Working Toward Health & Functioning as Your Best Self
Why Seek Counselling?
Strife & struggle will enter our lives, as well as pain, grief & loss.
It's how we approach change and life's challenging situations that makes a difference in our future, and in our lives at this moment.
Karla offers a safe confidential space to breathe and to learn how to get where you want to go; to be who you want to be: alive and confident in your own life.
Counselling can help us see ourselves or our situation from a new perspective, and assist us to process our experiences in a healthy manner.
” I broke through this internal barrier, mind-wall, that I was fighting against or not even aware of. I have the want and the tools to move forward the way that’s best for me, with more confidence to engage in my life. Thank you Karla! “
JM, 2020
trauma client
Respect & Compassion
Counselling Focus
Complex
trauma
Karla approaches trauma work with compassion, humanity and the belief that our wounds do not define us; we can find healing as we focus on our strengths and existing aspects of our lives that offer stability. It is daunting to feel the overwhelming and life-altering impacts of trauma, and it takes work and time to address healing. This is a journey we can walk together. Karla is trained in EMDR Therapy and has completed numerous advanced courses in Trauma Therapy, in Canada and Abroad. Karla is a member of the Training Faculty at the Complex Trauma Institute in York, England, creating and delivering training for clinicians.
Grief &
Loss
Loss is a factor in all lives, as we transition through our many stages of growth and accomplishment. Sometimes a situation comes along that simply overwhelms and tangles our ability to perform well in our day-to-day. Loss of loved ones, of health, of role or position, of relationship or connection – these can stir confusion, anxiety, disrupt sleep, alter our eating patterns, impact mood, or hamper our productivity. Karla can help make sense of losses and integrate this learning into your current reality. She offers grief-work that can assist in processing the situation, move you through your grief and help you find your grounding and feel your stride again.
Anxiety &
Depression
Anxiety lives in our bodies as well as our thoughts, and it is important to work with the anxiety that resides in your body in addition to your thoughts and beliefs. Karla helps you to take a holistic approach to understanding and working through anxiety and depression. Often, anxiety and depression are linked to past trauma that is not at the level of consciousness, and it is helpful to look to the past to inform our strategies to address the present. Old patterns of thought and behaviour, that may have once been useful, could be getting in the way of your current situation, requiring new insights and skills. We can work together to stabilise present symptoms and heal into the future.
First
Responders
Working together we find clarity around any challenges and build awareness and skills toward healing & ongoing resilience. Yours is a unique job that requires passion, clarity and the ability to fire on all cylinders. Your daily task is to support members of our community on their ‘worst day’, and we can work together to keep you grounded. Ongoing Mental Health support helps First Responders do their jobs optimally. Karla has received specific Occupational Awareness Training to work as a Mental Health Therapist for First Responders and Front-line Workers, earning Bronze & Silver Seals of Endorsement from the BCPFFA.
How can we move through crisis, pain, loss, anxiety unless we learn the skills to do so?
Our alarm system is developing even while we are in our mother’s womb.
Anxiety first happens in our body.
Contact Karla
Ongoing counselling is helpful for the mind, body & spirit, like a tune-up for your car, getting your teeth cleaned or a vitamin boost or cleanse for your body. Once you're here and we can chat, we can become curious about your situation, thoughts and feelings in a compassionate, non-judgmental space; we can explore anything that might feel 'not quite right' and we can create the path to living your Best Life.
Professional Development
Complex Trauma Institute (UK) Webinars for Clinicians
Join Karla for Monthly Webinars that explore topics of interest to individuals working in the Mental Health fields. She will present timely topics on many levels to update your understanding and skill levels. These Webinars are hosted by the CTTN in York, UK.
As a member of the CTI Training Faculty, Karla is also offering Learning Discussion Groups. These focus on monthly topics and allow lively discussion in which you may fully engage to share experiences as a Mental Health Therapist, learning from your peers.
Join me on Monday, February 28 at 5:30pm PST as I present a webinar titled: Exploring the Influence of Trauma on Grief & Loss.
Presented by the Canadian Virtual Hospice, this webinar will be of interest to Health Care providers working with those who are living with grief.
This webinar will offer a broad overview of the influence of trauma on grieving our losses. As caring professionals, our awareness of the emotional, physical and psychological interplay between trauma and grief may better equip us to support, reassure and guide our clients toward increased stabilization, personal insight and healing.