Find a Therapist in Qualicum Beach, British Columbia.

I provide psychotherapy for children, youth and adults at The Centre For Expressive Therapy, a warm, nurturing atmosphere that reflects and supports healing. The therapeutic methods used during the course of psychotherapy are carefully chosen according to age, natural inclination and life circumstances to meet a client's unique needs. We will work together to explore and change the thought and behaviour patterns that are keeping you from being the best you can be. Building on your inner strengths, you will learn new skills to better cope with life's obstacles and challenges. Ongoing support is offered as suitable.

I offer a multidisciplinary and relational approach to psychotherapy that includes early attachment work and a sensitivity to intergenerational dynamics and trauma, with a holistic orientation and evidence-based techniques. The role of the body in healing is central to my work, as I draw on many somatic practices. I also work with the arts as a healing modality. On the part of my clients, no experience in the arts is necessary. Whichever therapeutic modality we choose as best suited to your current journey, we work with the fundamental creative drive that is present in all of us to encounter the many facets of your healing pilgrimage necessary for growth and lasting change.

Patterns of self-sabotaging behavioural, disorganized thinking and overwhelming emotion make life very difficult. How can we move forward when our bodies seem to betray us and we just need a break from the buzzing anxiety or the numbing of depression? What you may not know is all these symptoms are the imprint of our unfinished business, stuck in the body and just begging to be seen, cared for and accepted. Working with me means looking with curiosity, compassion and an educated-eye at how old wounds of betrayal, abandonment and rejection show up to block living your best life. You are not alone and there is hope.

The circumstances and issues that you are dealing with are unique to you, but you don't have to face them alone. Every individual has different experiences, perceptions, feelings, thoughts, beliefs, values, attitudes, cultural backgrounds and "upbringings". Counselling sessions are private and confidential, and can provide a way for you to explore your problems and really tune in to your feelings. This is an opportunity to speak freely about your circumstances and release pent up feelings, without having to worry about what others think or feel, and without receiving unwanted advise from family, friends or coworkers. At the root of the problem, there are very real, legitimate and understandable reasons for feeling the way you feel, thinking the way...(view profile to read more)

My approach to therapy is inspired by the teachings of Carl Rogers, who believed that the most effective way to help individuals was through a warm, empathetic, and understanding relationship. I create a safe space for my clients to be open, honest, and vulnerable, allowing them to work through their challenges and find their own answers within themselves.  I use a holistic and integrative approach, drawing from a range of therapies, including eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), ego states theory, somatic approaches, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), mindfulness, resonance and more.

Fundamental to the work is a good therapeutic relationship. That is, we have the collaboration and trust to combine your knowledge of yourself and your situation and my skills and knowledge of the clinical issues to make change happen. With established trust and rapport between us, we can develop a structureless structure for our treatment plan. That is, one flexible enough to give space to deal with thoughts and feelings spontaneously each week, and structured enough to accomplish your goals.