Many of us experience frustrated needs, overwhelming responsibilities, being overlooked in love or work, losing something or someone important, health concerns, struggling with an internal critic. These experiences can lead to a range of human emotions that often feel too heavy to bear—sadness, despair, rage, dread, shame.

We cope the only way we know how. This can look like shutting down, numbing, lashing out at loved ones, risky or addictive behaviours, social isolation, hurting ourselves, avoiding what matters most to us. This can hold pain at bay in the short-term, making us feel in control.

But avoiding pain in the long-term saps energy and makes us weary. We can benefit from having someone to share pain with, who also offers hope as we work together to map a way forward.

I am a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC) with a MEd in Counselling Psychology from the University of Alberta. My approach involves setting a goal to help us stay on track, learning new strategies and skills that can help achieve that goal, and accessing, processing, and making space for whatever pain is a barrier to pursuing what matters.

I work with teens (14+), adults, and elders (65+). My training background is in cancer care, addictions, and workplace stress and injuries. I specialize in mood concerns (depression, anxiety), loss and grief (death, pet loss, unexpected life transitions, identity crises), health and illness (health anxiety, chronic pain), addiction (substance use recovery, addictive behaviours), and trauma (PTSD, veterans, first responders).

Reach out if you’d like to chat about your needs, what you hope to gain from therapy, and to see if we’re a good fit.

Many of us experience frustrated needs, overwhelming responsibilities, being overlooked in love o... Read More