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She found traditional therapy to be expensive and inconvenient, since most offices are only open during business hours. While TranQool aims to solve those problems, it also hopes to reduce the stigma associated with seeing a therapist. “Stigma is the biggest barrier we have, both for going to market and for getting people to share and talk about it,” Shafii said. “With our brand we’re trying to really break the stigma.”

TranQool users sign up and identify how they’re feeling and what issues they want to address, for example anxiety, work-related problems, stress, or low mood. They can then search for a therapist by gender, specialities, or language (currently seven languages are available) and book an appointment for a secure video chat on TranQool. Most appointments are taking place after 5 p.m. and on weekends, and users are guaranteed an appointment within 24 hours.

In addition to appointments with therapists, users are encouraged to complete CBT assignments, including filling out a thought diary, identifying goals for therapy, and creating a list to identify situations that are avoided due to anxiety. A daily emotional tracker is launching soon to help users track their moods and identify triggers for mood fluctuations.

Each 45-minute session costs $60, of which TranQool keeps an undisclosed percentage. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health pegs the cost of therapy at between $40 to $180 an hour. Shafii said TranQool therapists’ costs usually range from $120 to $400 an hour, but they are able to lower their prices because they can hold these sessions outside office hours. Shafii says Tranqool sessions can be claimed under corporate benefits plans, although that has yet to be tested.