From the first day Laura Gatien opened the doors to provide mental health therapy, she had a big vision. She was determined to not only provide one-on-one therapy but, more importantly, to help change the culture around mental health. She wanted to reduce stigma, increase access and remove barriers to mental health therapy. Laura knew that by normalizing mental health therapy, she could help so many more people. She believed we all struggle at times. 

As a practicing social worker for 12 years, Laura started out working with domestic violence victims as well as with those who had chronic and life-threatening health conditions through the hospital system. But by 2018, she believed she could help even more people, and left the security of her government job to become a solopreneur. 

She launched Laura Gatien Counselling Services, which has since become Laura Gatien & Associates, a mental health therapy practice in Saint John, NB. Within five years, the practice grew to a team of 25 clinicians across two locations, an administration team and many counselling interns.

Laura and her first intern started a free one-on-one drop-in therapy program every Friday and three years later, after a slow start, it’s thriving. Laura and her team founded a charitable non-profit known as Just Us; We All Struggle Inc. in 2022 to further grow their free and low-cost programs that help hundreds of New Brunswickers every month.

Laura reaches out regularly through social media and her blog to share openly and honestly about mental health. She is incredibly passionate about transforming how we view mental health by educating on mental health, challenging stigma and creating solutions outside the box. 

Laura earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Francis Xavier University in 2010 and completed her Bachelor of Social Work at St. Thomas University in 2012. She completed a Master’s degree in Social Work at the University of Waterloo, with a focus on the social determinants of health in 2017. Laura is a guest lecturer at St. Thomas University in the social work department and has contributed to course creation for the program as well. 

In 2021, Laura began working towards certification with the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counsellors and Therapists (AASECT) and has recently become a fully certified sex therapist – one of only 21 across Canada. This specialized training gives her the advanced skills necessary to assess and treat the sexual concerns of individuals and couples, an area that is vastly under-discussed and under-served. 

Laura is a member in good standing with the NB Association of Social Workers. She thoroughly enjoys continuing her professional education as a way to grow and learn about emerging issues. Laura is also passionate about entrepreneurship and has been recognized as the Lady to Watch in 2020 by the Ladies of Influence SJ. She was a finalist for the Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneurial Achievement award in October 2022. 

Laura is a frequent contributor to several media outlets on the topic of mental health, appearing in The Maritime Edit magazine, CBC Radio, Telegraph Journal, several podcasts and more.

Laura lives in Hampton with her three children, ages 11, 9 and 6.