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Areas of
Focus
Working with adults on a wide range of issues, including:
Trauma is the emotional response to distressing events that lasts long after the event. Most people associate trauma with catastrophic events like war or a natural disaster. But trauma also describes many very personal, hurtful, but equally disturbing, events. Psychotherapy like Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing can help you change problematic beliefs that develop as a result of trauma and help you develop a new perspective about the traumatic experience. We can also work to reduce the intensity of trauma-related physical reactions such as anxiety or panic and emotions such as shame and guilt.
Trauma
Anxiety
It is natural to feel nervous sometimes because it is a normal reaction to stress. However, when anxiety is not temporary but persists for long periods of time, it can severely impact your ability to function at school, work or social situations, especially if you cope by avoiding situations or experiences that make you anxious. We can help you uncover the underlying causes of your worries and fears and develop healthier coping mechanisms and problem-solving skills.
Depression
Depression causes feelings of sadness, a loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed, and can decrease your ability to function at work and at home. Depression may have symptoms that range from relatively minor to severe and affects people both emotionally and physically. Psychotherapy can be effective because it can help you identify and work through the factors that may be triggering the depression, learn new skills to cope, and regain a sense of control and pleasure in life.
Loss
Loss is an inevitable part of life, and grieving is how we move through the experience of significant loss. As time passes, most come to terms with their loss and learn to cope in their own ways. Others, however, struggle with grief for prolonged periods without improvement. If this is where you are at, together we can develop methods and strategies for coping with your loss and provide you with an avenue to discuss your feelings.
Stress
Stress comes in many different forms and impacts the physical, emotional and mental health of individuals who experience stress in its chronic and short-term forms. Working together, we can identify the causes of stress in your life and develop effective strategies for stress management that focus on promoting a health-centered approach.
Relationship issues
Conflict is part of all relationships, and even healthy relationships will have some conflict. In fact, a lack of conflict may actually be a sign of trouble. Together we can uncover the reasons why you avoid disagreements, become defensive or behave aggressively, and then find healthy ways to deal with conflict.
Self-esteem
Self-esteem is how we value and perceive ourselves. Your self-esteem can affect your ability to assert yourself, to make decisions, to recognize your strengths, to move past mistakes without blaming yourself, or to do new or difficult things with confidence. Increasing your self-esteem can sometimes feel really difficult to change, but I can help to make it possible.
Anger Management
Anger can be a good thing. It can give you a way to express negative feelings or motivate you to find solutions to problems. But excessive anger can make it difficult to think straight and harm your physical and mental health. Together we can work to understand your triggers for anger, develop and practice coping skills, and think, feel, and behave differently in response to anger, so you are calmer and more in control.
Life skills
Life skills are abilities that enable you to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of life. They include good decision-making, problem-solving, critical thinking, interpersonal skills, self-awareness, empathy, coping with emotions and coping with stress. Psychotherapy helps you develop these necessary skills to live a good life.
Sleep problems
Sleep problems may be both a cause and consequence of mental health problems. Chronic sleepiness puts you at greater risk for depression, causes irritability, impairs your memory and may lessen your ability to cope with stress. Psychotherapy like cognitive behavioural therapy or mindfulness can help you control or eliminate negative thoughts and worries that keep you awake.
Chronic pain or coping with illness
Managing your emotions can directly affect the intensity of your pain. Psychotherapy can help you manage the stresses in your life that intensify pain and can help you learn relaxation techniques, such as meditation or breathing exercises, to keep stress levels under control.
Perfectionism/procrastination
Both perfectionism and procrastination are fraught with difficulty. There is a high correlation between perfectionism/procrastination and depression, burnout, obsessive-compulsive behaviour, stress, suicide risk or eating disorders. Together we can discover the roots of your perfectionism or procrastination and help you learn healthier perspectives.
Harassment, bullying or toxic workplaces
A toxic work environment can increase levels of stress and anxiety in addition to putting you at risk of depression and health-related consequences. Toxic workplaces also can impair the lives of individuals outside of the workday by increasing conflict at home. Together we can help you heal, become re-empowered and develop the skills to cope.
It is natural to feel nervous sometimes because it is a normal reaction to stress. However, when anxiety is not temporary but persists for long periods of time, it can severely impact your ability to function at school, work or social situations, especially if you cope by avoiding situations or experiences that make you anxious. We can help you uncover the underlying causes of your worries and fears and develop healthier coping mechanisms and problem-solving skills.
