Often people’s thoughts, feelings, and actions tangle up and become difficult to see separately and influence. It becomes overwhelming to figure out the big why’s in our world and sit with them, before we figure out the how’s in terms of what truths, meanings, and actions we want to take from our experiences.

I offer a safe space to explore the webs of client’s experiences and process important threads so we can know what’s happening for them, what they want to take from their experiences, what is important to them, and what next steps they want to take.

Through the therapeutic process people are better able to see and navigate the world through a lens that is based on their integrated experiences and by their drives toward what they want to seek out.

Experience:

Lauren has a Master’s in Education in Counselling Psychology from the University of Alberta. She also has a Diploma in Psychological Assessment from Concordia University of Edmonton. She started her provisional journey at Firefly Counselling. She has spent 6 years working on support and information lines helping people feel heard and connecting them to their strengths and resources.

Client Focus: Individuals, Teens

Types of therapy: Emotion Focused Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, Formal Assessment, (also interested in taking ACT training)

Issues:

(Standard) Anxiety, depression, trauma (Specialties) Identity, Disability, Choice

“It is within our power not to make a judgement about something, and so not disturb our minds; for nothing in itself possesses the power to form our judgements – Marcus Aurelius”

Often people’s thoughts, feelings, and actions tangle up and become difficult to see separately a... Read More

My interest in therapy has always been two-fold 一 professional ambition and engagement and personal acceptance and growth.

The Personal - Most of my life I have felt the emotional pangs of parental enmeshment and death, insurmountable bodily anxiety, and perfectionistic conflict around who I am, and who I’ve wanted to be. As a child, I grew up with two very loving yet imperfect parents, who through no intentionality of their own passed on their own trauma, limiting beliefs, and unprocessed emotions. As an adolescent, I became adept at intellectualizing my experience, identifying patterns, and tying it all to the ‘big picture’. However, I struggled to safely process the associated emotions, and repattern how I conceived my internal world. I didn’t even know what that was supposed to look like. As I learned, the depth of my emotions, and the harmful patterns I experienced, surprised me. There was a lot more under the surface than I imagined.

The Professional - Like many of us, work has been my primary outlet for development, validation, and satisfaction in my life. I rarely had a problem with keeping myself engaged with what I was doing, though I cycled in-and-out of burnout regularly. So, after working nearly a decade in a high-growth tech company, in 2020 I turned down an opportunity to succeed our CEO and instead pursued a Master’s in Counselling Psychology. My intention was to repurpose much of contemporary psychology’s most applicable practices and research into Organizational Development and Talent Strategy work, which I currently employ in my consulting practice.

Today, while I have processed many of my most dysregulating emotions, created new meaning from past experiences, and brought a renewed balance to my internal bodily states, I am still very much on my own journey. Understanding ourselves, and repatterning with intention, is very much a life process.

My Approach

My counseling approach is grounded in trauma-informed principles, shaped under the direct guidance of one of Canada’s top Clinical Traumatologists. Our experience of our lives, trauma or otherwise, is subjective and relative 一 we all see it a little differently. Thus, therapy must adapt to each person, and often I pull on aspects of humanistic, emotionally-focussed, CBT, and ‘parts work’ (like IFS) to assist me in speaking each client’s specific internal language.

I enjoy working with adults at the top of their careers (50+), and those who are still finding their unique superpowers (18 - 30), as I have found these periods often mark significant potential for meaningful change. My clients and I have often explored themes in trauma, performance, perfectionism, sensitivity, engagement, relational enmeshment , depression, anxiety, anger, death, and life purpose. I also maintain a large breadth of personal experience in understanding, relating to, and advocating for Indigenous peoples (who may feel plagued by systemic injustices and intergenerational trauma).

If you can relate to any of this and maintain an intention to grow and repattern your internal systems, I’d love to meet you. 🙂

Professional Testimonies

“Having worked closely with Graham, I can confidently attest to his exceptional counselling competency and qualities. Graham consistently brings a grounded and soft approach to how he holds space for clients, demonstrating a deep dedication to understanding their circumstances. His ability to provide compassion and empathy within professional boundaries is truly commendable.” — Kayla Carter, CEO & Clinical Traumatologist, Breelove Counselling.

“Graham is intelligent, curious and enthusiastic. Graham is also warm, observant and socially competent — he makes you feel comfortable & heard. In my opinion, he has done the personal work to understand himself and possesses both the empathy and the intellect to bond with and help a very wide range of clients. “ — Haley Gershony, Counselling Professional M.A., M.ED, R.C.C.

“Graham provided emotional and practical support and displayed excellent skills of engagement, strong boundaries and work ethic. I greatly admire his discipline and organizational skills, and his ability to coach these skills into others, on top of developing client perspectives and coping strategies.” — Vashti Sullivan, Wellness Coach, Canadian Mental Health Association.

My interest in therapy has always been two-fold 一 professional ambition and engagement and person... Read More