Trauma Therapy in Squamish and Online Across British Columbia
Healing from Trauma in a Safe and Supportive Environment
Trauma is something that happens inside of us as a result of difficult, hurtful, and upsetting events. When our formative (childhood) or recent/present experiences cause pain, our nervous system responds the best ways it can to cope and survive.
I specialize in supporting individuals navigate challenging experiences and nervous system responses to move towards greater repair, healing, and growth. I offer in-person services of trauma therapy in Squamish and online services for trauma therapy throughout British Columbia.
Understanding Trauma and Its Impact
What is Trauma?
Traumatic events overwhelm our ability to cope through overwhelming our sense of safety, control, connection, and meaning. The experience of trauma disrupts our whole-person ability to connect with ourselves, others, and the world in safe or predictable ways.
Trauma can impact our emotional, physical, and relational well-being. Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries (PTSI) can extend multiple aspects of our lives and functioning.
The physical and emotional responses to trauma are normal responses to abnormal events. Our nervous system becomes overwhelmed and responds in alternate ways to cope.
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Emotional, physical, and cognitive overwhelm
Being stuck in patterns of hyperarousal (fight-flight-freeze) or stuck off in hypoarousal (collapse or orient to others)
Physical stress responses or autoimmune illness and inflammation
World becomes more restricted, smaller, or isolated
Increase in fear and distrust
Using adaptive maladaptive coping strategies (e.g., alcohol, substances, gambling, etc)
Negative beliefs about ourselves, others, or the world
Challenges in our relationships, family, or professional lives
What are Types of and Causes of Trauma
Trauma can stem from a wide range of experiences and affect us in profound ways. These experiences can leave a lasting impact on our mental, emotional, and physical health.
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Complex trauma often arises from repeated, prolonged, or interpersonal events during childhood. These experiences can shape how we perceive ourselves and the world, often affecting our ability to trust, connect, and feel safe as adults.
Some examples of Complex or Childhood Trauma:
Physical, emotional, financial, or sexual abuse
Caregivers or family systems with addiction issues
Attachment wounds, insecurities, abandonment, or neglect
Repetitive and hurtful childhood experiences
Witnessing domestic violence or community violence
Exposure to poverty, food insecurity, or homelessness
Lack of emotional validation or neglect by caregivers
Parental separation or divorce
Early loss of a caregiver or sibling
Being raised in a family with untreated mental illness
Witnessing substance abuse within the family
Living in a war zone or experiencing displacement as a child
Racism, discrimination, or systemic oppression
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Experiences of trauma can also occur later in life as single-incidents or when we are adults. Single-incident trauma can occur at any stage of life and often results from unexpected or isolated events.
Some examples of Adult or Single-incident trauma:
Work or professional stressors
Relationship betrayals
Grief or loss
Chronic pain or health diagnoses
Cancer treatments or medical surgeries
Parenting challenges or caring for elderly parents
Car crashes or other accidents
Financial insecurity
Immigration, displacement, or moves
Navigating neurodiversity or education-related challenges
Bullying
Infertility, reproductive health issues, or miscarriages
Interpersonal violence
Coercive control
Traumatic grief and loss
Witnessing or being involved in a natural disaster (e.g., earthquakes, floods, fires)
Sexual assault or harassment
Military combat or exposure to war zones
Systemic violence or injustice
Medical malpractice or traumatic medical procedures
Sudden job loss or financial collapse
Kidnapping or hostage situations
Being a victim of a crime, such as robbery or assault
Being a first responder exposed to traumatic events (e.g., post-traumatic stress injuries)
Exposure to mass violence or terrorism
Divorce or high-conflict relationship breakdowns and child custody/legal processes
Loss of a child or loved one under sudden or traumatic circumstances
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Traumatic grief is multi-faceted and complex. The traumatic or unexpected experiences or aspects behind a death of a loved one can create intense and prolonged responses. Traumatic grief is often characterized by intense sorrow, intrusive thoughts, difficulty processing the trauma aspects of the loss, and feelings of helplessness or shock, which may complicate or interrupt grieving processes.
Examples of Traumatic Grief or Loss:
Car and plane crashes
Fires
Accidents and injuries — including in the mountains or adventure sports
Degenerative diseases
Terminal illness
Cancer
Man-made natural disasters
Deaths by suicide and homicide
Overdose and addictions
Loss of an abusive person or parent (example of disenfranchised loss and complicated grief)
Loss of a child, sibling, pregnancy, or pet
Loss of a home or identity through war or immigration
What are Trauma Responses
Responses to traumatic experiences can include a wide range of emotional, cognitive, behavioural, physical, and social reactions that a person can experience — individuals vary in their experience and prevalence of these responses, which are not often all present.
Trauma responses are adaptive coping mechanisms to challenging and distressing experiences; these adaptive responses become maladaptive over time.
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Anxiety or panic
Depression
Irritability or anger
Emotional numbness
Guilt, shame, or blame
Mood swings or emotional dysregulation (changes in mood and behaviour)
Anhedonia (reduced ability to feel pleasure or loss of interest in previously enjoyable activities)
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Intrusive thoughts
Nightmares
Confusion or difficulty concentration
Difficulty remembering parts of the traumatic event(s) (amnesia or lack of/gaps in memory)
Negative self-perception or self-beliefs
Distorted beliefs
Depersonalization, derealization, or dissociation
Hypervigilance to safety, fear, control, and responsibility
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Avoidance (such as avoiding things that may be connected to trauma)
Stoicism
Isolation
Alcohol and/or substance use
Hypervigilance (increase in startle response and awareness/reactions)
Compulsive behaviours
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Sleep disturbances
Chronic pain
Fatigue
Changes in appetite or eating habits
Rapid heartbeat or sweating — nervous system activation
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Trust challenges
Relationship or family struggles
Difficulty with work or school
Social withdrawal
Loss of sense of future, meaning, values, purpose, or spirituality
How Trauma Therapy Can Help
Human beings who survive trauma heal through the physical and emotional safety they receive within their relationships with families, loved ones, communities, organizations, and professional therapists.
Childhood experiences of emotional neglect, violence, and/or abuse are often chronic and interpersonal in nature creating significant impacts on relationships and identity. Through trauma therapy and counselling, people can be supported with understanding how traumatic experiences impact multiple aspects of the individual and family system. Counselling can support healing, resilience, and recovery after traumatic experiences or adverse events.
Counselling with those who have experienced trauma focuses on safety and stabilization with clients driving the process of therapy. A therapist works within client levels of comfort to ensure feelings of safety are established before moving to processes of accepting and integrating the traumatic losses. In creating emotional and physical safety, the use of containment and grounding strategies can support clients who are stuck in survival mode created by trauma to feel safe in their bodies, minds, hearts, relationships, and world.
A key goal of trauma counselling involves supporting clients to move away from the alienation, isolation, and emotional distress trauma creates, and towards increased meaning, experiences of safety, capacity for trust, engagement in meaningful relationships, and healing.
What is Trauma-Informed Care
Trauma-informed care is an approach to therapy that acknowledges the impact of trauma on an individual’s mental, emotional, and physical well-being. It emphasizes understanding, recognizing, and responding to the effects of all types of trauma. It also views trauma responses and attempts to cope as a person’s best and most resilient attempts to manage and cope with the challenges they have faced. Trauma-informed therapy focus on safety, trustworthiness, transparency, collaboration, and empowerment. It honours the innate healing and resilience people possess supporting them to find a way forward.
How I Approach Trauma Counselling
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I have extensive experience supporting a wide range of individuals and families who have been faced with traumatic experiences, which includes all ages of clients and first responders or Public Safety Personnel (PSP). My trauma-informed approach is guided from attachment, interpersonal neurobiology, and family systems lenses to examine the developmental impacts of complex trauma.
My approach is tailored to each person’s needs, goals, and trauma responses. Therapy goals are client-led, and my customized, collaborative care is designed to meet a person where they are in their healing journey and support what feels most helpful at this time.
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I use multiple approaches of trauma-informed therapies specializing in supporting individuals of all ages, as well as families, with trauma therapy. I have received specialized EMDR training through EMDR Consulting, which is an approved EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) training and certification program. I continue to engage in clinical supervision surrounding my EMDR work, which is part of psychotherapy best practice, to ensure ethical and best care for those I work with. EMDR is one of the primary evidence-based therapies and methods I use to help clients process trauma. EMDR helps work through distressing memories to reduce a person reliving these past experiences in the present.
To read more about EMDR services in specific, please visit the EMDR therapy.
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I also support individuals with other trauma-informed approaches outside of EMDR in trauma therapy, such as Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) to help explore unhelpful thought patterns and mindfulness approaches to support grounding in the present moment.
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My priority in my trauma-informed approach is to create a safe, non-judgmental, and trusting space for a person to navigate opening up in the therapeutic process at their own pace. Supporting individuals in safety, stabilization, and grounding is the beginning of trauma therapy to support their coping skills while the therapeutic relationship is being developed.
Why I Specialize in Trauma Therapy
I’ve dedicated my practice to trauma therapy because I firmly believe in the resilience and strength of human beings to overcome incredibly challenging experiences. I am grateful to have seen how people can heal, grow, and change after moments they thought they could never move through.
How to Begin Trauma Counselling in Squamish or Online
If you are experiencing trauma or mental health responses and wanting to explore support, please do not hesitate to reach out. I offer a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation where I can address any questions or concerns you may have, as well as longer 90-minute intake sessions for us to work together to create a plan to move forward to best support you.