Jennifer James, MACP, RP (Qualifying)

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Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)
100 Reid Street, Lakefield, Ontario, K0L 2H0

Additional Locations:

See additional office location: North York, M2K 1E8

  2911 Bayview Avenue
  North York, M2K 1E8
  3653347361

Phone: 416-528-8627
Send A Message To Jennifer.
Session Fees: $150 for individuals, $180 for couples and a Sliding Scale available for limited spaces
www.doublejtherapy.com
This member is also available for online counseling.
Online-counseling methods:

Free 30 Minute Consultation AND...
$50 off your first session booked!

I work with adult individuals and couples who know or sense that something doesn't feel quite right and are ready for support. If you have landed here, something in your life is probably bothering you. Maybe you can name it, maybe you can’t quite yet. Either way — you’re welcome here.
Walking alongside people through change is my calling.
Many of the people I work with are already trying. They are self-aware, capable, and have sometimes sought support before. What brings them here is the recognition that something deeper needs to be understood before change can happen.
I know what it feels like to lose a sense of who you are, or to want to perform well on the outside while quietly unravelling on the inside. I also understand that it can be frustrating to take longer than expected to arrive at a solution that feels like it fits. That lived experience shapes how I show up, with steadiness, honesty, and care.

What I have learned about change:
Change has been the consistent subject of my work for decades (25+ years)— in corporate environments, in coaching sessions, my personal journey, and now in therapy. What I’ve come to understand across all those contexts is that the moment someone reaches a real turning point, the presenting problem is rarely the only one. Something underneath it needs to be understood before anything genuinely shifts. That insight is what carried me from the work I was doing into clinical training. It is also what I bring into every session.
My own journey has paved the way for my work.

My background:
I grew up in Toronto in a family that showed me early what it looks like to face difficulty without losing yourself. My mother was hospitalized just as she was marrying my father, facing a serious chronic illness diagnosis that altered the course of their lives entirely. She chose purpose over bitterness, redirecting her energy into community and giving back, being forced to give up her career to focus on wellness. My father never left her side. Watching both of them navigate circumstances they didn’t choose, and come through them with integrity, patience, and love, set the bar for everything I have done since.
My own path had its own difficulties. I spent my teens and early adulthood understanding and managing a health diagnosis with epilepsy that left me cycling through medications, managing fear I didn’t have language for, and learning — in the most visceral way — what it feels like to struggle internally while doing my best to appear fine on the outside. I went to university unsure of who I was. I built a career and then another, often feeling lost and searching for the right fit that would feel meaningful to me. I found my stride and followed the path I thought my parents wanted for me, climbing the corporate ladder, but something felt like it was missing.

The Turning Point
The real shift came through loss. My mother was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and at the same time, I lost my job and suffered a deep physical injury, and then it happened – I burned out. When it felt like I was at my most vulnerable, I was introduced to mindfulness. That first program changed how I thought. It was the first time I had a framework for what I’d always sensed: that awareness is the beginning of change.
That discovery became a practice and over time, a way of being. The path led me to become a Mindful Self-Compassion teacher. This has become a foundation for what I do and how I think clinically. I spent two years teaching leaders and entrepreneurs from around the world in a program my husband and I built together. After the program ended, I decided to keep going and shifted into formal clinical training, because I wanted to step more fully into this calling.

My Caregiving Years
In recent years, life has continued to teach me. I’ve been caring for my father — who navigated the loss of my mother, a remarriage that separated us for a time, and then a return into our lives as he began showing signs of Dementia and Alzheimer’s. I also find passion in my volunteer work. I volunteer at the Distress Centre of Greater Toronto, where I work as a call responder and mentor. I believe accessible care isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s a human need and right. None of this is separate from the work I do. My life has been fertile ground for many of the issues I see come into the therapy space, which gives me a deep sense of empathy and understanding for the challenges of those I walk alongside in session.
Therapy is a safe space to navigate change, together.

My approach is personalized and integrated:
I’ve completed my Master’s in Counselling and Psychology at Yorkville University and am registered as a Qualifying member with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario. I draw from DBT, CBT, MCBT, Mindful Self-Compassion, EFT, Narrative therapy, Music therapy, and other evidence-based approaches.
Sessions are built around your goals, acknowledging your expertise and drawing on your experiences. Together, we work to create a safe, trusting, empathic space for meaningful, sustainable change.

What it’s like in session:
I often hear that something which felt confusing or uncertain has started to make sense. People say they feel heard, and that I offer a calming presence. That movement, from uncertainty toward clarity, and from reactivity to responsiveness, is what I work toward in every session.
We walk together through this process with curiosity, compassion, and care, ensuring you feel supported. The goal isn’t just insight, but helping you move forward in a way that feels clearer, grounded, and connected to who you are. Therapy takes work and means striking a balance between finding non-judgment where you can feel safe, seen, and heard, and then developing an active voice that supports action. To me that means supporting you to live the change — not just understand it.
I fundamentally believe small steps lead to big change. I've lived it, and I would like to walk alongside you through yours.

Jennifer James Reaches

Peterborough ON
Toronto ON

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