Yes, as long as there are two conditions: absolute confidentiality and complete neutrality.
Here's what that means in practice, and how I handle these situations.
How Confidentiality Works in Practice
If you're worried about confidentiality, that's completely understandable. Therapy requires vulnerability. You need to trust the walls actually hold.
In my practice, I work alone. No shared notes, no staff, no exceptions. What you tell me stays with me, period. This strict approach allows me to work with people who know each other, including colleagues, family members, and even exes without conflicts.
You may think there can be no overlap in a therapist's practice, but that isn't possible. We live and work in the community. Mental health practitioners who work in companies see people who work together and who live in their neighbourhood. Mental health practitioners working in local hospitals see members of the same family, people who work together, sleep together, who know each other on social media. It's a very common situation.
If you see me, I talk to you and to you only. Between sessions, I forget I know you.
If your best friend, cousin, work colleague, or neighbour also sees me, I maintain complete professional boundaries in therapy sessions. In fact, I won't even confirm or deny that you're my client if anyone asks.
I won't talk, but if you want to discuss your sessions with someone else, that's your decision. You know what works for you.
When Relationships Overlap
The therapist's job is simple: help the client reach their goals. In the session, it's all about you.
But with cross connections, I often hear the same story from different perspectives. Like if there's a product launch, I may hear about the event management side from one client and the product side from another.
Confidentiality means that I can't let information I hear in one session bleed over into another. What's said in a session stays in that session.
This gets complicated when secrets are involved.
If Client A tells me their company is cutting staff, and Client B (who works there) is planning expensive purchases, I can't warn Client B without breaking Client A's trust.
With romantic relationships, this becomes even trickier. Secrets about affairs, finances, or future plans can put me in an impossible position if I'm seeing both partners individually.
My Policy on Close Relationships
For new clients, I take this approach:
If you know each other casually - work colleagues, family, neighbours - I'm comfortable seeing you.
If you are dating or partners and are dealing with separate issues - one wants anxiety support, the other wants career coaching - I can see you both individually.
My default for couples who want to talk about their relationship: I refer you to a couples counsellor.
Individual online therapy is as effective as face-to-face sessions. However, research shows managing multiple people in the same session online presents unique challenges. In couples or family therapy, therapists rely heavily on body language - subtle gestures to invite someone to speak, to signal when to pause, to manage emotional escalation. These non-verbal interventions are difficult to deliver effectively through video calls.
For your benefit, I recommend face-to-face couples therapy where the therapist can use the full range of clinical tools.
Exception: If you're in a location where couples therapy isn't available, or you have concerns that make face-to-face therapy unsafe or impractical (LGBTQ in restrictive countries, polyamory, atheist perspectives, throuple relationships, etc.), contact me. We can discuss whether online sessions might work for your specific situation.
In all situations, it comes down to informed consent, which means figuring out how we work best together. We discuss boundaries upfront, including how we'd handle conflicts of interest if they arise.
See how I protect your privacy
What If I Don't Know You're Connected?
Of course, this assumes all the information is out there and up front.
Sometimes relationships aren't clear at the beginning or they change.
I may not know for months that Client A is the ex that Client B is telling me about, or that Client Q works in the same company as Client P. Sometimes Client J is delighted with a new relationship and I discover their new partner is my Client L.
Usually, this arrangement works well. Like accountants, lawyers, doctors, nurses and other professionals, I compartmentalize.
The one curiously tricky situation is when I discover that two clients who I thought of as single or independent are partners.
If they tell me in session, we can talk it over. But if they don't, and I don't know if they know their partner is in therapy, I can't ask without breaking confidentiality.
When connections between clients emerge unexpectedly, I handle it the same way doctors, lawyers, and other professionals do: through compartmentalization and strict boundaries.
Questions About Whether We Can Work Together?
Ready to discuss your situation? Contact me and we'll talk through your specific circumstances. I'll be honest about whether I can maintain the confidentiality and neutrality you deserve.
Image by Pretty Sleepy Art from Pixabay
