If you’re considering counselling, I think it’s important to know something about the person you’ll be sitting across from.
I’ve been a therapist for almost 30 years, but I also know what it’s like to be on the other side of the counselling room.
I’m a Highly Sensitive Person myself, and much of my own life has involved learning how to work with — rather than against — a nervous system that notices and feels a lot. I’ve also experienced some significant struggles of my own, including recovering from eating disorders when I was younger and emotional eating/food addiction more recently.
Those experiences don’t mean I know exactly what you’re going through. Your story is your own. But they have profoundly shaped the kind of therapist I am: compassionate, practical, curious, and very aware that meaningful change is rarely as simple as telling someone what they “should” do differently.
Why I Became a Therapist
I grew up in Toronto and began my career there, counselling and facilitating groups for women struggling with addiction, eating concerns, and body image.
I completed my Bachelor of Social Work in 1996 and then moved to British Columbia, where I earned my Master of Social Work from the University of British Columbia in 1998. My graduate research explored Jewish women and body image and was later published in the Journal of Collaborative Therapies.
What began as a career very quickly became work I knew I wanted to keep doing.
Nearly 30 years later, I still feel that way.
I’ve had the privilege of working with individuals, couples, families, and groups through some of the most difficult periods of their lives. Over the years, my work has increasingly focused on highly sensitive people, anxiety and depression, emotional eating/food addiction, navigating menopause, self-criticism, boundaries, and the ways our nervous systems respond to stress and overwhelm.
I still find this work endlessly fascinating, and I consider it an enormous privilege when someone trusts me enough to share their story with me.
I’ve Done This Work, Too
I believe strongly that being a good therapist requires a willingness to do my own personal work.
I’ve spent many years learning about myself — through therapy, mindfulness, self-reflection, and the sometimes messy process of living through difficult experiences and coming out the other side.
In my teens and early twenties, I struggled with anorexia, bulimia, and orthorexia. Recovery wasn’t quick or simple, but it changed my life and gave me a deep appreciation for how complicated our relationships with food, our bodies, and ourselves can become.
I’m also a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP).
Learning to understand and accept my own sensitivity has been an important part of my life. I’ve had to learn that I can’t continually override what my nervous system is telling me. I need quiet. I need downtime. I need good boundaries and meaningful connection. And I need to practise the same kind of self-care and self-compassion that I encourage my clients to develop.
I don’t have everything figured out — and I don’t believe therapists need to pretend that they do.
What I do believe is that therapy can help us understand ourselves more deeply, heal old wounds, change patterns that are no longer serving us, and become much kinder toward ourselves along the way.
My Experience and Training
My approach has evolved considerably over almost three decades of counselling.
In 2001, I completed a two-year postgraduate training program in Family Systems Therapy at the Pacific Coast Family Institute in Vancouver.
Since then, I’ve continued to study and train in areas including trauma, anxiety and depression, mindfulness, somatic approaches, nervous system regulation, and self-compassion.
Today, my work draws from these different approaches depending on what each client needs. Sometimes that means exploring thoughts and patterns. Sometimes it means paying attention to what’s happening in the body. Sometimes we need practical tools, and sometimes we need space to slow down and understand what’s underneath everything.
There isn’t one technique that works for everyone.
I’m a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) and a member in good standing of the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors.
When I’m Not Working…
My husband, Nathaniel, and I live in Victoria on Vancouver Island, and one of my favourite things about living here is being able to take long walks by the ocean.
When I’m not working, you’ll often find me spending time with friends, cooking, knitting, practising yoga or meditation, travelling, or curled up with a good book.
These quieter parts of my life have become increasingly important to me over the years. I’ve learned that having a full life doesn’t necessarily mean having a busy one — especially when you’re highly sensitive.
I value close relationships, good conversation, laughter, time in nature, and having enough space in my life to actually enjoy all of them.
What I Hope You’ll Find in Therapy
You don’t need to impress me, have the right words, or arrive knowing exactly what you want to work on.
You can show up as you are.
My role isn’t to tell you how to live your life. It’s to help you understand yourself more clearly, recognize patterns that may be keeping you stuck, develop practical ways to cope with what’s difficult, and become more trusting and compassionate toward yourself.
And if you’re wondering whether we’d be a good fit, that’s exactly what the free 15-minute consultation is for.