Counselling, Teaching, and Practice Experience
I currently operate a private counselling practice in the downtown Victoria area that I started in 2007. From 2009 to 2018, I was a Sessional Instructor with the School of Child and Youth Care at the University of Victoria where I taught family practice theory and counselling courses, the substance use prevention and treatment course, and individual counselling courses. From 2016 to 2019, I also taught the Psychology of Sexuality and Human Development at City University.
Up until the beginning of 2012 much of my work was in the non-profit sector where I accumulated varied work experiences since 1994. Beginning in 2004, I worked as a Youth and Family Counsellor with children, youth and families on the Peninsula for a community agency. In this position I helped families with challenges such as separation and divorce, blended-family reorganization, life cycle transitions, parenting difficulties, anxiety and depression, grief and loss, youth and family substance use, and self-injury. Other past work experience includes working in residential programs with different "high risk" populations including youth detoxing from substances, pregnant and parenting young mothers, and youth in care of the government.
On several occasions I have been invited to give presentations or workshops. In 2009 and 2010, I facilitated a workshop I developed called "Respectful Ways of Working with Clients", as well as an introduction to Structural Family Therapy in 2010, to mental health and addiction employees of the Vancouver Island Health Authority. I presented the workshop "Respectful Ways of Working With Families" at the 2008 Child and Youth Care Conference and to front-line social service workers for the South Island Training Initiative (SITI) in 2008. In 2017, with Citizen's Counselling Centre's invitation, I facilitated a workshop for their counsellors called "Introduction to Polyamory and other Non-Monogamous Relationship Structures in Clinical Practice".
Up until the beginning of 2012 much of my work was in the non-profit sector where I accumulated varied work experiences since 1994. Beginning in 2004, I worked as a Youth and Family Counsellor with children, youth and families on the Peninsula for a community agency. In this position I helped families with challenges such as separation and divorce, blended-family reorganization, life cycle transitions, parenting difficulties, anxiety and depression, grief and loss, youth and family substance use, and self-injury. Other past work experience includes working in residential programs with different "high risk" populations including youth detoxing from substances, pregnant and parenting young mothers, and youth in care of the government.
On several occasions I have been invited to give presentations or workshops. In 2009 and 2010, I facilitated a workshop I developed called "Respectful Ways of Working with Clients", as well as an introduction to Structural Family Therapy in 2010, to mental health and addiction employees of the Vancouver Island Health Authority. I presented the workshop "Respectful Ways of Working With Families" at the 2008 Child and Youth Care Conference and to front-line social service workers for the South Island Training Initiative (SITI) in 2008. In 2017, with Citizen's Counselling Centre's invitation, I facilitated a workshop for their counsellors called "Introduction to Polyamory and other Non-Monogamous Relationship Structures in Clinical Practice".
Counselling Internships
During my Master's training, I completed my first internship as a Family Therapist counselling families with youth who have concerns related to substance use and mental health. For my second internship, I focused my skill development in the practice area of couples counselling.
Practicums
I have counselled children, youth and families in a school-based setting, done street outreach in Vancouver and Burnaby with female and trans sex workers, as well as youth who were being exploited in sexualized ways, and co-facilitated life skills groups with young adults in a career exploration program.