Counselling Practice
Approach to Counselling
I am an emotionally-focused counsellor who specializes in somatic (body-based) approaches to building relationships with and caring for your emotions. While I am trained in many different approaches to therapy, I prioritize emotion-focused, body-based work as we now live in a society where these parts of ourselves often have been de-valued and cast out from our daily routines. In living our busy lives, most of us are trained to think of these as after-thoughts or sometimes even nuisances. For better or worse, our bodies and emotions are with us throughout our journeys in this life, and bringing them into our conscious experience can often bring a much deeper sense of harmony that we all desire. The majority of clients I work with come in feeling like they have little or no connection to their bodies or emotions, so if you are in this place currently, no need to feel intimidated. It is never too late to start to build that connection!
My approach to work with counselling clients begins with helping to explore and clarify your own personal goals for your well being. For many, this may look like wanting to give attention to a difficult experience you are carrying with you or a challenging dynamic you continue to run into in your life. These could be things you experience within yourself (challenges with thoughts, emotions, your body, etc.), outside of yourself (socially or interpersonally or systemically), or both. Once we've clarified these, we will start to map out the path for you to get to them without leaving your body and your emotions behind.
Consent & Person-Centered Care
I approach the counsellor-client relationship in the most client-centered, collaborative, consent-based ways I know how. However, given that I am human like you, I will not always know the most helpful ways to work with you, so I will also often check in with you on what in our working relationship feels best for you. While I have worked with many people from many backgrounds in many different stages of life, I will never be able to make change in your life more meaningfully or effectively than you. In this sense, it is critical that we harness your strengths for overcoming challenges while trying to maintain a compassionate respect for your limits and boundaries in our work together. No one can change everything all at once! This approach also usually lends itself well to increasing your satisfaction in your relationship to yourself, including increased confidence, self-compassion, ability to set boundaries, and ability to access your own insights so that you may be able to continue our work outside of our sessions.
Power & Privilege
I recognize that it can be challenging for people who are experiencing the impact of oppression on their mental health to connect with someone who may not share the same lived experience as them. In my practice, I try to balance refraining from any assumptions about what your identities/lived experience may mean for you with the reality that your gender, sexuality, class, race, ethnicity, religion of origin, language, and ability are all ways in which you may experience hardship, disconnection, or discrimination. I may offer invitations to make connections between your experience of these and your overall well being. However, I will always respect if this is a conversation you do not feel ready or comfortable having with me.
Format: In-person v. Virtual
Currently, I only offer virtual sessions (video calls). I will always communicate any changes in format with ample time for people to process and consider how this could impact their work with me.
If people feel strongly about meeting in-person being initiating virtual work with me, I can offer walking sessions. Please contact me for more details.