Welcome!
I take a holistic approach to practice, considering how our mind, emotions, body and spirit come together to frame our relationship to the world. I believe mental health to be not only the removal of challenges, but the creation of an active sense of well-being. So, in sessions together, I seek to focus not only on difficulties, but to consider what could be done to increase your resilience and sense of well-being. How we define health can vary widely, and some paths I tend to take focus on gratitude, mindfulness, self-compassion and vulnerability. I consider mental health to be a result of the interaction between a person and their environment and seek to consider how your values, stories about your life, and actions relate to your experiences.
I enjoy taking an adaptive approach that is flexible to focus on different aspects of your life. Coming from a feminist-narrative approach, I believe in partial expertise — that as a client and a therapist, we both have expertise, but what we know is incomplete. Only together, in collaboration, can we combine our expertise to create a full picture.
I have been working as a social worker for 9 years. I have a Master of Social Work (Dalhousie University), with a focus on a critical approaches to clinical practice. I completed a thesis on youth experiences of mental health in relation to participation in music oriented, community based programs. Prior to becoming a mental health therapist, I worked in preventative mental health with children, youth and their teachers.
Walk & Talk
I am excited to offer therapy sessions three ways - in-person in an office in St Albert (242, 200 Carnegie Dr.), virtually, and walk & talk (George F Hustler Memorial Plaza).
Walk & Talk therapy is the same content and conversation as traditional therapy, but completed while walking in the river valley. For some people, this offers a more comfortable and relaxed setting to participate in therapy, while also providing benefits of movement and being in nature. There are no expectations for physical fitness - we can walk as fast or as slow as you would like, or find somewhere to sit along our walk if desired. Please ensure you have completed an intake session in person or virtually prior to booking walk & talk.