Thanks For Being Here
As human beings (and members of the mammal family), our brains and bodies are hard-wired for connection. We need it to survive. I'm so happy you're here, reaching out for connection, because I know how hard that can be. I too am a human being on a healing journey, and my philosophy as a psychotherapist has been shaped by that journey. I have learned, in an embodied way, that we are shaped by our relationships with attachment figures (our caregivers and mentors), that emotions are part of a wise old information system in our bodies, that vulnerability is hard, that humans naturally want to move towards wholeness, and that telling your story, and claiming it, is critical to finding wholeness.
About Me
Becoming a psychotherapist was a second career for me, and a decision I made by listening to my body, sitting with pain, facing unresolved trauma, exploring emotion, and taking risk. I had been a high school teacher for 17 years, working with the most amazing students, when I began to feel resistance in my body that I needed to tend to, and when I surrendered to the resistance and allowed the process to unfold, it brought me here.
I grew up with many privileges that I am grateful for, but at a young age I felt misaligned. I sensed on some level that that the systems (social, political, medical, religious, educational) I had been born into were faulty. By the time I was a teenager I began to question them. By the time I was a young adult I was beginning to feel the incongruence between my inner truth and the person I needed to be to survive the systems I was a part of. This eventually resulted in both physical and mental illness that served to reconnect me with my inner compass and a path forward. Through writing, art, nature connection, body work, yoga, movement, and therapy, I learned to flow with the natural processes shared by all beings on this earth, and I found my truth.
I consider myself a lifelong learner, and have been fortunate to have had access to rich educational experiences in my lifetime. I have a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Education from Queen's University. I have a Specialist in Special Education. I am a Registered Yoga Teacher, and a Reiki Level 2 practitioner. I am a Mindfulness Ambassador Council Facilitator, a Drum Circle Facilitator, and a Canoe Trip Leader, Level 2. I have training in Violent Threat Risk Assessment and Non-violent Crisis Intervention. I have a Masters of Arts in Counselling Psychology from Yorkville University. I am looking forward to continuing my education both formally, in different therapeutic modalities, and informally, by working with clients and listening to their stories.
Most importantly, I am a mother and a wife, and my greatest education has been learning to show up fully for my husband and children by doing my own healing work to accept the mirror that they hold up to my vulnerabilities, to disrupt intergenerational patterns, to be honest, and to reach out even when it's scary. They have taught me about the power of connection and the beauty of turning toward instead of armouring up. I strive to be a whole, authentic version of me so I can have deep and meaningful relationships with them.
I am honoured to have this opportunity to work in a field that aligns with my truth and empowers others to do the same.
