Through the use of salutogenic and biopsychosocial-spiritual frameworks of understanding, my therapeutic approach involves improving on a client’s psychological state through a focus on the holistic well-being of each individual. It is my steadfast belief that clients should not be defined by their pathologies and that every individual must be treated as more than their diagnoses or the sum of their undesired emotions and behaviours. All individuals exist along their own continuum of health and I recognize that, given the appropriate supports, conditions and environment, each and every individual can be nurtured towards growth, congruency and constructive transformation.

 

Within my therapeutic practice, clients are encouraged and supported to communicate their experiences in a safe, non-judgmental, and culturally sensitive environment, without fear of stigma, labelling or shaming. In this manner, I emphasize the importance of understanding the power of language within the therapeutic process, as a means of shifting the lens through which clients view themselves and the world around them. As such, clients are able to see marked improvements in their mental health and achieve greater self-awareness and self-worth as they work towards the reduction of self-stigmatization.

 

My aim is to assist clients in learning how to witness their subjective internal processes in a more objective manner, thereby improving individual abilities to intervene in harmful, established and sequential patterns that have hindered their healthy coping strategies. In doing so, clients learn to recognize their existing protective and risk factors, while building improved intra- and interpersonal relationships with themselves and others.

 

Above all else, my therapeutic practice is collaborative, client-centred and culturally informed. Depending on the needs of the individual, couple or family, I utilize a unique combination of evidence-based psychological approaches including: Existential Therapy, Meaning-Centred Therapy, Positive Psychology, Satir Transformational Systemic Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. Recognizing that current modalities for psychological study are rooted in Western beliefs and philosophies, not all client experiences can be understood through this culturally specific and Euro-centric lens. As such, the cultural, societal and spiritual practices and traditions of clients are examined and integrated into my therapeutic approach, so as to understand each client based on their specific background and experiences.