Inner Strength Wellness

10/03/2024

Being a newbie to private practice, I’m immensely grateful to have had Adrienne as a mentor. She was so deserving of this nomination, and it was an honour to celebrate her hard work and dedication to providing inclusive and accessible therapy to our community.

Very proud to be a part of the CCS team and it was super fun to spend some non-clinical time together! 🤍🤍🤍

Last Saturday night, a few of us from the Connected Counselling Services team had the pleasure of celebrating together at the Upper Ottawa Valley Chamber of Commerce Business Awards Gala! 🎉🏆

I couldn’t be prouder of these incredible therapists, and all the members of our team, who pour their hearts, brains and spirits into supporting our diverse clientele each and every day. Their dedication has helped us create an inclusive, welcoming, and affirming space for all folx seeking support on their mental health journey. I’m deeply grateful to each one of them! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

The event was a rare opportunity for us to spend time together outside of the clinic and learn about other amazing local businesses doing impactful work in our community. Congratulations to HeLa Beauty for winning in our category! Props also to Kitchissippi Productions, Primeau Law, Robbie Dean Counselling Centre, Integrated Health Centre, table mate Travis Richards Office and all the other winners- we are so proud to be part of such a vibrant, inclusive and supportive business community. 🌟

We’re excited about our future as a business and are already looking forward to next year’s gala—who knows what new heights we’ll reach by then! 🚀

06/27/2024

So much of life is grieving, and yet, we are rarely taught about grief and how frequently we will encounter it throughout our lifetime. So it’s not surprising that it often catches us completely off guard, without words to describe what we’re feeling and why.

If you are grieving after a big life change or loss, you are not alone. Working with a trusted psychotherapist is one way to begin moving forward. Feel free to visit the Inner Strength Wellness web page or Psychology Today profile for more information or to schedule an appointment.

06/03/2024

If you have been searching for a therapist lately, you may be wondering “What is the difference between a Registered Psychotherapist and Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)?!”

❓ Firstly, good question! I encourage you to ask questions about your therapist’s qualifications, and any other information you need to feel comfortable and confident working with them!

Okay, so there are A LOT of milestones on the road to becoming a fully Registered Psychotherapist (or, RP).

Here are some of mine:

🌙 Many moons ago I completed my B.A. in Psychology with a Minor in the Social Determinants of Health (that means I see mental health and physical health through a holistic lens).

🤍 For 15 years, I worked in community mental health and loved my roles as:
• Outreach Worker
• Community Mental Health Caseworker
• Service Navigator
• Intake Worker
• Court Diversion and Support Caseworker.

📚 In 2021, after having our second baby, I took the leap into my Masters in Counselling Psychology - for three years I poured my heart into family, school and work.

🫴🏽 After a little break from school to have my third kiddo in 2022, I returned to school and went out into the world to practice psychotherapy during an 8 month Practicum placement at a local health team (where I learned SO much from two absolutely lovely and skilled therapists).

👩🏻‍🎓After graduating, I said goodbye to a career in community mental health - a place where I worked with hundreds of truly amazing human beings. I have them to thank (and my fantastic mentors and colleagues of course) for all that I have learned and for inspiring me to be a therapist.

🗣 Before I drop “qualifying” from my title to be a fully registered RP, I must complete:
• A registration exam
• 450 hours of client sessions
• 100 clinical supervision hours

🤔 Supervision is where I meet with a therapist who is trained to supervise others therapists! Supervision is a place to walk through tricky situations, get feedback about best practices, etc. I am big on humility and am a life long learner - no one person can know everything!

What questions do you have about navigating therapy or mental health services? Let me know 👇🏻

03/07/2024

Life is rarely so straightforward that we can place our experiences into emotional silos - and yet, many of us have great difficulty in the grey area that lies between the extremes of our emotions.

So many of us have learned that it is not acceptable and perhaps that it is unsafe to feel and express our emotions - particularly the more vulnerable or "negative" (Pssst .. there are no bad emotions). And so we adapt and manage our emotions in ways that help us feel safe within ourselves, in relation to others and in the world.

When we believe we have to choose , we may find ourselves sucked deep into the dark, unable to see the light. Or, we may cling so hard to the light that we are unable to tolerate any darkness at all. Meanwhile, in our inability to tolerate the discomfort of our own darkness, we are often unable to sit with others in their greatest moments of need. And in all of this running from the dark and chasing the light, we may find ourselves suffering more.

Learning to sense our emotions in our body and naming what we are feeling is an important step towards expanding our emotional experience. Most of us know the feeling of tightness in our chest or having a pit in our stomach, though we may not take time to or, we may not know how to sit with it, name it, breathe into it and express it.

So, take a moment. Take a few deep breaths. Scan your jaw, neck, shoulders, chest, stomach. What sensations do you notice? See if you can name what you are feeling. Sit with it for a moment, breathe into it. Repeat :)

12/06/2023

When we say ‘rest’ our minds immediately think ‘sleep’, but sleeping isn’t always resting and resting isn’t only sleeping. There’s a different type of rest, a deep rest that works through the stillness of shape.

Yin yoga is a practice that focuses on this stillness of shape, a restorative yoga practice, by focusing on the capacity of muscles, ligaments and tendons to stretch. Resting in stillness supports the parasympathetic nervous system.

As Dr. Arielle Schwartz says: “resting in stillness is never forced, and there’s a sense of safety always rooted in choice that nourishes us at a deep level. For some of us, when our bodies become still we find that our mind speeds up. Or we become restless, noticing an urge to fidget. Some of us need to build up a tolerance for restful states and Yin Yoga is the perfect practice to start.”

What’s your experience with restorative yoga practices?

12/06/2023

It is super common and you are not alone if you have tried mindfulness or meditation and found yourself feeling frustrated and discouraged. I think because these practices are often praised for their ability to effectively manage anxiety, stress and other common concerns, it leads us to expect that they will bring instant benefits (which would be great ... but this is often not the case).

The truth is, mindfulness works best when practiced regularly. Neuroplasticity (the fact that our brains CAN change! yay!), tells us that when we repeat something whether it be a thought, a habit, and so on, this strengthens the neural pathways required to initiate that thought or behaviour.

Imagine that you had been taking the same path to walk to work everyday for 10 years, and so that path is well worn and you can clearly see your way to work, it takes almost no effort to take this path. For many of us, the path of worrying, overthinking, and so on, is a well-worn path that we have been taking for years. So, it makes sense that when we try to focus, our brains go right down that path!

Now, if we begin to set aside regular times to practice mindfulness, we begin to carve out a new path. At first, it may not look much like a path at all, as it is still very grown over, and you may not be able to see all the way to the other side. Some days, it may just seem easier to take the old path. However, over time, as you continue to take this new path ... what starts to happen? The path becomes more clear. It becomes easier and more intuitive to take that path and maybe ... that old path even begins to grow over.

It is well worth the effort of creating this new path, to carve out space each day (several times each day if you can!) to slowww down. You got this!

12/03/2023

Love being a part of the CCS team 🤍

Connected Counselling Services offers inclusive mental health support for folks living in Ontario. Our experienced team provides a safe and understanding environment, acknowledging the unique aspects of each individual. We believe in culturally competent care, ensuring that your mental health needs are met with respect and empathy. Don't hesitate to reach out for mental health services that make a meaningful difference.

https://connectedcounsellingservices.com/contact-me/

11/28/2023

For a long time I thought compassion was synonymous with sympathy, helping, or feeling sorry for. It turns out, it is a much more simple concept than that.

All compassion requires of us to be present, connected and kind. However simple, it is a tough one for many of us to practice. Kristen Neff and Chris Germer have done great research on self-compassion, and have provided a framework to help us understand the building blocks of self-compassion so that we can effectively practice it in our own lives.

In the last slide I have provided their websites, as they both have free resources such as guided self-compassion practices, meditations, journal prompts and other self-compassion resources available to all.

11/21/2023

Hi everyone! This week is National Addiction Awareness week and so I decided to write my first blog post about a topic that is close to my own heart, supporting families of persons living with addiction. Please read and share, as I hope this will provide compassionate and helpful guidance to those who know and love someone who has a family member living with addiction.

It is estimated that in Ontario, 10% of people have a substance abuse issue. Chances are, you know someone with a family member who is living with an addiction. This week is National Addiction Awareness Week in Canada, and so I decided to take this opportunity to shed light on a topic that is close....

10/25/2023

Mindfulness brings us into the present moment. We can spend so much time up in our heads, or focussing on what we need to do next, that we end up wondering where our day, month or year went. It can feel like time is passing us by and somehow, it seems like we weren't there for any of it.

Injecting even the smallest moments of mindfulness can anchor you in your day so you are more able to find joy in life's small moments, and also you will be better equipped to navigate stressors that arise if you are approaching them from a more grounded place.

Setting an alarm can be a great way to commit to the practice - and you don't have to stop there. Squeeze tiny moments of mindfulness in whenever you catch yourself lost in a train of thought, take a big breath and anchor yourself back into the present moment - it is the only moment we truly have after all. Try it out, let me know how it goes!

09/26/2023

Breathing exercises are commonly prescribed to soothe anxiety and stress and for good reason.

Breathing exercises can help us learn how to: 1) Slow and deepen our breath (this activates the part of our nervous system that helps slowww everything down) and 2) Develop our ability to focus our attention on one thing at a time (a rarity in this go-go-go world), giving us a break from anxious thinking, worrying and the the constant, exhausting internal dialogue many of us have running in our minds.

Box breathing is very beginner friendly, as it provides a visual to focus on (drawing a box with your breath), which can be less daunting than simply trying to focus on your breath.

Here is a 3-minute box breathing tutorial for you to try. Doing this once/day is great practice - then, you'll have an easier time using the technique in moments of stress (kind of like practicing a sport - mental health skills take practice too!).

In stressful times you can use the power of your breath to help calm feelings of stress or anxiety.Box breathing is a simple relaxation technique that can he...