My approach
Do you have the sense that there is underlying pain that is preventing you from fully enjoying your life? Often, our ‘negative’ patterns originally evolved as strategies to meet needs, and to protect ourselves against overwhelming distress. My work aims to help you more effectively meet the needs behind these old strategies.
My approach is informed by mindfulness, somatic practices, and attachment theory. As a counsellor, I will help you make meaning of your story and become more intimate with your embodied experience. I offer a space of trust and acceptance to work through shame, pain, and fear: a space where you can get in touch with aspects of your experience that you may never have put into words before, and may not have noticed were affecting you.
When we bring awareness to our patterns, we may find that we are unconsciously holding tension — in our minds and in our bodies — in an effort to avoid feeling deep pain. Together, we will find ways to loosen the grip of this tension. We will chart a course through hard times that will help you feel proud of yourself for moving in the direction of alignment with your values. We will work on increasing your capacity for resilience in the face of difficult emotions, allowing space for pain and grief. In so doing, we will open up possibilities for fuller enjoyment of positive emotions, a greater sense of purpose, and increased relational satisfaction.
Services offered in Nelson, BC and online
Address: 601 Lake Street, Nelson BC, V1L 4C7
(at the corner of Josephine Street; clinic entrance is on Lake Street)
Online counselling services are available to residents of British Columbia.
Residents of other provinces in which counselling is unregulated are also eligible to work with BC online counsellors.
“Receiving healing with Vanessa was a deeply transformative experience for me. Her skillfulness in assisting the body’s natural ability of healing is highly effective. Vanessa’s sessions leave a lasting effect on the physical, emotional and spiritual levels. I would highly recommend Vanessa as an intuitive and skilled healer. Vanessa assisted me in healing from a serious brain injury. She was instrumental in my healing process.”