We direct bill counselling services to Pacific Blue Cross, GreenShield, Canada Life & Sun Life! For a full list of direct billing providers, click here.
Skip to content We direct bill counselling services to Pacific Blue Cross, GreenShield, Canada Life & Sun Life! For a full list of direct billing providers, click here.
Being in a car accident can change everything in an instant
Even if your physical injuries seem minor, the emotional and psychological impact can be profound. Maybe you’re having trouble sleeping, feeling anxious about driving, or just not feeling like yourself anymore. Maybe your life, work and routines have been disrupted and it’s been hard to adjust. Maybe your capacity has also been impacted in ways you didn’t expect.
You might be experiencing:
You’re not alone in this – through ICBC counselling in Vancouver and Port Moody, we can support you to get through this difficult time, together.
Since May 2021, ICBC’s Enhanced Care system covers everyone involved in a motor vehicle accident in BC, regardless of who caused the crash. This includes comprehensive mental health support.
If you need ongoing support after your initial 12 sessions, ICBC may approve additional counselling sessions through their Enhanced Accident Benefits. This requires working with your ICBC recovery team to develop a treatment plan, and we can work with you to provide all the documents necessary for this process.
Trauma-Informed, Justice-Oriented Care
We understand that accidents don’t happen in a vacuum. The impact of a motor vehicle accident intersects with everything else in your life – your work, relationships, financial situation, and any previous experiences of trauma or marginalization.
We don’t just treat symptoms – we look at the whole picture:
Your therapy shouldn’t be one-size-fits-all. Trauma affects everyone differently, and what helps one person heal might not work for another. That’s why we offer multiple approaches and often combine them based on what your nervous system and healing process need.
Our counsellors bring both professional and living experience to this work. We are Master’s level practitioners with specialized training in working with MVAs through ICBC counselling, and in anti-oppressive, intersectional feminist, and anti-colonial frameworks. Sessions are offered virtually across BC, and in-person in Vancouver, Burnaby, and Port Moody.
We offer direct billing to ICBC and direct billing to most extended health insurance plans (look for RCC coverage). There is no out of pocket cost for you when working with us for ICBC counselling. Book a free 15-minute consultation to chat about how we can support you in recovering from your motor vehicle accident.
Beyond the Talk CVAP Counselling in Vancouver & Port Moody
Sometimes words are exactly what you need. Talk therapy gives you space to process what happened, understand your responses, and develop coping strategies. It’s particularly helpful for:
But we also know that trauma often gets stored in the body in ways that words can’t always reach, which is why we offer body-based approaches too.
Your body remembers the accident even when your mind wants to move on. Somatic therapy works directly with your nervous system to help release trauma that’s been stored in your body.
After an accident, your body might be:
Somatic work helps by:
This approach is particularly powerful because it works with your body’s wisdom rather than just trying to think your way through trauma.
Your brain has an incredible capacity to move past adverse events. EMDR helps activate your brain’s natural processing abilities to work through these experiences without having to relive them in detail.
What makes EMDR different:
EMDR is especially helpful if you find yourself “stuck” replaying the accident, avoiding driving or certain routes, or having strong physical reactions when reminded of what happened.
Sometimes the best therapy happens outside. For many people, especially after a car accident, traditional office settings can feel confining or triggering. Being in nature can help regulate your nervous system and create a sense of safety and openness.
Nature-based therapy works well if you:
We offer sessions in parks and other spaces around Vancouver, Coquitlam, Port Moody and Burnaby, always considering your comfort level and any mobility concerns.
Sometimes there are no words for what you’ve experienced. Art, music, movement, and creative expression can help you process and make meaning of your experience in ways that bypass the thinking mind and connect directly with your emotional and somatic self.
Expressive Art Therapy is helpful when:
You don’t need to be “artistic” – this isn’t about creating “beautiful” art, it’s about using creativity as a tool for healing.
Most of our clients use a combination of approaches. We might start with talk therapy to help you feel connected, add in some somatic work to address physical symptoms and emotional processing, and use EMDR to process specific memories, symptoms, or to get to access deeper subconscious impacts. Or we might begin with nature-based sessions if offices feel too confining, then gradually incorporate other modalities as you feel ready.
The administrative side of ICBC can also feel overwhelming, especially when you’re already dealing with the aftermath of an accident. Many people describe feeling like they’re on trial, having to justify their pain, their healing process, or prove their need for support to people who’ve never met them.
It’s normal to feel angry about having to prove your need for help. Your experience of the accident and its impact is valid, regardless of what forms say. Support through ICBC is not charity, it’s what you’ve paid for.
We work within the system while acknowledging its limitations:
Let’s get started
We offer direct billing to select insurance providers and funded programs. Start with a free 15-minute video conversation to find out more.
A motor vehicle incident doesn’t just affect your body. It can quietly disrupt your sense of safety, your relationship with movement and public space, and your understanding of who you are on the other side of something unexpected. Julianna works with the anxiety and identity disruption that often follows accidents, including the grief of a life that has had to reorganize itself around an experience you didn’t choose. Her sessions suit people who need to make sense of what happened and what it has changed before they can move forward. She also offers walk and talk sessions, which can be a meaningful part of rebuilding a comfortable relationship with being out in the world again.
Work with Julianna if you’ve spent a lot of your life translating yourself between cultures, roles, or worlds, and you want room to think out loud without flattening the complexity.
Q&A
ICBC covers up to $157 per counselling session for the first 12 pre-approved sessions. If your counsellor’s rate is higher than $157, you would be responsible for the difference. At Venturous, we work within ICBC’s coverage rates for these initial sessions, so there’s no out-of-pocket cost to you.
The 12 pre-approved counselling sessions must be used within the first 12 weeks (84 days) after your accident. This doesn’t mean you need to complete all 12 sessions within that timeframe – it means you need to start accessing counselling within those first 12 weeks to qualify for automatic pre-approval.
We can work with your ICBC recovery team to request additional sessions based on your ongoing needs. Many people find that trauma recovery takes longer than 12 weeks, and that’s completely valid. We’ll provide the documentation and clinical rationale to support your request for continued care, and help you navigate this process.
No, you’re not required to use all 12 sessions. Some people find they get the support they need in fewer sessions, while others benefit from the full 12 and may need additional support beyond that. Your healing timeline is your own, and we’ll work with you to determine what feels right for your recovery.
No problem! ICBC counselling coverage works across BC, regardless of where your accident happened or where you live. We have offices in both Vancouver (525 West 8th Avenue) and Port Moody (101 Klahanie Drive), and we also offer virtual counselling sessions across BC. You can choose the location that’s most convenient for you or switch between locations as needed.
You can absolutely do ICBC counselling virtually! Our secure, HIPAA-compliant virtual platform makes it easy to access counselling from anywhere in BC. Many clients prefer virtual sessions for convenience, mobility challenges, or because they feel more comfortable in their own space. You can also switch between virtual and in-person sessions based on what feels best for your healing process.
Yes! ICBC’s Enhanced Care covers everyone involved in the accident, including passengers, regardless of who was at fault. Each person involved can access their own 12 pre-approved counselling sessions. If your partner, child, or other family member was in the accident with you, they can each file their own claim and access counselling support.
ICBC counselling coverage applies to anyone injured in a motor vehicle accident in BC, regardless of whether you were driving, a passenger, pedestrian, or cyclist. If you were hit by a vehicle while walking or biking, you’re still eligible for the same counselling coverage under Enhanced Care.
During the first 12 weeks, ICBC is your primary coverage for accident-related counselling. After the initial 12 sessions, if you need ongoing support and ICBC doesn’t approve additional sessions, you may be able to use your extended health benefits for continued counselling. We can help you navigate this transition and work with both coverage sources to ensure continuous support.
We only share what’s required for billing and treatment planning. Your personal details and therapy content remain confidential. ICBC doesn’t get transcripts of our sessions or details about what you share. The same confidentiality standards that apply to all counselling apply to ICBC-funded sessions. If there’s anything we need to share, we’ll always check in with you first and collaborate with you in the process. If you have any concerns about this, feel free to chat with your therapist to work out something that feels comfortable for you.
That’s completely understandable. We can start wherever feels comfortable for you – maybe talking about how you’re sleeping, or what your daily life looks like now. You never have to share more than you’re ready to share. Building trust takes time, and we’ll move at your pace.
It’s up to you whether or not you think therapy might be supportive for your recovery process. That being said, you don’t need to have nightmares or panic attacks to deserve support. If something feels different about your life since the accident – even if you can’t put your finger on exactly what – that’s enough of a reason to reach out.
There’s no timeline for trauma recovery, and there’s nothing wrong with you. Our culture often pushes people to “move on” quickly, but healing happens at its own pace. Some people are affected for weeks, others for months or longer – all of this is normal. Your nervous system is doing exactly what it’s supposed to do to keep you safe.
Real life doesn’t pause for trauma recovery. If you’re dealing with work stress, relationship issues, financial pressures, or other challenges alongside processing the accident, we can work with all of it together. We understand that the accident doesn’t exist in isolation – it intersects with everything else happening in your life, and our approach accounts for that.
It’s okay to feel uncertain about therapy, especially if you’ve never done it before. We can talk about what’s working and what isn’t, and adjust our approach. You’re always free to try a different therapist or take a break if you need to. Therapy should feel helpful, and if it doesn’t, that’s important feedback we want to hear.
Your therapy appointments are private medical appointments. You don’t have to tell your employer why you’re taking time off, just that you have a medical appointment. We can also offer virtual sessions or flexible scheduling to make it easier – we have evening and weekend appointments available.
Get Matched
We offer direct billing to select insurance providers & funded programs. Start with a free 15-minute video conversation or get your personalized recommendations straight to your inbox, with this 3-minute form.
Motor vehicle accidents affect more than the body. The emotional, relational, and systemic impacts deserve support too. These are some of the concerns our ICBC-approved counsellors hold alongside accident recovery in Vancouver and Port Moody.
occupying the stolen, ancestral territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), S’ólh Téméxw (Stó:lō), Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), Qayqayt, and kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) peoples. Our relationship with these lands dictates our commitment to understanding and responding to the ongoing impacts of colonization in our practices in and out of the counselling room.
Learn more about the land you’re occupying at native-land.ca
