I’m Amanda - a psychotherapist, coach, and educator.
I have always paid close attention to the internal and external systems around me - I see my ability to navigate these systems as my superpower.
You’ve been trying to get through this storm alone.
Together we row - side by side - figuring out and responding to what is called for - navigating your internal system (thoughts, emotions, nervous system, behaviours) and your workplace systems.
Helping you get to where you want to go is how I contribute to the greater good.
My Journey
I grew up moving between countries, cultures and subcultures, often finding myself on the outside looking in.
These early experiences shaped me into an observer from the get go —of people, of patterns, and of the systems we all live within.
I became curious about what connects us at a human level, but also about how environments, expectations, and power structures shape our choices, our identities, and our sense of belonging.
I first studied psychology, the study of micro systems, and then social work, the interaction between micro and macro systems (I am a philomath at heart so while my education here seems straight forward it has been a meandering path).
In the mid 1990s, I started working in community programs in all sorts of contexts and capacities - supporting folks to navigate systems and heal from harm.
I have seen first hand how systems sustain and harm; how complex systems are to change inside ourselves and in our environments; how we have to strive to change systems that exploit and harm; how we need each other to heal.
In 2003, I moved to Vancouver where I started my own journey toward healing through a counsellor who helped me experience and understand my emotions without having to avoid or numb.
This was a key time in moving toward embodied relational work to heal my own system and understand the key aspects of supporting healing in other people’s systems.
In 2010, I became a mom which marked a meaningful shift in my career. I began consulting and coaching around organizational systems - particularly when there was trauma or toxicity within these systems.
This happened almost by accident - a friend asked me if I would meet with a group of nonprofit leaders to talk about vicarious trauma, its impact on employees and organizational systems. My consulting practice grew into supporting organizations and individuals in navigating organizational harm, incivility, burnout/compassion fatigue, transitions, and trauma. Alongside this I was developing my skills as a counsellor working with families with children 0-5 in a prevention program.
In 2022 I decided to move fully into private practice working exclusively with folks who are in the human service sectors.
Helping folks move into nervous system recovery, heal from work workplace harm, and navigate difficult work circumstances.
All Leading HERE
Where I help you navigate what you’re going through and heal from harm!
FYI - We might be a great match for working together if…
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I always match my approach to the way your brain works and to what our relationship needs in the moment. I do lean toward working from a psychodynamic, somatic (body oriented), neuroaffective lens. If you are looking for CBT or other top down oriented counselling approaches- we probably aren’t a great match.
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My process is very much based on reflection and is not advice giving. If you are looking for advice without reflection or a solution without being able to sit in the problem - I am probably not the therapist for you.
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My fees are $174.00 CAN for a 50minute session.
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My specific training and personal vision is in the realm of supporting folks who care about their impact in other people’s lives, in the political realm, and in their relationship with other species and the earth.