therapy is first & foremost
a relationship
The first thing I’d like you to know, is that I believe we all hold the innate capacity to heal. What does it mean to heal? Often when we think of healing, we imagine forgetting or becoming unaffected by our pain... I often hear people say, “I wish I could let this go.” More true of the healing process, is that we transform the way we carry our pain and suffering. It’s not about forgetting… We can’t change the past, but we can change the way the past lives inside of us.
How do we do this in therapy? The process takes place within the relationship formed between you and I. Often the roots of our pain and suffering are found in relational injury. Perhaps you grew up in a home where your needs were not met, you’ve been harmed by someone you trusted, or maybe you have a sense of being alone despite having people around you.
Research shows that relationships are a place we get hurt, but they are also the place from which we heal. The therapeutic relationship is a healing one because it is grounded in care, curiosity, and a deep attunement to your emotions and the needs associated with them. As you make space for and learn to be with your emotions, you start to gain greater access your wise, knowing, authentic Self— which is what we want to cultivate more of in our work together.
WE MIGHT BE A GOOD FIT IF YOU FEEL…
Willing + ready to process some things from your past
Unable to access, manage, or understand your emotions
Stuck in patterns or cycles that aren’t serving you or the relationships in your life
Disconnected from your sense of self + desiring more meaning + authenticity
the roots of resilience
are found in a sense of being understood by and existing in the mind and heart of a loving and attuned, self-possessed other.
Diana Fosha
EDUCATION + CREDENTIALS
Master of Counselling Psychology
from Adler University
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology + Human Services
from Trinity Western University
Registered Clinical Counsellor with the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors (#14558)
ADDITIONAL TRAINING
Working with Complex & Sexual Trauma: An AEDP Overview to Support & Enhance Interventions
AEDP Immersion: The Dyadic Repair of Attachment Trauma: Healing at the Edge of Transformational Experience
Internal Family Systems (IFS) for trauma, anxiety, + depression intensive course with Dr. Richard Schwartz + Dr. Frank Anderson
Lifespan Integration level 1 for trauma + PTSD
Gottman Relationship Method level 1 + 2
Prepare + Enrich Premarital Counselling: Building Stronger Marriages
my counselling credentials
Therapy first + foremost is relational. I care a lot about making you feel comfortable, safe, and connected with me as we work together. I prioritize showing up authentically so you can feel free to do the same. My approach is also emotion-centred. Within you exists a whole host of feelings, sensations, and wisdom… However, most of us have not been taught how to access these inner resources. As a result, we find ourselves disconnected from our bodies, experiencing anxiety or depression, and coming up with other creative ways to avoid or defend against thoughts + emotions that perhaps feel intolerable. Much of our work together will be about slowing down to notice + experience emotions in a new + corrective way.
TRAUMA-INFORMED
We all have experiences in life that can be considered 'unexpected.’ Often these difficult experiences leave us feeling ill-equipped to know how to handle them. I believe an essential part of healing is found in the ability to process these lived experiences in a safe and contained way, in order to better understand the ways our past may impact our present and our future.
ATTACHMENT BASED
This means that I’m curious about the relationships in your life. Relationships are usually the first place we learn about security and connection. The patterns we develop as a result of these relationships can shed light on how we navigate relationships (including the one we each have with ourselves) in the present day.
ACCELERATED EXPERIENTIAL DYNAMIC PSYCHOTHERAPY (AEDP)
AEDP is a relational and experiential approach to therapy that begins and ends with the understanding that all of us have the innate capacity to heal. We each have within us the biological drive to flourish. It is this very reason which has brought you here to seek out therapy. However, it is often the case in life that this innate ability becomes stifled, especially when we undergo trauma. In AEDP, we work together to undo the sense of aloneness characteristic of traumatic experiences. It is when we are accompanied by a safe and attuned “other”, we can begin to explore with compassionate curiosity what has led us to feel stuck, and undo old patterns of being and relating in the world.
my counselling approach
on a more personal note…
I think it should be mentioned that in addition to working as a therapist, I’m also a human being not unlike yourself. I’m a daughter, sister, wife, friend, and aunt. I’m a 9 on the Enneagram and an INTP on the Myers-Briggs.
I grew up in Ontario, came out west for university, and have called BC ‘home’ ever since. Mountains are one place I feel greatly at peace: they give me needed perspective, remind me of my physical + mental resiliency, and evoke a deep appreciation in me for the beauty of this world. When I’m not hiking or camping I’m probably experimenting in the kitchen, reading out on the back deck, walking my beloved golden retriever by the river, or meeting up with a friend for coffee.
I have always had a deep curiosity towards people and a desire to discuss what is real— even if it’s painful or hard. I think this is what led me into the counselling profession in the first place. I believe in the power of counselling + I’m grateful everyday for the work I get to do as a therapist.
CURIOUS IF WE MIGHT BE A GOOD FIT?