My approach to practice is best described as Therapeut Pluralism. This approach allows me to draw on a number of therapeutic models and to incorporate those ideas and strategies best suited to the individual client and situation. It is based on the understanding counselling/psychotherapy is most effective and relevant when it:

• Takes place in the context of a therapeutic relationship characterized by trust and mutural respect.
• Guided by the client’s needs and paced in keeping with her or her readiness.
• Respectful of the client’s core beliefs and responsive to his or her temperament, circumstances, capacities, and learning style.
• Grounded in knowledge of psychological theory and research and in an awareness that the mind, though distinguished as the seat of consciousness, is part of the body and works in concert with other bodily systems.

Among the special techniques on which I draw are:

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR is an interactive and integrative psychotherapy that has been proven effective for treating post-traumatic and trauma-related symptoms. During EMDR therapy sessions, the client reprocesses traumatic or triggering experiences. The process can be quite intense but typically results in rapid improvement.

Hypnosis

Hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness involving a shift in attention away from the usual sensations and impressions and a simultaneous intensification of attention to a particular idea, image, or perception. Individuals in hypnosis are deeply relaxed and able to more readily access and harness experience enhanced awareness. It can be effective for many things, including pain control, the management of sleep difficulties, and the treatment of phobias and other psychological concerns. In a sense, all hypnosis is self-hypnosis because it is impossible to hypnotize an unwilling subject or to induce that person to do something against their will.