You may encounter a stressful event or face a challenging period in your life. You may experience low mood, suffer from a lack of motivation, or feel stuck. You may want to talk through past experiences to better understand them and see how they may still impact your current life.
Being in a state of distress can affect your health and quality of life.
Counselling therapy can help.
Depression
Anxiety
Stress and burn-out
Grief and loss
Problems with anger management
Addictions or unhelpful habitual patterns
Relationship issues (couple, family, friendships)
Separation and divorce
Interpersonal conflict
Trauma (sexual assault, physical and emotional abuse, childhood neglect...)
Questions around identity
Self-confidence issues
Body image issues
Life decisions and transitions
Existential questions and concerns
Together, we will define what form of therapy works for you. We will have an introductory conversation where we talk about your concerns and determine what we are going to do. We will meet at my office or online (I offer video and sometimes phone sessions), on a schedule that suits you. There are no boundaries on how often we meet and this is decided on a case-by-case basis. For some people, a few sessions are enough, and others need or want more long-term therapy or ongoing support.
I work from a collaborative, client-centred approach, and I use a trauma-informed lens. I integrate interventions from various frameworks. Depending on your concerns, interests and the questions you bring in, we decide what is the best fit for you.
The main therapeutic approaches I am trained in are listed below. These are all evidence-based, which means they are supported by scientific research as being effective means of helping you to understand yourself, of healing what needs healing, and of strengthening the way you navigate life and relationships.
ACT is a behavioural form of psychotherapy. It involves identifying and acknowledging the patterns that keep you repeating unhelpful thoughts and feelings. The goal is to develop a different (kinder and more accepting) relationship with difficult thoughts and feelings, as opposed to fighting, suppressing, or avoiding them. There are several techniques to work on this, including mindfulness practice. Another aspect of ACT is to define your personal values, and then to develop concrete steps (committed actions) in alignment with these values.
EFT is an approach to psychotherapy rooted in attachment theory. We identify unhelpful, negative interaction patterns, which create distress in relationships, as well as underlying feelings and emotional needs. The goal is to create secure attachment/connection to other people and to yourself. By developing emotional awareness and fostering a secure, safe connection, this approach helps you learn to respond to others in a healthier, more constructive way. EFT is a widely used model for couples therapy, but is also used in individual and family therapy.
IFS is a therapeutic approach that sees every human being as a system of multiple inner parts that function internally just like members of a family. Certain "members" - or parts of the human mind - carry trauma or are wounded by painful life experiences, and may take on extreme roles that cause suffering and harmful behaviours. Underlying them is a person’s core Self, which can’t be damaged. In IFS, we help people by identifying and accessing their protective and wounded parts, as well as the core Self, to facilitate understanding and healing.
EMDR is a psychotherapy treatment that helps people heal from traumatic experiences, including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The goal is to alleviate the distress associated with these traumatic memories, therefore helping you to live a more adaptive, emotionally healthy life. When we sleep, our brains alternate between regular and REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, and this alternating sleep pattern helps us process experiences that happened during the day. In EMDR, we imitate this sleep pattern by practicing sets of eye movements (or other forms of physical movements, such as alternating tapping) while briefly focusing on the traumatic memories. This combination of eye movements and holding the memory helps you to process and reframe disturbing memories.
I have always been fascinated by human relationships and behaviours and people's unique stories and life experiences, and I am interested in all the questions related to this. I believe that caring for people's mental health is essential for their general health and wellbeing. I am passionate about helping people to create healthy fulfilling relationships and to address issues that may prevent them from this and hinder their wellbeing.
I have 10 years of experience in the field of counselling. I was employed at a community-based counselling agency before starting my own counselling practice. I work with people with diverse backgrounds having a wide variety of presenting issues. I am a 2SLGBTQIA+ ally. I have experience working with immigrants from a range of different countries, and I provide therapy in English and French, as well as Dutch.
I am a Registered Counselling Therapist (RCT) with the Nova Scotia College of Counselling Therapists (NSCCT) and a Certified Canadian Counsellor (CCC) with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA). I obtained a Master's degree in Counselling (M.Ed.) from Acadia University. Prior to this, I completed a Master in French in Amsterdam (Netherlands) and a Master and a Ph.D. in Linguistics in Paris (France).
Individual sessions (16 years of age and older).
Sessions for couples or families.
$140 for a one hour session.
If finances are an issue, I offer a sliding scale.
Free 15 minutes phone consultation.
Counselling and psychotherapy sessions are covered by many insurance companies, but check with your provider whether Registered Counselling Therapists (RCTs) are included in your plan.
I don't offer direct billing.