Nicole Alexander

COUNSELLING RATES

The regular rates at Somatic Swell Counselling for a Canadian Certified Counsellor affiliated with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association are as follows:

• $145 + GST for a 50 minute counselling session
• $217.50 + GST for a 75 minute counselling session

Somatic Swell Counselling does accept clients on a sliding fee scale. Please ask about this when you book your session, and we will discuss the details and availability. 

***If you have health benefits, please check with your provider to ensure that your sessions will be covered, as we do not directly bill benefit providers***

The list of benefits and risks of counselling outlined below are not exhaustive, but will give you an informed idea about whether or not therapy is right for you. It is much more likely that therapy will be beneficial, but it does bring about a certain amount of risk that should be considered. Clients are strongly encouraged to discuss any concerns, doubts, or fears about their progress in therapy, including any benefits or risks that are not listed but may be associated with their situation.

NICOLE ALEXANDER, MEd, CCC

My Background

My passion for this work began at a young age and eventually led me toward deep personal exploration through therapy, inner child work, and Hakomi therapy. Through my own healing journey, I developed greater compassion for myself and others, expanded my perspective on life, and began to better understand the relational patterns that shape how we move through the world. This personal and professional growth has deepened my sense of freedom, self-awareness, and choice in my life.

I have spent much of my life travelling throughout Asia, Europe, South America, Australia, and Africa. It has been humbling to witness the many ways people live, love, survive, and find meaning across cultures and circumstances. Through these experiences, I have seen profound resilience in the face of adversity, which has strengthened my belief in our innate capacity for healing and transformation.

My formal training includes a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from St. Mary's University and a Master of Education in Counselling Psychology from University of Lethbridge. I have worked in a hospital setting providing counselling support to adolescents in crisis, helping youth and their families reconnect with their strengths, supports, and communities during difficult times. A significant area of my work has involved psychedelic integration, informed by both professional experience and personal exploration within this field. I am also a student of Somatic Experiencing and have completed Beginning Modules I, II, III, as well as Intermediate Modules I and II. As my training continues to deepen, I thoughtfully integrate somatic approaches into my work with clients.

Outside of counselling, I enjoy:

• reconnecting with my Irish heritage through painting 
• exploring new places to walk, eat, and simply be 
• travelling abroad 
• hiking with my dog in the woods or along the beach 
• reading novels — my two favourites are All the Light We Cannot See and The Heart's Invisible Furies

Areas of Practice

• Anxiety and nervous system regulation 
• Depression and emotional disconnection 
• Trauma and somatic healing 
• Psychedelic integration 
• Grief and life transitions 
• Self-worth and identity 
• People-pleasing and co-dependency 
• Relationships and attachment patterns 
• Burnout and overwhelm 
• Personal growth and self-exploration 

MEET GOOSE

Goose is a friendly, affectionate, and happy Goldendoodle who loves spending time at the office. He attends in-person sessions and may occasionally make an appearance in the background of a Zoom session.

Goose brings a calm and comforting presence to the therapy space, along with a wagging tail and the occasional dog kiss. His favourite treats are apples, peanut butter, and carrots, and he loves running along the beach with his fellow pupper friends. He also considers napping a solid 10/10 activity.

BENEFITS OF COUNSELLING

• Greater connection to one’s Self and their body
• Increased self-esteem, confidence, mood, and relationship satisfaction
• Gaining coping skills to manage stress more effectively
• Set and achieve realistic goals
• Get help to express feelings and manage strong emotional reactions
• Greater ability to communicate needs, feelings, and thoughts more openly to others
• Less engagement in unhealthy or destructive behaviours and replacing them with healthy behaviours
• Coming to terms with past experiences
• Increased ability to set boundaries
• More self-acceptance and decreased levels of anxiety and depression

RISKS OF COUNSELLING

• Lack of progress towards therapy goals
• Relationships with other people in your life may be impacted
• Uncomfortable or painful feelings may get worse at the beginning of therapy (this is usually temporary)
• Counselling may bring up painful memories causing you to feel guilt, sadness, anxiety, anger or frustration
• Feelings of vulnerability when sharing sensitive information
• Financial cost of therapy
• Feelings of distress when therapy ends
• Gaining insights about yourself that are difficult to accept and work through
• Experiencing your own comfort or resistance when being challenged by your therapist

SOMATIC EXPERIENCING

Somatic Experiencing® (SE™) is a body-oriented approach to healing trauma symptoms and chronic stress developed by Peter Levine. Drawing from neuroscience, psychology, biology, and stress physiology, SE™ recognizes that trauma impacts both the mind and body and does not need to become a lifelong pattern.

Rather than focusing only on thoughts or memories, SE™ works with the nervous system to gently release survival responses connected to fight, flight, freeze, or collapse. Trauma can become “stuck” within the body and nervous system, often showing up as anxiety, hypervigilance, shutdown, chronic tension, emotional overwhelm, or difficulty feeling safe and connected. SE™ helps increase awareness of bodily sensations and nervous system states to support regulation, resilience, and healing.

Somatic Experiencing may support healing related to:

• PTSD and chronic stress
• Anxiety and depression
• Developmental and attachment trauma
• Chronic pain and muscle tension
• Sleep and digestive concerns
• Emotional overwhelm and nervous system dysregulation

What to Expect in an SE™ Session

SE™ sessions combine talk therapy with body awareness practices that help you notice and track sensations within the body. Sessions may include grounding exercises, breath awareness, resourcing, and gradual processing of traumatic experiences in a way that feels manageable and supportive.

A central part of SE™ is learning to work gently and gradually with the nervous system without becoming overwhelmed. Together, we explore physical sensations, emotions, and patterns connected to past experiences while building greater capacity for regulation, safety, and resilience in the present moment. This approach allows the nervous system to slowly process and release stored survival energy at a pace that supports long-term healing.

SE™ can be especially helpful for individuals who feel stuck in patterns of hypervigilance, anxiety, emotional reactivity, numbness, or shutdown, or for those who have found that traditional talk therapy alone has not fully addressed the impact of trauma on the body and nervous system.

Clients remain fully clothed during sessions, and any supportive touch is always discussed beforehand and used only with consent when appropriate.

PSYCHEDELIC INTEGRATION

Psychedelic experiences can bring profound insight, emotional release, and shifts in perspective, but they can also leave people feeling unsettled, overwhelmed, disconnected, or unsure how to make sense of what they experienced. Integration therapy offers a supportive space to process these experiences and explore how they relate to your everyday life.

Especially after intense or challenging journeys, integration can help you reconnect with yourself, understand difficult emotions or altered states of consciousness, and make meaning of the insights, symbols, or patterns that emerged. Without support, important lessons from psychedelic experiences can quickly fade or remain confusing and unresolved.

Research suggests that even after the immediate effects of psychedelics wear off, emotional or psychological challenges may continue. For this reason, follow-up support with a therapist is strongly recommended to help support grounding, nervous system regulation, and a balanced return to daily life.

Disclaimer: My counselling practice does not provide, prescribe, recommend, or administer psychedelic substances. Psychedelic integration sessions are intended to support individuals in processing and making meaning of past experiences through a trauma-informed and harm reduction approach. Discussions related to psychedelics are focused on safety, education, and integration, and are not intended to encourage illegal substance use.

What I Offer

I provide psychedelic integration therapy for adults seeking support to:

• Understand a past challenging psychedelic experience
• Process lingering emotions, insights, or shifts in perspective
• Reconnect with a sense of safety, stability, and identity
• Explore how to integrate meaningful experiences into daily life
• Support loved ones or teens navigating psychedelic use

Integration therapy can be especially helpful if:

• You do not feel like yourself after using psychedelics
• Your experiences feel distressing, confusing, or emotionally overwhelming
• Daily life feels unreal, dream-like, or disconnected
• You are experiencing distressing flashbacks or persistent changes in perception
• You are struggling to understand the meaning of your experiences
• People close to you have encouraged you to seek support

My Background

Alongside personal and professional interest in the therapeutic effects of psychedelics, I have pursued additional education in psychedelic-assisted therapy through TheraPsil. My approach is grounded, trauma-informed, and focused on helping clients safely explore and integrate non-ordinary experiences in a way that supports long-term wellbeing and personal growth.

Psychedelic experiences can feel deeply significant and, at times, life-changing. Integration therapy provides space to slow down, reflect, and carefully explore what these experiences may mean for you before making major decisions or changes. Together, we work to support clarity, balance, and meaningful integration into everyday life.