What is a nurse psychotherapist?
As a Registered Nurse and Certified Nurse Psychotherapist (Qualifying), I bring together an understanding of the medical and emotional sides of what you're experiencing.
If illness, caregiving, or grief are part of what brings you to counselling, you don't have to spend half the session translating or explaining the medical side first. I understand the realities of illness, treatments, changing health needs, caregiving and navigating the health-care system. So, we can spend more time talking about what all of it has meant for you and your life.
That might include how things have changed your relationships, your role within your family, the way you see yourself, or what you thought your life was going to look like. It might also mean working through fear, frustration, guilt, grief, uncertainty or the exhaustion of dealing with something that doesn't have an easy solution.
What does counselling actually look like?
Our work together is more than talking about what's happening. I use approaches including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and mindfulness, along with other therapeutic strategies based on what makes sense for you.
We might look at patterns in thoughts and behaviours, or developing ways of managing difficult emotions and developing healthy boundaries. We may also explore practical ways of coping with situations that feel overwhelming or make you feel stuck.
This isn't about fixing something, because often, the situation itself can't be fixed.
A diagnosis may still be there. Someone you love may still need care. A loss can't be undone. The uncertainty may not disappear.
What we can do is work on how you live with what is happening, while making room for you and your life within it.
My goal isn't to apply a formula. It's to find approaches that are useful, realistic, and relevant to the life you're actually living.
Virtual counselling for adults across Alberta.
