Challenges We Can Navigate Together
Chronic Illness & Chronic Pain
Supporting individuals in managing mental health challenges, emotional impact, and uncertainty while navigating long-term physical health conditions and symptom flare-ups.
Autoimmune & Rheumatic Conditions
Providing emotional support and practical strategies for managing autoimmune conditions like lupus, fibromyalgia, and arthritis, addressing isolation, frustration, and long-term adjustment.
Diabetes & Health Management
Offering specialized mental health support for managing diabetes, reducing health anxiety, and fostering sustainable, balanced approaches to lifestyle adjustments.
Neuroplastic Pain
Helping individuals understand and address brain-driven pain responses through psychosocial approaches to reduce suffering and improve quality of life.
Perimenopause & Menopause
Supporting individuals through hormonal transitions by addressing mental health concerns, physical changes, and their impact on self-esteem and identity.
Relationship Issues
Strengthening relationships impacted by chronic illness or health changes, addressing caregiver stress, and fostering connection through role transitions.
Post-Injury Recovery & Transitions
Assisting clients in adjusting to physical changes, rebuilding confidence, and processing grief related to the loss of abilities or career shifts after an injury.
Aging & Chronic Health Conditions
Providing emotional support for navigating health-related challenges of aging, fostering independence, and balancing caregiving or seeking help when needed.
Health Counselling & Coaching
Helping clients develop personalized strategies to enhance physical and mental well-being, navigate health challenges, and create meaningful, sustainable lifestyle changes.
Health Anxiety & OCD
Guiding clients in managing intrusive health-related worries, building resilience, and reducing the emotional toll of frequent medical concerns or testing.
Caregiver Stress & Burnout
Providing support for caregivers to manage stress, prevent burnout, and maintain their well-being while caring for loved ones with chronic health conditions or significant needs.
Depression & Anxiety
Offering compassionate support to help clients understand and address the causes of low mood, build resilience, and reconnect with a sense of purpose and joy.
About Stacy
Prior to becoming a registered psychotherapist, I spent over a decade immersed in the field of health and fitness. As a dedicated yoga teacher, personal trainer, coach, and fitness instructor, I worked with a diverse range of populations, focusing on individuals recovering from injuries, coping with mental and physical illnesses, and addressing age-related concerns. This work was my passion, yet I began to recognize the limitations of my role. Treating chronic conditions and chronic pain is incredibly challenging because there are so many layers to it on a social, spiritual, emotional, physical, and psychological level. These experiences fueled my desire to broaden my skills and help people on a deeper level. Driven by this passion, I returned to school to become a psychotherapist, committed to addressing the multifaceted nature of their struggles.
I have personally faced the challenges of living with the uncertainty, frustration, and grief that come with chronic illness, following my own diagnosis of lupus and multiple autoimmune syndromes. I have come to realize that in the treatment of these conditions, the emotional, social, and mental impacts often do not receive enough attention. While every individual’s journey is unique and deeply personal, I wholeheartedly believe that supporting someone in pain requires a holistic approach and a willingness to address complex challenges.
While my primary focus is on supporting individuals and couples navigating the challenges of chronic pain, chronic illness, post-injury life transitions, and caregiver stress, I bring a wealth of experience as a generalist to my practice. Over the years, I have worked with clients facing a wide range of concerns, and this breadth of experience allows me to support individuals with issues such as anxiety, depression, grief, self-esteem and self-worth, relationship challenges, and life transitions of all kinds. These areas often intersect with chronic illness and pain, but they are also universal experiences that many people face. Whether you are seeking support for managing a specific health-related issue or looking to navigate other aspects of life, I provide a compassionate and personalized approach tailored to your unique needs.
Qualifications
Master of Arts Counselling Psychology | Bachelor of Arts | Diploma Recreation Therapy | Personal Training and Group Fitness Specialist | Registered 200 Hour Yoga Teacher & Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Training | Osteoporosis Canada Bonefit Training | Toronto Rehabilitation Foundation training for neurological conditions | Narrative Therapy Foundations - Vancouver School of Narrative Therapy | Gottman Method Level 1 | JDRF Diabetes and Mental Health Practitioner | Additional training in Motivational Interviewing, Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, Mindfulness-Based Practices, Chronic Pain interventions, trauma-informed practices & Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
‘Living with chronic illness and pain is like navigating a maze with shifting walls—each day brings new challenges, and the path to relief is often obscured.’
Choosing to work with me means embarking on a journey where the therapeutic process is as dynamic and unique as your experience. My approach is multifaceted and eclectic, drawing from various modalities to tailor our work to the specifics of your situation. Beyond addressing the core of your chronic conditions, we will explore and support adjacent concerns such as depression, anxiety, low mood, grief, brain fog, fatigue, sleep difficulties, relationship issues, loss of self, low self-esteem, as well as life transitions and career challenges. If you’ve felt overwhelmed by what you’ve endured or lost, my goal is to provide support, help you rebuild, and enable you to thrive.