Experience

I have over 20 years of experience as a social worker. My experience includes child and youth mental health agencies, school boards, child welfare and the nonprofit sector in London UK and the Toronto area. I now work with individual adults in private practice in Ontario.  

I specialize in helping with parent-child relationships, facing anxiety, self-esteem and self advocacy, understanding ADHD and learning differences in a non-pathologizing way and difficulties with school or the school system. I help creative people overcome difficulties with procrastination, fear of failure and self expression.

Qualifications

My qualifications include a Master of Science in Social Work from London South Bank University in the UK; training in Emotion Focused Therapy and Emotion Focused Family Therapy from the York University EFT Clinic; a certificate in the Therapeutic and Educational Application of the Arts from the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education in London, UK and a certificate in Play Therapy from the Canadian Association of Play Therapy. 

I am a Registered Social Worker with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers.

For insurance purposes, my services are covered by plans that have coverage for social workers with an MSW degree or equivalent.

Approach

I practice from a systemic perspective, drawing on emotion-focused therapy, interpersonal neurobiology and attachment theory.  This means that I make sense of challenges in terms of relationships and relationship dynamics rather than rooted in illness or problems within the individual. 

I am inspired by research outcomes on how mindfulness changes the brain. Mindfulness practice in various forms has been part of my life for over 15 years, including dance, meditation and contemplative spiritual practice. My practice informs my work. 

I work from an anti-oppressive, trauma-informed and 2SLGBTQ+ positive and neurodivergent affirming perspective.