About Me
What you can expect when working with me: my outlook, areas of practice, and qualifications
Hi! I’m Vanessa.
I am a Registered Clinical Counsellor, Registered Craniosacral Therapist, and lifelong learner.
I work with mature teens (16+), adults, and elders to facilitate lasting positive change.
My clients often describe me as calm, grounded, safe, and compassionate. Throughout my life, I have been drawn to the work of supporting others in turning towards their experience. I believe that when we turn away from the reality of what is showing up in our lives, it causes us to suffer. While offering compassion to the parts that turned away from unbearably painful circumstances, I help my clients make friends again with the rawness and beauty of their felt experiences - to become intimate again with the texture of their lives.
The root of the word ‘healing’ means ‘to make whole’. I believe that for each of us, doing healing work is part of our life purpose.
Healing means remembering that we are a part of the greater whole, coming back into right relationship with ourselves and the beings around us.
Disconnection from the fullness of our experience can come in many forms. Some of the issues that clients come to me for help with are:
Personal growth and alignment with life purpose
Emotional regulation
Relationships and emotional intimacy
Anxiety and panic attacks
Self-worth, self-confidence and self-compassion
Grief and loss (personal and collective)
My approach as a counsellor is informed by embodiment and somatics, mindfulness, and attachment theory.
My work as a craniosacral therapist is often helpful for clients who do not resonate with the talk therapy format, who prefer to process information somatically, or who would like to develop their embodied sensitivity.
Whichever format our work together takes, we will touch into the deeper currents underlying the everyday events and experiences that may be causing you distress. You will be invited to fully inhabit your life, to say ‘yes’ to both pleasurable and painful experiences, and in so doing, to discover a space of freedom and choice that did not seem possible before.
People who work with me often notice feeling lighter after our sessions. They feel more tuned into themselves, more aware of the big-picture patterns of their experiences, and more inspired as they continue forward on their path.
Read on about my personal journey here.
If this approach resonates with you, you can find out more about ways of working with me by visiting my Services page:
Certifications
M.A. in Counselling Psychology (Honours), Yorkville University, Fredericton, NB
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy two-year practitioner training, Body Intelligence, Vernon, BC
B.A. in Philosophy (Honours), McGill University, Montreal, QC
Ashtanga Yoga 200-hour Teacher Training, Sattva Yoga Shala, Montreal, QC
Reiki I, Ramya Memmi, Montreal, QC
Additional Trainings
Year 1 in Traditional Chinese Medicine program, Kootenay Columbia College, Nelson, BC
Hakomi Mindful Somatic Psychotherapy: An Experiential Introduction with Deah Baird
Internal Family Systems Therapy with Frank Anderson
IFS Immersion: Integrating Internal Family Systems (IFS) Across Clinical Applications with Frank Anderson
2-Day Intensive Mindfulness Training with Richard Sears
Cultural Sensitivity and Intersectionality
I hold a strong intention to be inclusive and affirmative of diverse identities, including gender and sexuality, race, cultural background, and (dis)ability. I seek to educate myself regarding experiences other than those that are culturally dominant, and other than my own, in order to provide respectful and genuinely helpful therapeutic experiences for all clients.
“I have received profound sessions of both cranio & council with Vanessa that have led me to great depths of realization on my personal healing journey. I am grateful and would highly recommend others to Vanessa.”