing After a Divorce

The ending of a relationship or marriage can be hard and it can leave you feeling lost, confused and rejected. We desperately try to understand why it ended and how to move on from it. Whether you were the one that ended or your partner, it can feel hard. One of the reasons that the end of relationship is so difficult, is because it's an end. Ending can bring up a lot of feelings, similar to loss. Though a divorce is not a death, it can bring up the same intense feeling.

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Clarinda Brandão

Apr 14, 2014
1 min

How We Fight in a Relationship

We are all individuals making sense of the world as we know it. We are making sense of it through our own perspective and our own history. Communication is an important factor in any relationship and often couples take it for granted. Whether one shuts down during conflict or screams in fury during conflict, it's all part of how we were conditioned to deal with conflict. Our actions often mirror are previous behaviours and how we deal with others. More so, we often choose par

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Clarinda Brandão, RP

Apr 29, 2013
1 min

Is Love an Addiction?

Did you know... If you've ever been in love, you've probably at least considered classifying the feeling as an addiction. And guess what: You were right. As it turns out, scientists are discovering that the same chemical process that takes place with addiction takes place when we fall in love. #love #relationships #therapy

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Clarinda Brandão, RP

Apr 23, 2013
2 min

Love Does the Body Good

How does the body benefit while in “love”? When in love, the body releases special chemicals that make you feel good, content and happy. This can spur creativity and that probably explains why most poets, artists, writers and people with extraordinary talents are also good at love.Love can result in sexual activity (the fun part) and this can affect the entire body – from head to toe. Doctors believe that love-making is a good aerobic exercise that improves the circulation an

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