First and foremost, I place paramount importance on building strong, trusting, authentic, and collaborative therapeutic relationships with the people and families with whom I work. I want to make sure that you feel well listened to and respected, that we are working together, and that I am always acting in your best interests. I aim to create a therapeutic environment in which you can feel comfortable expressing and discussing any thoughts, feelings, or past actions, regardless of how embarrassing or shameful you believe them to be, and expect these disclosures to be met with respect, warmth, and acceptance.

I also place a strong emphasis on moving forward at a pace that is comfortable for you and making collaborative decisions about the content and goals of therapy. Simply put, I want to follow your lead. I aim to create a new therapy with each person (or family) who I see that is based on your unique personality and needs. While I am trained in a variety of therapeutic techniques and approaches known to be effective in helping to improve mental health, I find it to be most helpful for you when I utilize, integrate, adapt, and tailor these approaches to fit with your personality and within your life, rather than require you to adapt to a predetermined approach. In my experience, people tend to benefit more from this kind of individualized approach, as it helps people feel more comfortable opening up in therapy and, in turn, committing to the building of a therapeutic relationship, which is so important for therapy to be helpful. I do not work within a predetermined structure and I attempt to create a relaxed and informal environment. While I can understand that you may be wanting to know exactly how therapy will proceed, what will be tackled in each session, and in what manner, it is my belief that providing such structure may unintentionally feed into and fuel feelings of anxiety. We all must be able to tolerate the uncertainty of where we will be going! This also allows for greater flexibility from me in terms of integrating therapeutic techniques and approaches. Another important aspect of this approach is for us to evaluate together at the end of each session the extent to which therapy is progressing in meeting your goals.

I not only strive to help people cope with the distress and difficulties they are experiencing, but also aim to help them develop an awareness and understanding of the emotions, thoughts, and motivations that are underlying their struggles. While psychological services must often focus on struggles and deficits, I ensure that a positive approach is also taken in therapy, building on the strengths and resilience of individuals and families. Finally, it is also of great importance that we try to have some fun within an informal atmosphere that makes it easier to express your thoughts and feelings and increases the likelihood of building strong therapeutic relationships. After all, why would you want to come in for therapy, if you aren’t feeling comfortable and relaxed and having at least a little bit of fun? I am also a big believer in incorporating humour as much as possible, as it can be a great reliever of distress.