Justin the Therapist

Justin the Therapist Justin Michel, MA, MSc, RP. Individual/Couple/Family Therapy. Owner/manager of BBtherapy.ca

12/19/2025

Can you feel safe and uncomfortable at the same time? 💭

Absolutely.

Our brains are wired for complexity. You may feel safe sitting beside someone you love, yet anxious at the same time. You may feel overstimulated in a crowded room, yet lonely inside it.

We often assume feelings have to line up neatly: either you’re calm or you’re anxious, connected or alone, safe or unsafe. But emotions rarely work in a single file.

Two things can coexist.

Your body might register safety, while your mind is still running a mile a minute.

That doesn’t mean something’s wrong with you… it means you’re human.

Therapy helps you make sense of those mixed signals, to understand where they come from and what they’re trying to tell you.

Because when you stop trying to “choose” one feeling over another, you make space for both, and that’s often where real self-awareness begins. 💙

Emotional Awareness | Mental Health | Therapist | Therapy Education | Anxiety

When s*x starts to feel like a performance the pressure creeps in and pressure almost always leads to anxiety. 😦 That’s ...
12/17/2025

When s*x starts to feel like a performance the pressure creeps in and pressure almost always leads to anxiety. 😦

That’s what we call performance anxiety and it can show up as er****on struggles, pain, or just feeling stuck in your own head instead of present with your partner.

S*x isn’t meant to be a test or a show, it’s play.

Play is curiosity, fun, and connection.

It’s exploring together without worrying about getting it right.

Of course there are boundaries, but inside those boundaries you get to be yourself, you get to connect, experiment, and enjoy the moment without all the weight of expectation.

When the focus shifts from performance to play the pressure eases, your body relaxes, intimacy gets easier, and ironically by letting go of the outcome you often end up reaching it more naturally.

If s*x has started to feel like something you have to perform, maybe it’s time to reframe it.

Less performance, more play. That’s where connection and pleasure thrive.

Most couples wait until it’s almost too late for therapy.On average, they sit with the same problems for SIX YEARS befor...
12/16/2025

Most couples wait until it’s almost too late for therapy.

On average, they sit with the same problems for SIX YEARS before getting help.

Six years of quiet tension that never really goes away.
Six years of small things turning into big things.
Six years of avoiding hard conversations because it feels easier to keep the peace.

But that kind of peace is temporary.

It’s the calm that comes from avoidance, not resolution.

Couple therapy can be the emergency room for relationships, but it doesn’t have to be. It can also be the training ground where you grow the relationship to prevent it from ever needing to go to the ER.

It’s where you learn to have the hard conversations without tearing each other down, and how to grow stronger because of them.

If you still believe in what you’re building, that’s the time to start. 💙

When I first started as a therapist, I wanted to be there for everyone. Every client, every moment, every text, every la...
12/11/2025

When I first started as a therapist, I wanted to be there for everyone. Every client, every moment, every text, every late-night message.

I thought that being endlessly available made me a good therapist.

But, one of the most important lessons I’ve learned as a therapist is the value of boundaries.

If I told all my clients, “You can text me anytime and I’ll always reply,” that sounds great in theory… until I’m in session with you and another client messages me in crisis. Now I’m split. I’m distracted. And the space that’s supposed to be yours no longer feels protected.

Clear boundaries don’t create distance… they create focus.

They allow us to be fully present with the person in front of us, instead of stretched thin trying to hold everything for everyone.

If you’re a new therapist learning how to find that balance, this is the kind of work I do in clinical supervision, helping you care deeply without burning out in the process

💬 DM me or visit bbtherapy.ca to learn more about clinical supervision.

12/11/2025

Flirty DMs in your partners phone… ouff. 😅

Here’s what I have to say. 💭

Ask Justin | Ontario Therapist | Couple Therapy | Trust Building | Relationships

12/08/2025

Is “micro-cheating” real? 👀

Cheating isn’t about size, it’s about the impact it has on trust, connection, and how safe you feel in your relationship.

If something your partner does leaves you feeling uneasy, disrespected, or disconnected, that feeling matters.

Every relationship defines cheating differently.

For some, it’s flirting.

For others, it’s emotional intimacy with someone else.

What matters most is that you talk about it before it becomes a source of hurt or resentment.

Clear boundaries don’t limit love, they protect it. 💙

If you like this kind of Q&A or find the “Ask Justin” series helpful, you can hear more on our Mental Health Matchmaker podcast.

Relationship Health | Micro Cheating | Couple Therapy | Relationship Boundaries | Therapist | Couple Therapist

2026 is right around the corner... wild, right?But when I think back to the start of 2025, I laugh a little at how sure ...
12/07/2025

2026 is right around the corner... wild, right?

But when I think back to the start of 2025, I laugh a little at how sure I was about what this year was supposed to look like.

I had a plan.

We weren’t going to expand.

No new locations. No new rooms. Just focus on growing from within.

But life had a different idea. We ended up taking over an entire building, adding new spaces, new logistics, new staff, new everything. It was a massive pivot, one I didn’t see coming and definitely hadn’t planned for.

What this year really taught me is that you can have the best intentions, the clearest vision, the most structured plan… and life will still surprise you.

You can fight it, hold tightly to how it was supposed to go, or you can adjust and trust yourself to handle what’s next.

This year reminded me that control feels safe, but flexibility is where growth happens.

And sometimes, the things you didn’t plan for end up being exactly what needed to happen.

😂
12/06/2025

😂

People often come to therapy hoping it will save their relationship. And sometimes it does. Talking things through, lear...
12/05/2025

People often come to therapy hoping it will save their relationship.

And sometimes it does. Talking things through, learning better communication, breaking old patterns, it can be transformative when both people are willing to show up and do the work.

But therapy isn’t always about saving the relationship. Sometimes it’s about realizing it’s not serving you anymore.

Therapy can give you clarity.

It can help you see when you’re the only one putting in the effort.

It can help you notice when old wounds keep reopening no matter how many times you patch them.

It can help you recognize when staying is costing you more than leaving.

That doesn’t mean the relationship was worthless.

Many relationships serve us for a season. They teach us, shape us, and sometimes even help us grow into who we are now. But not every relationship is meant to last forever.

And that’s the hardest part to accept.

Because we’re taught that ending a relationship is failure. That if you “tried hard enough” or “loved deeply enough,” you’d make it work.

But the sheer desire to be together isn’t always enough. Sometimes the healthiest and bravest choice is letting go.
Therapy can help you figure out what you need, what you deserve, and whether this relationship can offer that.

Sometimes the answer is yes. Sometimes the answer is no.

Either way, clarity is what sets you free.🤗

Healing isn’t linear. Sometimes it feels like falling apart first.It’s like taking a box you’ve stuffed full of old pain...
12/04/2025

Healing isn’t linear. Sometimes it feels like falling apart first.

It’s like taking a box you’ve stuffed full of old pain and shoving it on a shelf so you don’t have to deal with it. The moment you pull it down and dump everything on the floor, it looks overwhelming.

There’s a mess everywhere, and it feels heavier than when it was tucked away. But now you can actually see what’s inside and start sorting through it piece by piece.

That’s what healing often looks like. You finally open up about things you’ve avoided, and all the emotions you’ve held back start spilling out. Some sessions you walk away exhausted, sad, or heavy because you’re finally facing what you’ve pushed aside for so long.

But buried in that heaviness there’s usually a little hope. You’re not just reliving pain, you’re processing it. You’re learning tools, finding new perspectives, and slowly building something lighter out of the mess.

Healing isn’t about avoiding the breakdown. It’s about learning that even when it feels messy and hard, you’re still moving forward. 💙

One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned is this: not everyone who sees me will get better right away.💙When I first becam...
12/04/2025

One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned is this: not everyone who sees me will get better right away.💙

When I first became a therapist, I thought my job was to help everyone heal. That if someone came to see me, it was MY responsibility to make sure they walked away better.

I put that pressure squarely on myself.

But just like medicine, not everyone who walks into a hospital leaves completely healed. Sometimes treatments don’t work. Sometimes conditions worsen. And sometimes, despite everyone’s best efforts, people don’t make it.

Mental health is no different.

There are clients who make incredible progress. And there are clients who don’t.

Sometimes, even with the right tools, the right effort, and the right support, things don’t improve the way we want them to.

That has been one of the toughest shifts for me to accept.

My role is not to guarantee healing.

My role is to show up fully, to offer every skill, resource, and ounce of care I have, and to walk with people in their struggle.

Whether they get better or not is not something I can control.

So to all of the therapists out there, if you’re carrying the weight of believing you must fix everyone, please hear this.

Your presence matters more than your perfection.

You are not responsible for every outcome.

You are responsible for showing up with care, honesty, and humanity. And that is enough.

Address

52 Village Centre Place
Mississauga, ON
L4Z1V9

Telephone

+13653005056

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Justin the Therapist posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Justin the Therapist:

Shortcuts

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram

Category