Find a Therapist in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Feelings need to be felt. Stories need to be told. Sometimes, a therapist takes the role of a highly trained audience. I know how to listen, with the curiosity and earnestness of someone newly in love. Listening is not the entire treatment, but it is definitely a necessary part of it. I'll quote Lou Reed here: "I'll be your mirror, reflect what you are, in case you don't know."

Sometimes the problem isn't one thing you can point to. It's more like a greatest hits album of the same not-so-great songs: conflict that keeps finding you, a tendency to say yes when you mean no, self-criticism that's been running in the background so long you've stopped noticing it. You've probably tried to change some of this. For a while, at least. Psychotherapy gets curious about why these songs keep playing. Most patterns have a reason. And once you hear it, you can't quite un-hear it. This, it turns out, can end up being sweet relief.

Psychotherapy encompasses many different approaches to helping people heal. EMDR, body-based strategies, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), meditation, hypnotherapy and other modalities are part of the change process. Building the therapeutic alliance is essential, however, to ensure the client feels safe and secure within the counselling environment. Acceptance, counsellor-client alignment and unconditional positive regard are essential.