Reviews of MindBeacon (Psychologist)

Dave “Dj Twiggy” Simpson

The only reason I clicked one star is because zero isn't an option. When I signed up for therapy I was told I would hear from a therapist within 5 days. Almost a month later mind beacon sends me an email saying that they will not provided me with help because they don't believe I would benefit from their services. When they refuse to help people like that it makes it look like they don't care about mental illness. First time I have ever seen a mental health company refuse to help someone. This is absolutely ridiculous

Charity Fleet

My therapist was great. She took the time to listen to what I was going through. The material she gave me to work on showed me how I was able to help myself change. I hope other people take the time to go to MindBeacon. They do help and care.

Muzaffar Khan

I felt confident asking questions and expressing the difficulties I face in social situations. All of the exercises were very useful and helped me grow. I believe it’s extremely important to talk about mental health and I’m grateful that help like this exists!

cdnstudent

Not helpful. An extremely long questionnaire and all you get are some scattered replies where they just parrot back what you just said with no real insight or suggestions and those replies take days or more.

Colby Briggs

I was really hopeful for this. It is a great idea, but the execution is really poor. The information they give you is so incredibly basic.... If you have even the most basic common sense or spend ten seconds on wikipedia, you'll get the same sort of support (set goals, think positive, take time for yourself, etc). Furthermore, I was directed to some really triggering, hurtful content which I felt was extremely unprofessional and insensitive. I really have to question their competency for making such a huge, obvious error. I hope they figure things out, but until they do, save your money and borrow any generic self help book. It will do just as much and faster!

Fernanda Castillo

Anyone who hears free therapy is over the moon about it, I was definitely over the moon about it. I just finished my treatment with my therapist and i'd say it was a pretty pleasant experience, especially for it to be FREE i thought we just had to do our worksheets and not be able to talk about my personal problems but that wasn't the case, I was able to talk about whatever was on my mind and get some advice/feedback about it with my therapists. The worksheets are easy to do and only take up 20/30 mins of your time. My only cons about MindBeacon was that the therapist does take a few days to respond back to you, and sometimes it seemed like the therapist didn't really care about what i was explaining to him, and would sometimes try to shut down the conversation. He once said "ah im sorry to hear that." after waiting 2/3 days for his response about a problem i had at home. Although i do understand that this is free, i still would've liked my therapist to be more sincere about what i am explaining to him! other than that, MindBeacon is good and i highly recommend especially since its damn FREE!

Sarah Stanley

I really liked this approach for CBT. I have done CBT multiple times in person with a therapist before so I had some of the tools already. The online program allowed me to work at my own pace and in my own space. I don't believe that MindBeacon is for everyone; some people crave or require more strict therapy that holds them accountable. If you are more comfort not having to talk, go any where and are able to work on your own more, this is a great platform. If it isn't the right fit for you, that is just fine. Even in person therapy can be difficult and take a few times to find the right therapist but I got use out of it.

Anna de Jong

Very accessible and flexible program with easy to read articles and worksheets. The virtual therapist checks in regularly and helps to keep you on track. The 12 week program helped to develop new strategies to manage anxiety and worry during the pandemic.

Evelien Mraz

Mind Beacon was really helpful and my therapist was awesome. The worksheets were easy to understand and I saw a lot of progress in myself

Maura La Prova

This online therapy provided reading materials where you learned techniques on how to manage your anxiety/stress. If you wanted to, you could interact with the therapist as well and they would reply back to you. I did not do a whole lot of interacting because I didn't realize you could do that. However, I did practice the techniques and they did work. It's always good to take time for yourself for your mental health.

Quing Greaves

MindBeacon has an uneducated and even ableist approach to mental health and chronic pain. It's as if the company was created by someone who thinks depression is just choosing to feel sad for a long or that chronic pain is just choosing to dwell on minor pain. I was extremely disappointed by the lack of understanding about the topics. You'd have better luck receiving therapy from a random guy at a bus stop. The language they use to talk about chronic pain is straight-up triggering. And now after reading some of these reviews, I'm afraid I'm going to get charged, which I REALLY can't afford. HEY MINDBEACON, don't reply to this review. I'm not interested in your vapid, automated responses.

Jairus Gabison

My MindBeacon experience was fantastic. My therapist Melissa was extremely professional and I would recommend it to all my friends. It's worth mentioning MindBeacon might not be the best fit for everyone. I found it requires a lot of introspection and self-reflection. You also have to be self-motivated and diligent about doing the work. But it was nice that I could go at my own pace and define my own goals.

Agilan A

Very disappointed and I recommend the government please provide the money used on this to a better service provider because this was truly sad. They ask a questionnaire on how you're feeling weekly and even when my mood gets worse and the situation gets worse, my therapist claims I'm doing better because of their articles/content which is really just glorified blog posts that you can find for free online anyways. I've given tons of personal information to work with and the therapist brushes most of it off and even gaslights towards problems that she sees that I'm certain is not my problem and when I try to explain it, it goes nowhere and then get asked again week after week what my goal is for the end of this program and no matter how clear I make it, it's like they're trying to stall the time to get the 12 weeks over with while providing almost zero help. Also for me, it wasn't even 12 weeks, for one week my therapist said she's off for a week and to my surprise that was also part of the 12 weeks promised

Ev

My 12 weeks have finally come to an end and I'm sorry to say this was a complete waste of time. What's great is, for the time being, MindBeacon is covered in Ontario and if you lookup the fees we would have had to pay, one would expect quality. While you have access to chat with a counselor, they're only really there to coach you through the CBT program....in fact, this is all MindBeacon is about, CBT, so don't expect the traditional one-on-one chat you would receive from seeing a therapist and any advice you do receive feels scripted. The program was incredibly confusing with vague explanations and even if you reached out for help, you receive more vague answers. Honestly, I feel so bad for people outside of Ontario who have to pay for this program, I can't imagine losing hundreds of dollars for this.

f portelli

Initially, I was skeptical. Mental Health problems don't happen to me! Yet, at this point in my life I knew I had to be open to anything. I was contacted by a very friendly counsellor who reached out to me to get me started in the program and followed up with me after I had completed the treatment assigned. There are obvious limitations to a web-based interface, but I found the counsellor assigned to me to be understanding, caring and patient. If you are struggling with some kind of mental health issue, MindBeacon is a good place to start, to learn coping mechanisms or to get you on the path to healing.

Melina Lombardo

I am surprised by the negative reviews. I just completed my 12 weeks with Mind Beacon. My therapist was incredibly helpful, very understanding and made it super easy and comfortable for me to be open and honest about everything. I felt zero guilt, zero shame with her. I am definitely doing another 12 weeks for another issue and I have sent in a request to get her again. The content is super easy to read and you have very little questionnaires to answer. As long as you take time to read without distractions or without rushing through it, it is quite helpful. However, chatting with the therapist was definitely the most helpful part of it all because you chat about very personal topics and get some good advice, at least from my therapist. The only downfall is that it takes 2-3 days to get a response from your therapist but that still is not a big deal. The self assessment takes about 30 minutes to fill (only once) but it is a very detailed assessment which makes it easy for your therapist to really know how to help you out properly. I have already recommended Mind Beacon to a couple of people. There is no video chat/phone calls which is good for people like to who are more comfortable with chatting behind a keyboard :)

Michael Prince

$350 for a 30 min phone call and a standardized letter a week later stating that I have anxiety. Great. On top of that, they sent me my wife's report, without password protecting the document (so much for all that privacy talk), then forgot to send me mine for another week. Now they've double billed me. What kind of operation is being run here, exactly? Good luck reaching anyone. No one answers the phone, and email responses take up to a week. I'm out $500 so far, but will consider it a valuable lesson going forward. Save yourself the trouble and find a real therapist. Not an online one that assigns blog readings then charges you exorbitant amounts of money.

Daimon “Fit Lady Boo”

I'm not new to therapy but this format was something I have never tried and I have never had so much success. The therapist assigned was able to pin point what I needed to work on and pushed thru modules that help me better understand my faulty thinking. I loved the thought records that forced me to face issues. As with any therapy, you have to put in the work. Great program that I have recommended to friends and family.

Alicia June

I would highly recommend using Mind Beacon if you are struggling mentally in any capacity. It can be helpful if you have a diagnosed mental illness, or even if you don't but struggle with stress, time management, etc. The therapists that develop your program are also involved in the whole process on a much deeper level than anticipated, so you get the chance to actually chat with someone online through the process.

Tanya Werger

Mind beacon was a great service and platform to help focus on my mental health and get the help I wanted in a comfortable and convenient way. Highly recommend!

Kelsie F

Like many others, I have struggled with my mental health through these last 14 months of isolation and lockdowns. Although I was skeptical at first, I had a great experience of accessing support through MindBeacon. It is an online, text-based counselling platform that allows you to be self-guided in learning Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) techniques with the support of a therapist. Each module provides an opportunity for learning a new skill, like thought records that help work through anxiety. While the modules are done individually, the therapist is there to provide feedback on the work and can provide clarification on any concepts you're unsure about. The modules do a great job of providing examples, then allow for a chance to practice these skills to gain feedback from your therapist. My therapist was also very helpful when I needed a bit of extra support through the messaging platform or had a bad week. This is text-based therapy and at no point do you interact over the phone or video with your therapist, but it is helpful nonetheless. This may not be for you if you are looking for video or over the phone counselling, but nonetheless it offers great support. MindBeacon helped me develop coping skills and better methods of taking care of myself. I would recommend this to anyone with mild to moderate symptoms, or possibly as an in between while waiting to receive more individualized support. This platform does a great job of addressing therapy's long wait lists and provides people with immediate access to support.

Christine Jean

Mindbeacon treats mental health like 1 size fits all, and takes an overly optimistic approach, more than a realistic approach, as if the assignments and reflections is guaranteed significantly improve the mental state of EVERYONE, regardless of your personal experiences and struggle. I understand that it’s lot harder for communication and having a personalized program when everything is online but this is pretty offensive for those suffering from mental illnesses. The assessment was pretty long and detailed which I thought was a promising start, since they wanted lots of detail about my case. But once I started everything, everything went downhill. The therapist does not cater towards your personal experiences, and just questions your assignment quality. The readings and assignments seem like something just pulled out from mayoclinic or webmd’s website: totally generic. It feels like school all over again, and everything mind beacon throws at me seems like a chore. I tried my best to put in some effort but it’s genuinely difficult. Overall, my issues have only gotten worse since all this have made my patience even shorter. Do not recommend! And dear mindbeacon do not reply, I’m not interested in your copy-paste reply ok bye

Rebecca Ashley

I wasn't sure about BEACON, or online therapy in general, when I first signed up, but because the program is being provided free of charge during the pandemic, I figured it couldn't hurt to check it out. I have been very pleasantly surprised by my experience! I really like the therapist I was assigned - I feel like she is very understanding, supportive and well-versed in the therapy content we covered. She also goes back and explains things differently if I don't understand, and I have gained a lot from working with her. I feel like the modules themselves are fairly straightforward, and the content is helpful and relevant to the challenges I wanted support for. I have gained new skills, and my therapist has also tailored some of the content to focus on things she believes will help me specifically based on our conversations and reflections together. Honestly, my therapy through BEACON was way more helpful than an in-person (well digital because of the pandemic, but face-to-face) therapy program I have done in the past. I didn't expect to like using a digital medium for therapy, but I actually felt typing vs. face-to-face communication allowed me time to better think through and articulate my thoughts. It also gave me more time to reflect on information, concepts, etc. posed by my therapist to figure out how I really felt, what questions I had, etc. before moving forward. Overall, I've had a great experience with BEACON and would definitely recommend it to others, especially while the cost is being covered by the government for those of us in Ontario. Nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Neate Sager

I was referred to MindBeacon by the Hamilton chapter of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. I have been a pretty low point since I was bullied at last my job, subsequently laid off for unrelated reasons and had family strife all before the pandemic. This screenshot is from their actual literature related to depression. I could not believe that trained professionals would be so thoughtless as to use loaded language such as "useless" and "no moral purpose." As a person who has struggled with depression through adulthood, I know I am a master of creating my own pain. But to receive a message that I'm useless and immoral because of a mood disorder that I inherited? Unbelievable that I am getting this message at a time when I'm really vulnerable!!

AL

Very satisfied with my overall experience. I signed up for the 12 week program through the government funded initiative during COVID, so I decided to give it a shot since I've always needed help with my mental health, but I was never able to afford therapy. I'm going to be completely transparent with my review, which I hope will be helpful. I was not aware that communication was done through direct messages when I signed up (I may have missed this in the initial assessment or website description) and at first I was disappointed that I wouldn't be communicating instantaneously face-to-face, however, the direct messaging system ended up working out fine for me. This allowed me to answer my therapist's messages/work on materials according to my schedule (as a student my schedule was always busy and non-structured), so having that flexibility was really nice. The worksheets were informative and insightful, and my therapist was really helpful and she checked up on me every few days as a friendly reminder to work through the program materials. She did a great job answering my questions I would say that I was able to learn many effective new skills and tools during the 12 week program to enable me to better navigate my issue(s) moving forward. However, I have to admit that this system may not be feasible for those who are seeking long-term treatment or treatment once the pandemic is over. This isn't the organization's fault as the government is the one funding these programs and unfortunately this social capitalist government disadvantages people who aren't privileged enough to pay for long-term therapy. Overall, we unfortunately can't fix these issues overnight and the system isn't perfect. However, I think the therapists are very helpful, compassionate, and the administration was also very responsive as well. I would definitely recommend this service to people who would benefit from learning new skills/strategies to cope. Mental health can't be fixed over night, but this is a step forward.

Lorraine Roth

Gave me the tools I needed to figure out some of life's challenges when I needed the help. Thanks to the staff at MindBeacon for all that you do!

Melissa Blanchard

I give it 2 stars because at first it was helpful, until I had an absolutely terrible experience with my therapist. I feel it could have been more helpful for me if the therapist didn't blown something way out of proportion making my experience with online therapy with MindBeacon a very unpleasant in the end. I was very disappointed.

Megha Chatterjee

Scammers honestly. You will waste your time filling out a rigorous questionnaire that leads to just a dead end. This is a company that treats mental health like a joke, a money making plot. Save yourself the energy, heal yourself. Especially for POC, they don’t care bout your mental health. Seeing you in a continued state of emotional distress is how “White Supremacist” countries still make money for themselves. DO NOT APPLY. Save your integrity.

The Holistic Tale

Really disappointing experience. Got refused twice basically. Now i'm seeing, after weeks of waiting, i get an email with "based on your circumstances, we recommend ..." Which is basically showing me a few different phone numbers, like 911, a general practicien, suicide hotline or family councelling. That doesn't make sense, and refusing access to healthcare for actually no reason (or too severe symptoms based on a long *** super tirest intense quiz) without having a chance to actually talk to a healthcare provider feels really wrong. In my case, as an immigrant, new resident to Ontario who lost my job due to the current pandemic, this was my last chance to get access to therapy. Which is the last step i NEED. I didn't need immediate help, i needed access to therapy.

Flixanoa

Did the assessment in September, its now months later in December and I'm still waiting for it to be reviewed, I am suicidal and surprised i'm not dead yet. Update: Its now Jan 7 2022, I received an email from them saying they will not go forward with my assessment as I didn't give them all my personal information. Personally, I think I gave them more than enough in that assessment that wasted an hour and a half of my time. There's no need for some of the information they ask for such as my home address, city, country, postal code, phone number, birth date, etc. I really wish I could give less then one star to these people. Don't waste your time, especially if your in a crisis like myself.

Julia Santos

My experience with the therapy program was great. That was my first time looking for mental health treatments. I have PTSD, a moderate level of depression and anxiety. Dr. Brianna was kind and understanding. The online resources are useful, I've been learning so much about my thoughts and my feelings. Sometimes I thought about giving up because was very hard not to procrastinate and do the worksheets but I've been overcoming my worries and I am 100% sure MindBeacon was crucial for my improvement.

Steph McPhee

Good basic programming to build a solid foundation of CBT.

Kelly Burgess

Very helpful and insightful experience. I would highly recommend Mind Beacon.

Darine Tab

I learned about Mindbeacon from my employer who was offering the service to it's employees, and because i was going through a difficult time in my life, i decided to try it. I did not know what to expect, but was surprised at how easy it was. I did an assessment, the therapist and I would send emails about what was going on in my life, and she would send me articles to read. Alot of the work is self guided, and i was motivated and wanted to figure things out. And throughout my 12 weeks the topics shifted and new issues arised as i was doing the work and my therapist was shifting with me as well to accomodate my needs. This program is very different than your sit on the couch and talk about things, but if you need the help relatively quickly and you have access to Mindbeacon, i say don't miss out. Best of luck and be well

Camille Ferland

Not great. It’s not therapy. It’s filling out mental health questionnaires and reading about therapy but not actually doing therapy. Government of Ontario if you are reading this, please spend our tax dollars on another organization that provides real mental health support: individual or at least group talk therapy. This really isn’t cutting it.

Sarah Gin

literally the worst therapy experience I ever had. Don't even both with this company, they will force you to do a 60 min test and not reply with next steps for weeks. They only care about reeling you in, and once they get you to sign up, they stop caring. The blogs on the website are also cheesy and uninformative "dont be sad just be happy!". Incredibly disappointed with the service I received... or lack there of.

Chantelle Hart-Porco

I would not recommend this website/app for anyone.

Madison Stockdale

MindBeacon has helped me so much! there was some technical challenges during the beginning and I was not able to access the service while they did the work, but they extended my time with them for the time that I missed and all was good. My therapist Nicole was fantastic! would recommend her to anyone and everyone, she was supportive in the way that I needed her, she was working with me and helping me with my in the moment challenges at the time that I needed professional advice on to move forward. My anxiety and stress levels have been reduced significantly since starting this program! Thank you MindBeacon for helping me through challenging times and giving me the material that I needed to move forward. Would have given 5 stars but because of the technical issues that lost the last one.

P.J Smith

Excellent service and helped alot with the issues I needed to address , I highly recommend this to anyone that needs councling and can't afford the cost of services. ????????

zuzu

This was a waste of time unfortunately. This could be work for you if you are ok with doing readings and doing weekly quizzes about your mood.

Katrina O'Connor

When trying to use the online Mind Beacon therapy app after going through the assessment questions he waited months and never got a reply. He logged in again after a year and it still said under review so he couldn't even redo the assessment to see if it was an error. It was hard to get him to try something else after being ignored. I think this is unfair to people reaching out for help and could lead to them feeling as if no can help them.

Umm No

They made me wait so long only to not get anything in the end

Katie Attard

Took like a three hour assessment only for them to refuse to see me. Big yikes, if you've got any actual issues dont waste your time.

Liz R

Keep looking. I'm at a low point right now and was looking for some help, came across this site it says free mental health support for those living in Ontario. I clicked on it and have been filling out a 45 minute questionnaire. Can't seem to get past this and even speak to anyone. What a horrible experience. Makes me feel worse. If I was thinking of suicide this only made it worse. Wasted an hour trying to find help and recieved none.

Hannah Benson

I am extremely disappointed with this online program. It has been almost 3 weeks of "reviewing my assessment". With no contact from them at all. I was recommended this program from my school and I was wiling to try it. Ive had some very tough days and Ive had to deal with them on my own. Which is the whole reason I reached out to them because I can't deal with these tough days on my own. I do not recommend.

Yvette Florence

Was surprised at how personal the therapy is. It was really helpful.

Eric Post

I recently completed my 12 weeks with MindBeacon and have mixed feelings. I did learn some coping techniques that I found helpful and, inevitably, there were some I didn't care to keep up. The readings were easy to follow and generally pretty short so that was nice. I could just take 20-30 minutes to learn something new. I don't feel way better than before but I'd be lying if I said it did nothing for me. My therapist didn't have much contact with me, basically just reminding me to complete modules since, and this is one of my issues, it's self-directed but you are not notified when new material is ready to read. So I could go over a week without thinking about logging on and checking but when I did I'd have a message from 5 days ago from my therapist reminding me to do the new module. Some of the material I didn't find that relevant to me either but it's difficult for them to know when you can't speak face to face. Though the intake form was quite extensive and made me feel like I was going to be getting very personalized material. I got to do this for free through the Ontario government so I'd say it was worth it. Apparently it's normally paid? I don't know if I could recommend paying too much for this.

Brianna Jaynes

This online therapy was a great start to making a positive progress in my mental health. Recommend for those that are beginners in therapy; you are able to work at your own pace with the guidance of a licensed therapist that will prompt you every few days to monitor your progress.

Ildiko Horvath

The idea is great, but the time limitations set kind of kill the main point.

maha mohamed

Excellent service I certainly learned new skills to help me face any future challenges .Thank you very much for your service

Wendy Mitchell

The help I received online was fantastic. The Psychologist that supported me through my treatment was through. Checking in to make sure I was doing ok and gave me ideas that made me think what was best for me. I would recommend MindBeacon for their therapy support journey

Judi Goodwin

This is a wonderful resource available right now at no cost! The therapist communicates by messages, and provides some very insightful reading and exercises to do. The material is available for 12 months after the 12 week session ends. Take advantage, this is really helpful!

James Garcia

I came across Mindbeacon through the Ontario assistance program and could not be happier. I just finished my 12 weeks program and have been feeling so much better as of late. The therapist took the time to really tailor the CBT approach to my needs and was always there for support or questions. I would gladly pay full price for this program and could not recommend it enough! Hopefully other provinces follow Ontario's lead and offer this program to their residents who I'm sure are struggling the after-effects of this last year plus in lockdown.

Sen Shin

Wasn't right for me. I felt uncomfortable sharing with therapist, since they acted like robot and was very depersonalized. Overall, homework sheets only made me feel worse, and I stopped using in in the middle. I agree with someone who said that this program just exist to utilize government money, thats why they care about positive feedback so much.

NJ

Excellent service via the Ontario Government, it is very thoughtful and I am thankful. I found it very helpful and convenient.

Magdalena Martinez

I tried MindBeacon as part of the government of Ontario program so at no cost to me. I found it very helpful for the goals I had in mind for the time-frame and scope of the program. and got really good support from the therapist . She was very quick in answering my messages and providing new material at my own pace. I really liked the materials and exercises. I liked that my work was saved and I could do an exercise several times or go back back check it. Of course, as in any therapy, this might not be for everyone so I encourage you to get as much information about it to see if it's a good fit.

Victor Moss

Save your money, unless you're getting this for free. I tried this service last year in order to get some assistance with typical issues like anxiety and depression. The experience was lackluster to say the least. Little to no interaction with a real person as well as assigned readings that provide only basic background information on mental health topics and how to improve the way you think about things. What interactions I did get seemed robotic and completely disconnected with little actionable advice provided and vague answers to any questions I had. My advice based on my experience would be to try and find a real professional you can talk with one on one as MindBeacon seems to be an attempt to mass produce a solution for those seeking assistance with little emphasis on quality or an individuals specific situation or concerns.

D M

It would be great help for us who suffering mental issues, especially in the Pandemic time. Six hours to fill out the same questions and what. Your "therapist" is looking as a student of the first course and you can find form information on YouTube. Very sad that service is getting the Government fund for nothing helpful for us.

Mijeong Kim

I have positive experiences with MindBeacon. I learned a lot about how to react to the situations which trigger negative emotions.

Kristy

I recently completed my 12 week program through the Ontario government funding initiative. My experience was very positive, my therapist was really amazing - she checked in on me ALOT, ensured I had all the materials I needed and provided ongoing feedback. The techniques shared were easy to implement in my everyday life. I did like the self guided nature of the program, but it may not be enough if you need ongoing dialogue with a therapist. Overall this program combined with a anxiety prescription, I feel alot better overall.

Karmealia Turner

There’s definitely room for improvement on communication and service, but I did find the resources helpful for my anxiety. I wish the program could be continued beyond 12 weeks and that there was more interaction from the therapist. Overall, a good experience.

Lidija C

This program is great. I found it worked to nudge me in the right direction, even if I was already aware of some of the readings, its a good reminder. The activities related to the readings are another great way to ACTIVELY apply the components of the modules in a productive way. The assigned therapist is sorta like an accountability buddy, checking on you when you haven’t replied or haven’t been active on the platform for a few days. They offer alternative perspectives on your journal entries to help guide you do a more productive thought process. The therapist is also 100% accommodating if you let them know that something is coming up that may take more of your time. The reason I didn’t give a 5 star was because of the suggestions I made below regarding ease-of-access. Some suggestions for the platform: 1. Make an app for ease of access with the option to stay logged-in. I found myself neglecting some of my journal entries because it required that I log in to the browser on my laptop (which isn’t by my side 90% of the time like my phone). 2. Create an auto-save feature so that journal entries aren’t lost if the browser closes or I’m logged out. This was super frustrating and I had to just accept the loss a couple times instead of re-writing my entry. I was logged out of one window because I opened a different beacon window to read over the module content to help guide my entry a little better. This entry was never submitted because I didn’t want to experience the frustration of lost efforts/time.

Karell Pfeiffer

I found the program very helpful, though it does require some homework on your part, and is not meant for people in crisis (as in, they are considering hurting themselves or others). My only negative is that the program ends rather abruptly and doesn't seem to have an option to extend with your existing councillor.

Barry Kelley

The MindBeacon experience was very helpful to me in understanding the dynamics of depression, indentifying triggers and formulating strategies to recognize and minimize or stop the onset of depression symptoms. The Counsellor who I worked with on-line was professional, friendly and gently encouraged me to move ahead on some occasions when I stalled a little. The program does not try to be a cure-all but if you want an approach that will help you to better manage the impact of your depression on your daily life MondBeacon may be just what you are looking for. One hint: the more open and honest you are throughout the sessions the better the result will be. That's not always easy but its really essential.

Narges Joharchi

Lots of great reading materials, worksheets, and suggestions by the therapist. The downside was not having live communication with the therapist and lacking updated materials in relation to Covid-19.

Hayden Gouin

I definitely found MindBeacon to be a valuable program, however I can see that it's likely to not be the best fit for everyone. For those who rely on the accountability and personalization provided by therapy that includes face-to-face or video meetings, you might find it difficult to stay motivated and committed. The messaging system MindBeacon uses can help with this however I'd imagine that would be very dependent on who you're set up with. I was fortunate to have someone who was willing to engage with me and discuss some of the concepts in the modules, but I'm not surprised that others aren't too keen on this setup. The modules have some good information, some content is basic, regardless I feel like this type of therapy absolutely has an appeal, but would probably fit better for someone who'd like to learn a bit more about their mental health, learn a few helpful strategies to cope, but isn't necessarily in a really bad spot, and has enough motivation and self control to stay on top of the content. If you're too busy for therapy appointments and meetings, but want some sort of therapy, I'd really recommend MindBeacon.

Janet Jones

I decided after 30+ years to finally get help for my depression,anxiety etc., Too many to list. I have been doing the program now for 6 weeks and I feel great! I've gained confidence, more positive thoughts,more positive outlook. My therapist is amazing, she keeps InTouch with me and helps me. I even have my daughter doing this too and it's starting to show it's working.

Karla Forgaard-Pullen

The written materials are very similar to any self help manual on CBC, but free. The platform is mediocre. Expect blips.

Pemola Pereira

My councillor Samantha, was a very caring and helpful person who really listened to me and responded in a kind and genuine manner every time. She gave me things to think about and activities that met my needs. At first I was uncertain about yet another online “mental health” program but this was well worth the time and I did grow from the experience. Thank you mindbeacon for your help.

Zac Johnson

I found that all I was getting was endless amounts of questionnaires with no real answers. In the month that I tried this program, they learned probably more about myself than I got to. Instead of chatting about my answers, I was only really reminded of new questions- when I hadn't even gotten to understand the old ones yet! I really just needed to talk with someone. I got completely disinterested from not absorbing anything (useful to me) and so I just stopped logging in after a month.. I could see this maybe helping people who really like reading (maybe).. But myself, I am a visual/auditorial/kinesthetic learner... So it didn't do anything for me, personally. In Ontario this is a free program (which is great), but I think Ontario could provide a better service than this I have ADHD. So, as a word of feedback, it was not what I needed. If you could somehow better format your program to be more personable, I may think about trying again, but I need a real therapist, not a speech bubble

R Co

Awful service. If all you want is to be given some useless work sheets and to take a survey about how you feel every two weeks, this is the service for you. If you want to improve your mental health stay far, far away. I am convinced this is just a scam to get healthcare money from the government. Terrible and useless.

Zechariah

I do not know why our Ontario Government has recommended them at all: they even do not have proper privacy policies as it is too general. They are asking too much information which nobody knows they will keep: or share, or sale. They do not allow to delete the account. The private company is getting too much our confidential information. To fill out application I spent over five hours and after they started to ask more strict confidential information that gave me questions: who is asking? the Government? Note? the Police? not? the Security Deference Department? nope. It is just a small private commercial company...Do we remember story with Facebook and the other who sell our information? I have contacted the help and they refused to help. BERY CAREFULL: PRIVATE COMPANY IS COLLECTINGS VERY PERSONAL DATA AND HOW THEY WOULD USE NOBODY KNEWS !!!

Stephen Peck

Said it was free for Ontario residents. I spent 1 hour filling out questions. IT'S NOT FREE. Now they have all my info

Cassandra Studenny

I filled out the assessment and waited over a week for a response. When I finally received a response, it was completely unrelated to the issue I was having. This was followed by an apology about a technical issue. Following this, I had to reach out to the therapist assigned to me so that we could communicate every week. I do not feel that it should be up to me to initiate the conversation every week.

Elizabeth Cunha

Please be aware that services are not free as they claim. Assessment and diagnostic cost was $350 which related to a 7 minute phone call. Credit card information is required to sign up and you will be automatically charged so it’s not a free service even though there is supposedly government funding.

Constanza Farias

Horrible and oppressive. This service is dangerous and not evidence based what so over. Googling resources is better than their "therapist guided program" .

Luke Blazey

It was a great help! I found a lot of positive ways to tackle my anxiety and stress.

Mikayla Pye

I read some of the negative reviews a few months ago and felt disheartened, but I had no other options so I tried it. I'm so so happy I did. My therapist was extremely kind, and I learned so much about how the issues I face work and how to fix them. I love how I don't have to talk face to face because it made me really anxious to do that. Shout out to my therapist for answering so quickly and really doing everything in their power to help me!

Lori Martin

Sweet kind loving support with many helpful links. The therapist that helped was well educated and informed.

Karen Newton

They contacted me for an emergency contact number. I said, truthfully, that I don't have one. I never heard from them again! I waited and waited and finally realized they had dumped me without letting me know. I can appreciate that they might not be able to proceed without that number, but it is inexcusable that they would just leave me hanging endlessly. Common courtesy would have been to let me know. Their reply below does not address their failure to let me know that they weren't proceeding.

Maria Novielli

I have suffered tremendous losses of my immediate family members over the last eleven months. I felt like I was drowning. When my family doctor suggested I participate in the MindBeacon therapy I was skeptical that a completely online therapy service would work. But, I was wrong. My therapist with MindBeacon was extremely helpful and had me realize a lot about how I was feeling about myself and why it was wrong to think the way I was thinking. Even though it's nice to talk to a therapist face-to-face, I learned a long time ago that writing down your feelings is actually very beneficial. And, that's exactly what this was. Writing your feelings down over and over again is kind of like a "purging" your negative thoughts. I finally came to an "aha" moment, and I'm able to cope with my life's tragedies. Thank you MindBeacon!

C

Unreachable after filling out an extremely extensive assessment and being declined resources. I have emailed and even called numerous times and I have yet to speak to a person or even email a real person. It’s disappointing that this is recognized by any other mental health organization.

C

Unreachable after filling out an extremely extensive assessment and being declined resources. I have emailed and even called numerous times and I have yet to speak to a person or even email a real person. It’s disappointing that this is recognized by any other mental health organization.

Benjamin Rezaei

I made an account from the page that said they offer free iCBT for Ontarians. It didn't specify that you needed to have insurance or anything, but it turns out you do. I contacted them about this and they set me up with a therapist. Big ups for that, but after my therapist asked me a bunch of questions about me (through text), it turns out you don't actually call and have a conversation with them. You just text back and fourth. How is this supposed to help people? When someone is depressed or anxious, and they are hopeless, do you really think texting someone is going to be of any aid?

Z K

I really enjoyed minbeacon and loved my therapist. However the purpose of this app is to provide support and I strongly feel that the rules of treating someone go against the purpose of helping someone who wants to continue being treated by the same therapist. It took me years to accept that I need therapy and to find someone who was a good match for me and because of Beacon's rules I have to wait a year before they can even offer me treatment. I think that this is quite an oxymoron to the whole thing. However, I do appreciate the platform MindBeacon gave me to allow for this free treatment and I thank them for it. I just wish that the rules were not so strict in such trying times. Thanks.

TIM DURHAM

All I can say is that it worked for me. However, I did recognize from the start that it was one component of a system that I needed to begin my recovery from depression. At age 51, after having previously completed therapy for substance abuse recovery, and later grief counselling, I FINALLY decided to get help for my underlying depression issues that go back to my childhood (in fact as far back as my earliest memories). The therapists and counsellors that I worked with before had always encouraged me to get help for depression but I never did; until I realized how much I was hurting people who care about me by not seeking help. My first step was to talk to my family doctor, who referred me to a psychiatrist, who had me use MindBeacon to help me develop tools I can use to cope with my depression issues on a day-to-day basis, outside my regular therapy sessions. I never thought of or used MindBeacon as the single cure for my depression (and I don't think it's supposed to be used that way). I found it to be a very introspective process, which is the kind of person I am anyway, and it was a comforting break from group sessions.

Laura M

Extremely disappointed! I was excited to use a new therapy platform - at first I thought the assessment was a little intense but could be helpful to pin point my exact needs. Well I was quickly disappointed when my “therapist” promised to keep in contact every few day’s. They only handout useless surveys and questionnaires which are filled with information I already know & didn’t hear from her for 2 weeks because ‘my messages weren’t showing up’ but aren’t you suppose to be checking in on me? Very upsetting during a hard time trying to get help.

Angie P

They told me they are unable to help me with my mental health and sent me off with no help whatsoever, I wish I could give zero stars because this is how people's mental illnesses get worse, when they reach out for help and are completely denied it. MindBeacon does not care at all, so don't waste your time doing the 100 question long assessment just for them to say lol no help for you!

R T

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Modules are done individually with a therapist guiding you through the process. This is not a 1:1 therapy experience but works well if you are receiving counselling or therapy in a more individualized format. It compliments therapy already in process. It can also be helpful as a stand-alone for those who are not suffering severe symptoms of depression, anxiety etc. As the modules teach you skill sets to cope with feelings, thoughts and behaviours. If you are truly struggling please seek professional 1:1 care and use this program adjacent to your ongoing therapy.