Ainsley McNaught
Ainsley McNaught
Accepting New Clients
Individual Session • $160 HST included • 50 minutes
Cobourg Office
Ainsley helps with the following life conditions and mental health struggles:
- Anxiety
- Addictions
- Big life changes
- Career challenges
- Depression
- Shame
- Grief and loss
- Relationships
- Gaming addiction in youth & adults
- Daily life struggles
- Stress
- Life Transitions
- Identity
- Trauma
- Self esteem
Ainsley Is Trained In The Following Methods
- CBT Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
- DBT Dialectical Behavioural Therapy
- ACT Acceptance Commitment Therapy
- Compassion Focused psychotherapy
- Humanistic psychotherapy
- Person-centered therapy
- Mindfulness based mental health approaches
- Strengths-Based
- Motivational Interviewing
Ainsley McNaught
Let’s Figure Things Out Together
Hi, I’m Ainsley McNaught, a Registered Psychotherapist and I work with people 16 and older who are navigating anxiety, depression, shame, trauma, grief, addictions, big life changes, emotional overwhelm, and those confusing “what am I doing with my life?” stretches that can hit at any age.
If you’re feeling anxious, stuck, overwhelmed, or worn down by patterns you can’t seem to break, therapy can be a place to slow down and make sense of what’s going on. I like to remind my clients: you are not a problem to solve. You are a mystery to understand, and we’ll figure it out together.
Getting Curious About the Different Parts of You
One of the main ways I work is called parts work, which is shaped by a model known as Internal Family Systems, or IFS. The idea behind it is simple. You aren’t one single voice inside your head. You’re made up of many parts, and they don’t always agree. There’s the part that criticizes everything you do. The part that pushes you to keep achieving so nobody sees you struggle. The part that shuts down when things get hard. These parts didn’t show up out of nowhere. They developed for a reason, often to protect you from something painful. The problem is that a strategy that kept you safe at ten may not be as useful at twenty five.
Here’s what areas IFS can help with:
- Reducing shame. When you see that your coping strategies had a purpose, it gets much harder to believe you’re just broken or weak.
- Finding more clarity: “Part of me wants to leave and part of me is terrified” stops being confusing and starts being useful information.
- A gentle way to explore a painful history: We move at your pace. You don’t have to relive everything to make progress.
- Addressing addiction and unwanted habits: The urge isn’t treated as a flaw. It’s seen as a tool that helped to support you at one time and now it’s time to find better and more effective ways to care for yourself.
Other Methods Of Care
Alongside IFS and inner child work, I draw from CBT, DBT, ACT, Solution Focused Therapy, and Motivational Interviewing. In plain terms, that means we can work on your thoughts, your emotional reactions, your day to day habits, and your bigger goals, depending on what you actually need.
Support With Addiction and Substance Use
I’m passionate about working with people struggling with addiction and substance use, and I work from a harm reduction approach. That means I’m not going to hand you an ultimatum or ask you to prove you’re serious before I’ll help. In my experience, unwanted habits are rarely the whole story. We’ll look at what’s actually driving things, and we’ll do it at a pace you can sustain. Wherever you are with substances right now, including uncertain, you’re welcome here.
What to Expect in Our Counselling Sessions
You can look forward to a balance of compassion and gentle accountability. We’ll spend time exploring who you are and how you got to this moment. You’ll gain practical self care steps you can use between sessions.
I also believe there’s room for humour in therapy. Sometimes laughter ends up being part of the healing too. I tend to connect well with people who are curious about themselves and want to go deeper than surface level counselling. This isn’t about being fixed or becoming a perfect version of yourself. I see you as a layered, complicated, resilient person trying to make sense of your experiences.
My Journey
I grew up in Cobourg surrounded by family, and my grandparents shaped how I approach people to this day, with kindness and warmth. I didn’t grow up dreaming about becoming a therapist, mostly because I didn’t know it was a career option. What pointed me here was my own experience trying to get help for my mental health as a teenager. I felt unseen and unsupported by a health care practitioner, and that made me curious about what meaningful care could actually look like.
After university, I worked at a clinic supporting people struggling with opioid use. I saw how hard people fight for themselves and their futures while dealing with addiction, trauma, poverty, and heavy stigma. This experience changed me, and it’s a large part of why I went back to school for my Master’s in Counselling.
A Little About Me Outside the Therapy Room
I recharge through creative hobbies like crochet, puzzles, and painting. I’ve also discovered that I love badminton, and I play a few times a week when I can find the time.
Let's Find Out If We're a Good Fit
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, stuck in difficult patterns, struggling with shame, or simply trying to understand yourself better, therapy can be a space to slow down and start moving toward real change.
I offer virtual and in-person sessions through Integra Skills Counselling, and I’d be honoured to support you wherever you are in your journey. Reach out today to book a consultation and see whether working together feels right for you.
Ainsley McNaught
Registered Psychotherapist (Cobourg)
Individual Session
- 50 minutes