For over 10 years, I’ve worked in the mental health field, supporting young people, adolescents, adults, and families facing significant complex trauma. My first role in the field was in a youth residential mental health setting, where I worked closely with young people navigating challenging, complex, and often overwhelming emotions. This was my first real introduction to how people can feel completely overtaken by certain states—whether that was intense fear, rage, numbness, or deep sadness—and how, in those moments, it can feel like there’s no way out. I learned that these responses weren’t random or irrational but deeply rooted in past experiences and often ways of coping with pain that felt unbearable.

After completing a Master’s in Professional Psychology, I worked as a community mental health clinician, supporting people of all ages who had been through significant trauma. I’ve worked with individuals who had been given many different mental health labels—OCD, BPD, complex trauma, eating disorders, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia and more. While these diagnoses can sometimes be helpful in making sense of experiences, I don’t see them as defining who someone is. Instead, I focus on understanding the relational and adaptive nature of distress—how it developed, how it makes sense, and how we can create space for something different.

My work in community mental health has given me experience supporting neurodivergent individuals, queer and non-binary people, refugees, and First Nations communities. I have deep respect for the unique strengths and challenges that come with navigating identity, culture, systemic barriers, and intersectional experiences, and I approach this work with cultural humility and deep listening.

I know firsthand how complex and messy healing can be. My own experiences of trauma growing up shaped not only who I am but also the work I do today. I’ve had to navigate my own inner world, do the deep work of healing, and learn what it means to show up for myself. This personal journey—along with my professional experience—has given me a deep respect for the courage it takes to seek support. Doing my own work has allowed me to be a self-led, available, and attuned therapist—one who can truly hold space for others in a way that is grounded, compassionate, and present.