Educational and Work Experience: 

I have 10+ years working in mental health. I graduated from Simon Fraser University in 2012 with a Master's Degree in Counselling Psychology. I have worked as a crisis line operator, a mental health therapist and group facilitator in public and private sectors. I practice from a client-centred approach using mindfulness-based interventions (such as Mindful Eating and Body Scans), CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), CBTi (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for insomnia), ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Therapy) and Somatic Experiencing (trauma-informed therapy). 

In my counselling practice I work with people who are experiencing a variety of concerns including:

• Depression
  
• Anxiety
  
• Sleep difficulties
• Post-traumatic stress
• Grief and loss
• Relationship problems
• Disordered eating patterns, like Binge Eating Disorder, and
• Low-self worth

Working with the Nervous System:

I am a somatic-based therapist which means a large portion of our work together is focusing on how your body (aka your nervous system) is responding in the present moment.

Throughout life, our experiences shape who we are today. Our bodies carry these lived experiences by filing them away in our nervous system. The nervous system is responsible for regulating your fight-flight-freeze response, as well as, your social engagement response (i.e. how well we get along with other people). These are primitive responses that help us with survival!

During moments of overwhelm, it is very common for people to be in a some sort of fight, flight or freeze response. It is hard to be calm, relaxed, or social when faced with stressful situations.  How have you been doing lately? Do you feel on edge or irritable (more of a fight response)? Is there an urge to run away and hide (flight)? Or do you feel completely immobilized or unmotivated (freeze)? Other problems can surface like sleep difficulties, aches and pains, or problems with general functioning like eating well and exercising. These are often ways the body responds when in a fight, flight, or freeze mode.

One of our goals together would be to build greater awareness and capacity in your nervous system so that you feel more regulated, which is just a fancy way of saying that you can handle the normal responses of stress (that we all experience!) without unnecessarily going into a survival response.

I'd be honoured to work with you. Book today to explore new ways of showing up in the body!

More on Justine: 

Currently, I reside in Edmonton Alberta. In my spare time I enjoy playing with my children, baking cinnamon buns and exploring Edmonton's river valley!