Kate Swaney

I like to compare the therapeutic process to trying on different pairs of glasses. If you were wearing a pair of glasses with blue lenses all the time, you might eventually feel like everything looking blue is normal. But you might try on a pair that has yellow lenses and notice that you like it better. You might also try some with a prescription lens and see that you have more clarity. You can always go back to the blue lenses if you want to, but when therapy is working, it feels like you've found a bunch of new options to see new perspectives. Over time and through these new lenses, you'll experience greater awareness of how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours are affecting your quality of life. 

Our work may lead to some difficult memories, emotions, and feelings in the body and mind which we will explore slowly and with caution. Some of this might feel like it is really hard work – and it is! We will work to build your capacity for safety in these moments, and on the other side, you'll feel more resilient, calmer, and have an awareness of what you do and don't want your life to look like. 

Disordered eating is language that some folks find more accessible to describe their feelings and actions around food and body. Disordered eating might look like chronic dieting, over-exercising, immense fear of weight gain, an overwhelming need to control the amount and types of food we eat, or periodic eating disorder behaviors like bingeing once in a blue moon. There are many ways that disordered eating can show up, and there are many ways that disordered eating is celebrated and in fact promoted in media and culture. For this reason, disordered eating is sort of like a "spectrum" of frequency and severity. Disorder eating can be extremely distressing, and the thoughts and emotions that go along with it are important to consider an acknowledge. In therapy, we can talk about what's brought you to this place, and make a pathway towards where you'd rather be.

Many people believe that because they have not experienced an intensely traumatic event, that they are immune to the effects of trauma. There are many ways that adverse experiences can affect us across the lifespan. For example, research shows that caregiver neglect can actually be very damaging in adults, even though we might not always think of this as being trauma. Frequent visits to the hospital, a loss that was not acknowledged, or strict rules about how and what to eat can all impact us later in life. Without judgement, we will explore how the effects of trauma are showing up for you and how we can build capacity for safety in your body.

There are many therapies that can address trauma and its symptoms. I practice an integrative model of therapy, that is strongly informed by Sensorimotor Psychotherapy. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy is an approach to working with trauma that centres the body while acknowledging the processing that happens in our minds. Sensorimotor psychotherapy can help ease symptoms of complex trauma (C-PTSD). In order to find the therapy that works for you, you might like to meet with a few different counsellors to learn about different approaches.

Together we can look at your patterns and find new ways to be in relationship. Patterns are useful because they keep us moving in directions that has always felt safe. They are like deep veins in the earth, created by groundwater flowing for months and years. To start changing these paths, we have to let the water move differently.

In relationships, this means noticing the pattern without judgement, and understanding of how it came to be. With this awareness, we can mindfully choosing alternatives without disrupting our sense of safety

That's totally okay. Sometimes people know they want to feel different but have a hard time imagining what that might look like. If and when you are ready, I am here to walk beside you with empathy, curiosity, and compassion. I offer a free consultation phone call, and am happy to answer any questions you may have before we begin.