What is Certification?

One of the most important (and confusing) things to understand about the field of psychotherapy is what it means for a therapist to be certified in a particular therapy (for example, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy [CBT] or EMDR).

Certification is a process of 1.5 or more years of post-Masters training, practice, consultation, and external review.

Once a therapist has met the rigorous requirements of certification, a regulating body like the Canadian Association of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies (CACBT) or the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) gives that therapist a high five and a public endorsement. That endorsement means that the therapist is now Certified in that particular therapy, according to the standards set by that regulating body.

Not many therapists are certified. For example, in all of KW, there are dozens of clinicians with their EMDR basic training, but as of April 2022, there are only 15 certified EMDR therapists. (Fun fact: 4 of the 15 happen to be here at Transformation Counselling.)

And there are even more therapists who practice CBT in KW, but as of April 2022, there are only 6 certified CBT therapists. (Fun fact: 1 of the 6 happens to be our clinical director, John Roche.) There are only two certified DBT therapists in KW, and only 19 in all of Canada. (Fun fact: one of the 2 happens to be John Roche.) And in all of Canada, there is only one therapist who’s certified in all three of EMDR, CBT, and DBT. (Fun fact: it’s our clinical director, John.)

Sometimes therapists will say they’re certified in a certain therapy when they really mean they’ve taken a workshop and received a certificate. Which is basically like taking one psych course and saying you have a degree in Psychology. Organizations like the CACBT or EMDRIA have online registers where you can find all the certified therapists in your area, so it’s pretty easy to see if someone is fibbing.

Do you have to be certified in a therapy to be an awesome therapist? Absolutely not. But certification in a therapy is one of few ways for people looking for a therapist to be confident that someone really knows their stuff.

Interested in finding a certified therapist in CBT, EMDR, or DBT? Check out the links below:

EMDRIA: Find a certified EMDR therapist

CACBT: Find a certified CBT therapist

DBT-LBC: Find a certified DBT therapist

Still have questions?