Treating Painful & Traumatic Experiences with EMDR
My Philosophy of Counselling
We all have the capacity within ourselves to heal. My role, as your therapist, is to help you access your inner resources that allow you to heal. To do this, I aim to help you integrate all parts of yourself – the psychological, emotional, spiritual, social and physical aspects of your being using several therapy tools, including EMDR.
My style of psychotherapy involves bringing more calm awareness (mindfulness) and acceptance into your life allowing your innate highest wisdom to guide you. My goal is to help you transform difficult problems and traumatic experiences into a path of growth and joy.
Once your suffering is healed, you will become stronger than you were before. You will feel more empowered and more “connected” to yourself and others. This leads to a happier and more fulfilling life.
The process of transforming suffering into joy are summarized in the words of the famous Buddhist Monk, Thich Nhat Hanh:
In the ash of suffering, a phoenix can be born.
What You Can Expect From Therapy With Me
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I work to build a strong, trusting relationship with you.
I am caring and compassionate [link to about page] and always have your best interests in mind. Research shows that building a strong relationship with therapy clients is one of the most important factors in the success of therapy. Our relationship will be the foundation for your healing of past painful and traumatic experiences.
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All decisions made in therapy will be yours.
You will make all decisions about your life. If you are confused or uncertain as to the best path to take in any particular situation, I will provide guidance to help you move forward. As you heal, decision-making will become easier.
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We monitor your progress in therapy on an ongoing basis.
It is important that you make progress and reach your goals in therapy. We will discuss your progress, our process of working together, and our relationship on a regular basis to ensure that therapy moves along effectively and efficiently.
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I use research-proven therapy methods.
As a therapist, I am trained in several mind-body therapy techniques that are based on the latest brain-science research for treating symptoms of trauma, abuse, and PTSD, or any other problems.These techniques provide deep and lasting healing by treating your mind and body via your nervous system. They are effective for small problems as well as more difficult problems that may have caused trauma symptoms in your life.When appropriate, I will use these techniques to help you solve your problems. These mind-body techniques are
Eye Movement and Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR):
EMDR is a brain and nervous system-based healing technique that works to eliminate minor or deep-seated problems caused by traumatic experiences that are causing distress in your life. EMDR helps access the source of the problems in your nervous system and processes them so that pent up negative energy is released. Once this happens, your mind and body can naturally move towards healing.Sensorimotor Therapy:
Sensorimotor Therapy works on the levels of your nervous system, your mind (thoughts and feelings), as well as body sensations and movements that are at the root of your problems. Its focus is to deepen your awareness and release blocks. Like EMDR, it is based on recent advancements in brain science and can bring about lasting change. -
I use my support dog, Bear, in my counselling sessions (if you are comfortable with him).
My dog Bear is usually present in my counselling sessions, unless you prefer that he stay outside the therapy room. He has a loving and joyful disposition and has helped many of my clients relax while in session. He will likely climb on your lap, especially if he thinks you need support. Sitting with Bear can be very comforting when you are feeling distressed.