Family Counselling Services in Bowen Island, BC.

Emotion Focused Family Therapy, systems approached and trauma informed work are integral tools used in my work with families to heal family relationships, change the emotional climate and facilitate increased confidence in you for the future. Emotion coaching, working through or own cycles of interactions that aren't helpful, reducing shame and learning how to move towards emotions in healthier ways will be a large part of our work together, as well as healing relational ruptures.

As a mother of two, I am constantly witnessing my theoretical background as a counsellor flying out the window. Parenting tests our mettle by the minute, and even the hardiest of us all, get bent. I use an attachment based parenting approach, whereby our bond and connection to our children is primary. Together we work to establish this trust and connection, and all else follows, not necessarily easily, but with conscious choice and understanding of our actions and reactions. I use a collaborative approach for older families, attempting to engage all family members in responsibility and unity.

Family therapy is important for those that are having a hard time connecting with someone in your family(partner, sibling, parent, child) and it can be quiet distressful. It also is important that if you are alone working yourself and others family members have similar therapeutic goals. My treatment plans involves understanding the belief system of the unity, and how people within that system communicate and relate to one another. We peel the onions together, and bring on healing to create unity and uniformity within the family system.

Real Solutions to Real Challenges. Common Sense Techniques. Martin very much enjoys working with families and children. Families are systems operating in close quaters, therefore upsets and miscommunications are natural and should be expected. They can be a source of extreme disappointment and pain or they can be opportunitiesfor growth. Martin is trained in Adlarian family therapy and uses Gestalt approaches to families. He has facilitaed parenting groups and worked with children as young as three years old and granparents who were in their eighties. It is his experience that families can enjoy, help, and grow together and most of the time it takes far less work than what they expected.

I specialize in family therapy and have a unique approach that will benefit you and the people you love. Working with me, your family will be able to improve communication, work together and repair damaged relationships with each other. I focus on helping each individual get their needs met, while balancging the health and happiness of the family. Whether you are a single parent, married or co-parenting after divorce, I can help you improve your relationships with each other and your chiIdren. I also have expertise in assisting parents who are dealing with difficult beahviors or mental health diagnoses in their children and am available for consultation as well.

Today family can mean different things to different people. Each family structure is challenged with their own set of difficulties and problems. Whether you are a blended family, single parent family due to divorce or loss, adoptive family, same sex parents, or traditional, we recognize family dynamics can be complicated. Together we will work to develop strong communication skills between each family member, while nurturing and solidifying the family unit. We will work to overcome conflict, heal the wounds of the past, build parenting skills and create a safe environment where all family members can be heard.

My approach to family counselling uses a family systems approach to understand complex family dynamics to promote relational competency. I hold the perspective that families are an emotional unit interconnected system comprised of interdependent members who influence one another. Recognizing behaviour patterns that create imbalance and generate dysfunction can be achieved by exploring each member’s role and adjusting to foster a healthy family. I can help the family create specific goals and improve communication. I offer support for family members to resolve conflict, improve parent-child interactions, support family transitions, and help family members deal with mental health conditions.

During the family therapy sessions , I create a safe space for the members of the family to express difficult emotions and missing needs which have blocked healthy connections. Rather than focusing solely on skills, by applying EFFT I will facilitate new emotional experiences within the families designed to enhance connection, safety, and closeness.

This type of therapy can help families cope with domestic violence, depression, inter-generational trauma, job loss and chronic illness. Together we take an integrative look at the impact of family dynamics, individual values, marital goals, and the cohesion of the family unit. We examine these factors to create a more productive team within the family unit itself.

Most of us do not live in a vacuum. We live among people, so sometimes therapy should involve those people, too. I have a lot of experience working with parents and children, and have had great success in helping parents see the very best in their children, and helping children open up more to the love of their parents. There is nothing more satisfying to me.

My approach is centered on fostering open communication, understanding, and cohesion among family members. Recognizing the unique dynamics within familial relationships, I tailor interventions to address the complexities of diverse family structures. By emphasizing effective communication strategies, conflict resolution, and the cultivation of a supportive family environment, my goal is to strengthen the bonds that connect each family member. Through a collaborative process, clients benefit from developing practical tools to navigate challenges, build resilience, and foster a harmonious family life.

Family counselling involves creating a safe environment where each family member is given opportunities to share their thoughts, feelings and beliefs. Once each member is heard, issues are addressed, processed and examined. Barriers and pitfalls such as communication are explored together. Along with the guidance, support and empathy of the Counsellor, family members work on creating solutions to problems. I have over twenty years of experience with working with children and families, I look forward to using my "client-centered" approach to help families move toward increasing their communication skills, valuing the input of each other and living happier and healthier lives.

Families are the cornerstone to our society and the heart of our community. Kathryn is passionate to support families as a whole and each invaluable member. No matter how traditional families have changed over time from divorce, separation, adoption, blended families, solo parenting etc., Kathryn is open, empathic and skilled in helping you redefine what it means to be a "family"; and how to move forward and celebrate that precious unit.

When there is conflict within our family system it can feel heartbreaking and have major effects on each individual’s health and wellness. Finding harmony as a family ultimately comes down to finding effective ways to communicate and working to understand each other’s unique perspective. During family therapy sessions I seek to make sure each individual feels heard and understood by their family members by giving them the opportunity to express themselves in a safe space. From here we can build the skills necessary to express our needs and desires while maintaining everyone’s stated boundaries.

I am a trained family constellations facilitator (as seen on Netflix, “Sex, Love & goop”, episode 5) and also have training through my graduate studies in family systems. As well I have a 210-hour practical Certificate in Interest-based Conflict Resolution from the Justice Institute of BC. I bring all these and an inherent belief in the power of intention to heal and restore love’s flow in families.

Despite the best intentions of ourselves and our family members, we are often tangled in patterns of invalidation, rejection, frustration and blame. It can feel so messy that we operate in a constant state of fear and a crippling sense of unworthiness. In 2008 I started my counselling career as a family therapist. A combination of individual and joint sessions will take place to allow the space for all voices to be respectfully heard, while helping to identify bigger ‘systems’ patterns that keep you stuck in pain and finger-pointing. I will help to smooth out communication, make room for wants and needs and to heal the old wounds holding you back from having a healthier relationship.

Family dynamics can be a complicated and sensitive balance within a home. This can be made increasingly complicated by divorce, blended families, individual parenting, spiritual values, health issues and much more. Counseling can provide family members a neutral voice and a place to be heard when fighting and arguing is impacting daily functioning and happiness, of one or more family members. We also help develop necessary tools to resolve conflict in a healthy way, bringing peace and harmony back to everyday lives.

Family counselling takes on many forms. The goal is to bring together the family to create understanding and harmony. Each family member is unique with their own values and perspectives. Family counselling gives each member the opportunity to understand their perspective and their role within the family and then the perspective and roles of the other members.

I approach family work using ‘systems’ principles. Each family member is part of the whole – the system. When any one part of a system changes, the impacts of this change ripple out to all of the other parts - regardless if any other part is seeking to change or not. I believe the key to healthy family systems lies in the process of ‘differentiation’ - how can each member of a family become differentiated (their full individual self), while maintaining intimacy and connection with the others (see Bowen’s work). Family cohesiveness involves practically learning to respect each other, set boundaries, and develop assertive communication skills.

Parenting Struggles DO YOU WISH PARENTING COULD BE EASIER? Struggling as a parent can be overwhelming and exhausting. You may feel like you aren’t doing enough for your child or that you no longer have time for yourself. Whether you are a new parent adjusting to parenthood or have grown children, it’s common to feel emotionally exhausted and overwhelmed. Therapy offers a safe and supportive space to explore thoughts and feelings, identify how you want to grow, and learn to effectively cope with the stress of being a parent. With support, you can work towards building stronger relationships with your children and those around you so you can start living with more ease and control.

Troubled relationships with family members can be a source of immense stress. You may be struggling with parenting concerns such as adjusting to the arrival of a baby, coping with the needs of young children, dealing with a rebellious teenager, or launching a young adult. Perhaps you are feeling exhausted from caregiver stress as you look after aging parents. You might be confused and hurt by strained relationships with extended family, including in-laws and adult children. Family counselling can help you gain confidence as a parent as you learn to deal effectively with children, teens, and young adults. I can help you gain insight and learn strategies to enable you to attain mutually satisf....

Our approach involves the utilization of family system therapy techniques to aid families in identifying recurrent interaction patterns and the roles assumed by each family member that influence individual behaviors within the family setting. Our objective is to enhance family members' understanding of dynamics and ineffective communication patterns while offering support in improving communication skills, conflict management, and facilitating mutual understanding.

Imagine a family as a tree with branches, roots, trunk representing parts of the immediate and extended family. When working with families, all elements are considered. Usually there is a request for family therapy due to one of it's members in crisis, often a child. However, when an analysis of need is done it becomes apparent that more than one member of the family needs help in adjusting, growing and learning new behaviours. Clients contact me for a variety of reasons: to improve communications, solve family problems, support in special situations such as death, divorce, marriage, illness, child or adolescent issues.

Relationships are hard work and sometimes families go through ups and downs and lets face it - it gets overwhelming. I will work with family members to address your struggles, stressors, breakdown in communication and unhelpful patterns. I take a very direct yet solution-focused approach to family therapy to help you find a more positive way forward together.

Family therapy provides the opportunity to explore how unfinished business or unhealed loss in your family of origin affects how you cope with life challenges in the present. We will explore family history and major events in your family, sometimes going back generations, to find out how family members were affected by those events, and how you may be affected by them in your life now. We also have the opportunity to find the health, strength and wisdom in the family through the generations.