I use a blended, holistic (also known as integrative) approach to psychotherapy. This means that we will use a variety of therapeutic modalities in therapy, but also that we will look at physical health factors that may be impacting your mental health.
Treatment Approaches
Modalities:
Polyvagal & somatic techniques
Cognitive-behavioural therapy
Mindfulness
Attachment
Emotion-Focused Individual Therapy
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
Gut health, mental health & psychotherapy
I especially love looking at gut health & the mind-gut connection, as well as incorporating research-based protocols for improving mental health via exercise, nutrition, stress-management, and sleep.
If relevant to your needs, we may consider looking at your current exercise and nutritional habits, and see what we can tweak to best support you. We may look at the foods you currently eat, and discuss how certain anti-inflammatory foods may benefit your mental health (e.g. foods high in fibre, probiotics, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids).
Sleep, mental health, & gut health
Did you know sleep significantly impacts your gut health? The diversity and populations of bacteria in your gut depend on the quantity - and especially the quality - of your sleep. Sleep is also strongly linked to mood, and many mental health disorders co-exist with sleep disturbances or insomnia.
Sleep is worth looking at! If sleep is something you currently find challenging, we can look at ways of improving your sleep, through sleep hygiene protocols, cognitive-behavioural therapy for insomnia, and general stress-reduction.
Specialty areas
anxiety & health anxiety
Many things can cause anxiety - relationships, trauma, life stressors — even the food we eat! Sometimes, we’re not even sure why we’re anxious - we just have lots of racing thoughts and various physical symptoms. I can help you make sense of this.
In therapy, we can explore anxiety - including health anxiety - from a number of angles - looking at physical, environmental, and psychological factors. There are tons of tools in the toolkit for helping anxiety and finding relief.
Holistic anxiety treatment & therapy Calgary - book now
Health anxiety treatment & therapy Calgary - book now
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
The intrusive thoughts and compulsions that come with OCD can feel really scary - until we understand OCD and change how we relate to it. In OCD therapy, we will work on calming your nervous system, distancing from our thoughts, and extinguishing our compulsions. I incorporate CBT and exposure and response prevention therapy in working with OCD.
OCD therapy Calgary - book now
attachment, childhood wounding & trauma
I take an attachment-focused lens in my practice. Attachment is the way we relate to and “attach” to other people. Attachment begins in infancy, when we are dependent on our caregivers. If you experienced developmental or childhood wounding, abuse, neglect, or trauma, this may have interfered with your normal attachment processes, and may likely be impacting how you interact with other people today.
Attachment wounding in adulthood can look like:
struggling to trust other people
being overly worried that loved ones will leave you
giving others the silent treatment in order to punish them
constantly texting or calling to make sure they still care
people-pleasing
high-conflict relationships and interpersonal stress
Childhood and developmental wounds/trauma may contribute to symptoms of complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD), anxiety, depression, OCD, and perfectionism. If you experience any of these conditions and also have a history of childhood trauma, this may be worth exploring together in therapy.
In therapy, we’ll look at how attachment and childhood experiences are currently playing a role in your relationships, conflicts, and insecurities. We’ll then learn how to relate differently, in a way that makes us feel more secure and less afraid.
Attachment & childhood trauma therapy Calgary - book now
Healthy lifestyle & gut health for mental health
Mental health is as much about physical health as it is about our thoughts. We can explore lifestyle factors that may help you increase your sense of vitality, well-being, energy, and motivation - including diet, exercise, and stress-management.
Gut-health is also highly correlated to anxiety and OCD symptoms. By supporting the health of our gut microbiomes, we have yet another avenue to help alleviate anxiety & OCD.
