I am a woman, wife, mother, life-long musician, part time yoga enthusiast, and full-time hockey mom. I enjoy the comfort of a hot pot of tea, my two cats, my garden and the stacks of books that surround me. I can be found hiking and chasing water in the summer and snowshoeing or playing street hockey with my kids in the winter. My favorite way to unwind is playing board games with my husband with Motown or Indie on the playlist. When I need to center myself, find my direction, and do the next right thing, first I look up at the stars and then to the west where my familial roots are grounded but also where adventure and mystery await their unfolding.

I have experienced my own human challenges with mental health, my relationship with my body and chronic illness, grief and loss, career burnout, challenges with relationships, and questions about motherhood and have explored these challenges in therapy. Exploring ourselves can be hard and scary but what I have learned is that celebrating my strengths, honoring my quirks, understanding my relationships, and acknowledging my patterns has led me to greater personal acceptance and liberation.

In 2004, following completion of my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, I started my career in mental health working with youth in a group home and juvenile detention centre. I completed my Master’s degree in Forensic Psychology with a clinical emphasis in 2007 and immigrated to Northern Ontario.  Since 2008 I have worked in variety of clinical settings including outpatient counselling centre, hospital in-patient residential treatment, and university student services. I became a Registered Psychotherapist with the College of Registered Psychotherapists (CRPO) in 2015 (License #001507).

My areas of clinical interest are substance use and addictions, depression, anxiety, women’s issues, and the impact of trauma on the life cycle. I support people that are struggling with anger management, parenting, perfectionism, self-esteem, relationships and identity, male survivors of violence and trauma, and issues related to work including life/work balance, empathic strain, and burnout. 

My areas of clinical training include cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, emotionally focused therapy, and narrative therapy. I use somatic techniques including mindfulness, breath work, meditation, and walk and talk therapy to help improve and heal the mind-body connection. I work from a trauma informed and recovery-oriented lens that supports your autonomy and you as the expert in your own life. Therapy is a collaboration between you and me to discover your goals and my approach will be tailored to your unique needs.

I believe wellness is a journey, not a destination, that is built upon a foundation of basic health promoting habits and self-compassion for our the wholeness of our human experience. When we begin to unpack our personal narrative and explore how our narrative affects how we are feeling and functioning in the significant areas of our lives, we can empower ourselves towards change.  In our wellness journey, we are always in repair.  We can come back to our most important teacher, which is our inner knowing, our inner truth, our inner compass. What you seek is within; let’s find it together.

I’m looking forward to working with you!