I’m drawn to working with people who think deeply about themselves and their relationships.
Many of my clients have spent years trying to understand their patterns—but still feel stuck.
Often, they don’t need more insight. They need space to understand what their experiences taught them about themselves—and whether those beliefs still fit who they are today.
I specialize in helping people shift the deeply held beliefs formed through emotionally significant life experiences, using EMDR, IFS (parts work), mindfulness, and other evidence-based approaches.
I get goosebumps when I start to see shifts in my clients that translate into the real world!
I take the work very seriously, but therapy doesn’t need to feel overly clinical. Curiosity, humour, and a mind-body-spirit perspective can be part of the process. I bring my authentic self into sessions and people have said I make them feel grounded and safe. Humour, honesty, and emotional depth are all welcome in this space.
“Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still”
— Chinese proverb
We all learn from experience
Some experiences teach us things that help us navigate life.
Others—especially emotionally significant or repeated experiences—can lead to beliefs about ourselves, other people, and the world that once made sense, but no longer fit our present life.
Beliefs like:
- I’m not enough
- I have to keep everyone happy
- I can’t trust myself
- It’s not safe to need people
- I’m too much
These beliefs often begin as adaptations and they made sense in the context in which they were formed.
The challenge is that they can continue shaping how you feel, respond, and relate long after the original experiences are over.
HOW THERAPY HELPS
Therapy helps you revisit and update the experiences that shaped those beliefs.
This is where approaches like EMDR and parts work come in.
Rather than just understanding patterns intellectually, we work at the level where emotional learning is stored—helping your nervous system update what it still carries from the past.
Over time, this can lead to:
- greater emotional flexibility
- reduced reactivity
- increased self-trust
- a stronger sense of authenticity
- a deeper feeling of being “yourself” again
We move at a pace that supports both safety and depth. This work tends to be most helpful if you’re open to exploring your internal experience and engaging in an ongoing process of reflection and change.
As therapy unfolds, many people begin to experience a greater sense of clarity, emotional ease, and connection with themselves.
The approaches I use
Eye Movement Desensitization
and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR is a powerful, evidence-based approach that reduces the emotional intensity of emotionally-charged memories so that have less impact in the present.
Internal Family Systems
(IFS, aka “parts work”)
Parts work explores the different “parts” of ourselves—such as protective, critical, or wounded parts—to better understand our inner world and create more balance and self-compassion.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness involves gently bringing awareness to the present moment, helping us notice our thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations with more clarity and less judgment. Over time, this practice helps us gain greater control over our thoughts, which ultimately helps us gain greater control over our emotions and behaviours.
Training & Professional Development
Formal education:
Master’s of Social Work 2006 / Bachelor of Arts degree, major in Psychology 2000.
