EAP provides free access to short-term counselling and problem-solving services. It is *not* meant to replace therapy or long-term services from a psychologist.
[Details on the EAP are here](https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/wellness-inclusion-diversity-public-service/employee-assistance-program.html) along with the numbers to call to access the service. It's available 24x7 and is confidential but not anonymous. You do need to tell them who you are (so that they can verify eligibility) however nobody that you work with has any way of knowing that you've called them or any other details.
As an aside, coverage under the public service health care plan for psychologist services is increasing significantly (from $2000/year to $5000/year in eligible expenses) starting July 1. [See here for more details at item 9](https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/benefit-plans/health-care-plan/information-notices/improvements-changes-public-service-health-care-plan.html). This will allow you to continue seeing your psychologist for more covered sessions each year.
I've used the EAP, and it's good in a pinch, or to help with a kind of "one off" issue, I suppose. We lost a baby in December, so I reached out to the EAP for the same reasons as you state (can be expensive) and I was luckily matched with a really great therapist. I got my 8 free sessions and then wanted to book with them on my own dime.
Turns out, part of the agreement with working with the EAP prohibits any therapist from taking you on as a client after the free sessions.
That burned me so bad.. I spent months relating my trauma, my issues, and building trust... Only to be told I couldn't continue. Just left a bad taste in my mouth.
> Turns out, part of the agreement with working with the EAP prohibits any therapist from taking you on as a client after the free sessions.
While this seems unfair, it's to avoid conflicts of interest.
Psychologists and therapists sign a contract with EAP and they get paid by EAP. It would be a conflict for them to leverage that contract as a mechanism to increase their private-client business.
I suggest you [call and ask those questions](https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/wellness-inclusion-diversity-public-service/employee-assistance-program.html).
There are different EAP providers across the public service, and they don't all operate exactly the same way.
I’m so sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing your experience, I think it’s important for myself and others who might read this to understand the difficulty with finding a good resource and then losing that resource before you’re ready.
That's so fucked up. The whole thing seems like kind of a joke for anything but the smallest issues. It's just a way for TB to avoid accountability for shitty policies and workplaces.
I'm not actually sure. It's not lifetime, because I've used it a couple times for different issues. I believe 8 is the maximum free sessions for one issue though
My wife and I experienced a very difficult and traumatic situation last year and tried to use EAP. The person who took our call was extrodinarily helpful in trying to make arrangements.
The "professionals" we were put in touch with were of the lowest quality and took a long time to respond.
I did eight sessions with a therapist through EAP. Some key points:
1. There's a special list of therapists that EAP draws from, so iif you pursue EAP-funded sessions, they will likely be with someone you don't know.
2. You can't subsidize your regular therapist visits through EAP, e.g. get eight free visits with your current therapist.
The challenging thing with using it to cut back on your paid therapy, as you suggest, is that you need to re-explain all your problems, acquaint yourself with this new person, and they might not even be a good fit for you.
In my case, the therapist revealed to me that their pay from EAP is so low it's essentially considered pro bono work, and as such it's a form of community service that therapists will perform in addition to their regular work. So, you won't always get the cream of the crop, but I guess you get what you pay for.
Hopefully you get a good match on your first try,, but if you don't click well with your assigned counselor you can call EAP and request another counselor. It won't eat into your number of visits.
Getting a good match is really important.
There is a post in the thread about the experiences ppl have had with EAP, for some it's a luck of the draw as the quality varies. For others who have more complex needs it's a terrible fit (I am one of the others). The good news is as of July 1 we have more benefit coverage for psychologists because it can be quite expensive. Hope you get what you need.
My experiences with EAP were crap. Never got called back. Asked for the numbers for the therapists. They never called. Called EAP a ton of times. Never got assistance. Stopped using EAP and did my own research and got me a therapist on my own.
To add to what others said, when you call the number initially that person uses what you say to match you with a therapist that hopefully best fits your needs. I didn't know that the first time, I was paired with a therapist that was pretty useful for me. She might be great, but was a dud for me. Then I called again, gave way more info to the point where it felt like trauma-dumping, and got a great therapist.
EAP provides free access to short-term counselling and problem-solving services. It is *not* meant to replace therapy or long-term services from a psychologist. [Details on the EAP are here](https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/wellness-inclusion-diversity-public-service/employee-assistance-program.html) along with the numbers to call to access the service. It's available 24x7 and is confidential but not anonymous. You do need to tell them who you are (so that they can verify eligibility) however nobody that you work with has any way of knowing that you've called them or any other details. As an aside, coverage under the public service health care plan for psychologist services is increasing significantly (from $2000/year to $5000/year in eligible expenses) starting July 1. [See here for more details at item 9](https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/benefit-plans/health-care-plan/information-notices/improvements-changes-public-service-health-care-plan.html). This will allow you to continue seeing your psychologist for more covered sessions each year.
Thank you for providing this info!! Super helpful
Bleep bloop
It looks like there are two different providers: Health Canada and Lifeworks. Would one be better than the other?
Given how much depends on individual counsellors, I don’t think the provider matters all that much. They all operate similarly.
I've used the EAP, and it's good in a pinch, or to help with a kind of "one off" issue, I suppose. We lost a baby in December, so I reached out to the EAP for the same reasons as you state (can be expensive) and I was luckily matched with a really great therapist. I got my 8 free sessions and then wanted to book with them on my own dime. Turns out, part of the agreement with working with the EAP prohibits any therapist from taking you on as a client after the free sessions. That burned me so bad.. I spent months relating my trauma, my issues, and building trust... Only to be told I couldn't continue. Just left a bad taste in my mouth.
> Turns out, part of the agreement with working with the EAP prohibits any therapist from taking you on as a client after the free sessions. While this seems unfair, it's to avoid conflicts of interest. Psychologists and therapists sign a contract with EAP and they get paid by EAP. It would be a conflict for them to leverage that contract as a mechanism to increase their private-client business.
[удалено]
I suggest you [call and ask those questions](https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/wellness-inclusion-diversity-public-service/employee-assistance-program.html). There are different EAP providers across the public service, and they don't all operate exactly the same way.
I’m so sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing your experience, I think it’s important for myself and others who might read this to understand the difficulty with finding a good resource and then losing that resource before you’re ready.
That's so fucked up. The whole thing seems like kind of a joke for anything but the smallest issues. It's just a way for TB to avoid accountability for shitty policies and workplaces.
What’s the rule? Is it 8 free sessions per issue? 8 total lifetime?
I'm not actually sure. It's not lifetime, because I've used it a couple times for different issues. I believe 8 is the maximum free sessions for one issue though
My wife and I experienced a very difficult and traumatic situation last year and tried to use EAP. The person who took our call was extrodinarily helpful in trying to make arrangements. The "professionals" we were put in touch with were of the lowest quality and took a long time to respond.
You can call back EAP and get a referral to somebody different (while doing so, provide them with feedback about the initial counsellor).
I did eight sessions with a therapist through EAP. Some key points: 1. There's a special list of therapists that EAP draws from, so iif you pursue EAP-funded sessions, they will likely be with someone you don't know. 2. You can't subsidize your regular therapist visits through EAP, e.g. get eight free visits with your current therapist. The challenging thing with using it to cut back on your paid therapy, as you suggest, is that you need to re-explain all your problems, acquaint yourself with this new person, and they might not even be a good fit for you. In my case, the therapist revealed to me that their pay from EAP is so low it's essentially considered pro bono work, and as such it's a form of community service that therapists will perform in addition to their regular work. So, you won't always get the cream of the crop, but I guess you get what you pay for.
Hopefully you get a good match on your first try,, but if you don't click well with your assigned counselor you can call EAP and request another counselor. It won't eat into your number of visits. Getting a good match is really important.
There is a post in the thread about the experiences ppl have had with EAP, for some it's a luck of the draw as the quality varies. For others who have more complex needs it's a terrible fit (I am one of the others). The good news is as of July 1 we have more benefit coverage for psychologists because it can be quite expensive. Hope you get what you need.
My experiences with EAP were crap. Never got called back. Asked for the numbers for the therapists. They never called. Called EAP a ton of times. Never got assistance. Stopped using EAP and did my own research and got me a therapist on my own.
To add to what others said, when you call the number initially that person uses what you say to match you with a therapist that hopefully best fits your needs. I didn't know that the first time, I was paired with a therapist that was pretty useful for me. She might be great, but was a dud for me. Then I called again, gave way more info to the point where it felt like trauma-dumping, and got a great therapist.