I’d like to acknowledge my personal background and relationship to this land and community. I am a 2nd generation English settler on my maternal side, and a 5th generation Scottish/Dutch/English settler on my paternal side. I grew up in the territories of the Haudenosaunee, Anishnaabe, and Lenape peoples in what is now known as London, Ontario, and moved to the traditional territories of the Lekwungen peoples in 2013 to pursue a career in midwifery. Since moving my relationship to the land has developed in a way that calls me to acknowledge my settler privilege as a homeowner on the territories of the Swenghung Family group (North Park). I’m grateful to call this beautiful place my home, and commit to continued examination of my settler-colonial privilege.

I have come to a new career to offer people support as they move through the complexity of life’s big transitions. I am especially interested in helping people make sense of reproductive health journeys, including abortion, fertility, pregnancy loss and grief, the challenges of parenthood, and the relationships that are formed through these experiences. I come to this work honestly, as I have spent the past 10 years as a registered midwife; witnessing birth has been a real gift. My own journey changed when I became an intentional solo parent, and subsequently experienced intense perinatal mood and anxiety disorder during my kiddo’s early life. This experience called me back to school to study social work, social justice, and the impacts of systemic oppression on mental health.

I currently practice as both an RSW and RM in an alternative practice arrangement. My practice focuses on midwifery-led counselling, and counselling from a somatic-attachment perspective. Additionally, I am an adjunct professor in the Midwifery Program, University of British Columbia.

I completed the Masters in Social Work through the University of Victoria in 2023. This degree introduced me to concepts related to self awareness like critical reflexivity and relational accountability. I bring these concepts to our work together with a commitment to a self-aware, anti-oppressive, non-judgmental, respectful counselling approach. As a final degree requirement I completed a practicum of supervised counselling under Cora Bilsker of Nested Heart Counselling. Nested Heart specializes in non-monogamy, kink, sexual orientation & gender identity journeys, sex work, and psychedelic integration.

I’ve completed certifications and additional training through:

Bringing the Body into Practice: Somatic Attachment Psychotherapy 2 Year Training

San’yas Anti-Racism Indigenous Cultural Safety Training

The Vancouver School of Narrative Therapy

Perinatal Mental Health Certificate from Postpartum Support International

Certificate in Somatic Embodiment & Regulation Strategies with Linda Thai.

U of T continuting studies DBT: the Basics

Nurturing Mamas Network:

-ACT for Women’s Mental Health

-DBT for Perinatal Mental Health

Queer Family Building

I am personally familiar with the non-normative ways families come into being – when your conception journey doesn’t look the way you were told it would, or doesn’t represent your identity, you might appreciate some extra support. I can help facilitate your decision making around donors (deciding between known or unknown), help navigate conversations with your partner(s), chosen donors, and future kids, as well as assist in navigating the medical system in a way that works for you.

Pregnancy and Parenthood

During my time as a midwife I’ve supported hundreds of pregnant people and their families in navigating the mind/body changes that happen during pregnancy and the early postpartum – I can help you make sense of what you’re experiencing, help guide you in what you can expect, as well as plan for those changes in a gender affirming way. If loss is something that comes up in your pregnancy, I’m here to hold the vast diversity of resulting experiences, find out what it means to you and how it might impact the way you move forward.

I would like to acknowledge my special interest in supporting folks who may consider themselves on the margins of parenting, ie. gender-diverse and trans parents, neurodiverse parents, parents who have lived and are living with experience of substance use, parents who do sex work, and/or parents who belong to polyamorous, kink/BDSM communities. As a personal ally, friend, and/or member of each of these communities, I am committed to providing a safe and secure container in exploring these identities.

Methodology

Through an embodied, somatic perspective informed by attachment theory, I hope to help you untangle the ways your past, present, and future affect your whole being. Through my practice of midwifery, I have a unique attunement to life’s challenges from witnessing countless families go through one of life’s biggest transitions. I can help you make sense of this - be it a traumatic pregnancy, birth or postpartum experience, difficult career change, family conflict, or whatever else life hands you. Society’s silence when your journey doesn’t go in a positive direction is deafening and can create lasting shame.

If you are pregnant or within 6 weeks postpartum, as a registered midwife I can bill for our work together through MSP as follows: 3 hours of sessions in pregnancy, 4 hours of sessions in the postpartum. I am available for in person, online, or phone appointments. To receive the MSP-covered counselling I require a referral from your primary care provider (Midwife or Doctor).

In addition I am available for private-pay services at the rate of $165/hr. I am also a Registered Social Worker which qualifies our work together for third-party insurance coverage. I have been approved as a care provider under First Nations Health Authority and Pacific Blue Cross, which allows me to provide free counselling to Status First Nations Peoples. As well I am approved through Medavie Blue Cross which allows me to provide free counselling for beneficiaries of Veterans Affairs and Immigrant and Refugee Health Program.