Who am I? Well to start I am a Social Worker. This means that my primary focus is with relationships. I like to work with people and their relationships with themselves, with others and with their communities. I am registered with the Alberta College of Social Workers. I have a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Calgary where I specialized in Clinical Social Work with a focus on Traumatic Grief.
I have worked in a variety of settings within the Mental Health System and out in the community. I have worked with people at the end of their lives, suicidal people, youth in crisis, physical health problems and disabilities. I have worked with psychiatric patients, cancer survivors, families that struggle with violence and the LGBTQ community. I feel that this experience has given me a good foundation as a therapist.
My primary interest is in working with Grief and Loss. Grief is an emotion that we all have to deal with in our lives at one point or another and I have had the great fortune of walking with many grievers in their journey. It is my belief that we as humans show our greatest strength and courage at our most vulnerable moments. Grief is not something to be worked through or overcome. It is something that changes you in ways that are both positive and negative but often surprising.
Because of my work experience, I also have a special love of working with teens and their families. I find that many struggling teens just need someone to listen and advocate for them if needed. My approach with teens is to follow their lead. They often already know where they are going.
I have my Master’s degree in Social Work with a Clinical Specialization. I am Trained in Gottman’s Level 1 Couples therapy and I have completed basic training in EMDR, a specialized treatment for trauma.