Registered Clinical Counselling | East Vancouver | Commercial Drive
Trauma Informed Stabilization Treatment (TIST)
PARTS WORK
I use a counselling approach called Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment (TIST), that can more simply be called “parts work,” which was developed by Dr. Janina Fisher. TIST uses elements of Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, which addresses the effects of trauma on the nervous system and body, and Internal Family Systems, which assumes that symptoms and stress responses are parts of us, not all of us.
Trauma Informed Stabilization Treatment, or "parts work," is built on neuroscience research, and very effectively helps people to more deeply understand their emotional responses as adaptations to the world around us. Even the responses that we come to therapy to get rid of, like our tendency to avoid conflict or to distrust others, have probably been useful in helping us to navigate our environments at some point along the way. With parts work we can get these automatic responses updated in order to fit better with what's really going on in the moment, and to resonate more with who we are and how we want to interact with the world around us. This is a trauma-informed counselling approach that most of my clients find useful, whether they've experience traumatic events or are just noticing distressing thoughts and emotions.
Understanding internal conflicts in therapy from a parts perspective helps us to see our reactions more clearly while staying connected to a wise self. It also creates a sense of self-leadership, in which we can be more understanding and attuned to all parts of ourselves, while still being able to separate from them enough to start to shape them differently. Often this opens up new ways of doing things that we hadn’t thought of before, and shows us that we have more options than we realize.
Please note: I am a Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment Certified Therapist. This means that I have studied with Dr. Janina Fisher and had clinical supervision around the use of this model for several years, and have now completed the advanced training.
DIALECTICAL BEHAVIOUR THERAPY
My graduate work focused on Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, which uses Eastern practices of mindfulness and the idea of finding a middle ground between our often polarized thinking. It also uses the idea of Acceptance and Change: that we can be accepting of ourselves, our relationships, and the process we’re in exactly as it is in the moment. We might even be willing to find inherent wisdom and “goodness” of the current moment to enter fully into the experience. At the same time, we can be oriented and committed towards change.
This counselling modality helps people to find centredness, stay calm in the midst of chaos, have clarity of mind, and tolerate intensity and pain. Counselling sessions offer mindfulness-based, practical techniques for bringing us out of states of distress and helping us to regulate our emotions, so that we can feel lighter, more responsive, and more creative in problem solving. Clients notice a tangible difference in their ability to shift out of states of overwhelm by putting the skills we practice in therapy sessions into digestible pieces each week.
Many people find that they reach out to a counsellor to get help coping with things like depression or anxiety. DBT uses mindfulness and practical skills to help people cope differently with emotions like shame, anger, and even the avoidance of it all, which can feel challenging or even unbearably distressing at times.
Services
Brief Consultation (15 min): FREE
Individual Online Session (50 min): $140 + gst
Sliding Scale: I offer a sliding scale to a limited number of clients who encounter barriers to accessing counselling services. People with financial barriers, those without health insurance, or people with other unique intersectional needs are welcome to inquire. Priority is given to individuals who identify as trans, non-binary, indigenous and poc.
Clinical Training
Please note I am a Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment™ Certified Practitioner.
Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment, Level 3, Dr. Janina Fisher, Ph.D., Academy of Therapy Wisdom, 2022
Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment, Level 2, Dr. Janina Fisher, Ph.D., Academy of Therapy Wisdom, 2021
Trauma-Informed Stabilization Treatment, Level 1, Dr. Janina Fisher, Ph.D., Academy of Therapy Wisdom, 2021
Narrative Therapy 5-day Foundations Training, 2020
Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy Skills Training, 2018
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy Implementing Distress Tolerance Skills During a Crisis, Lifted Counselling, 2020
Queer Competency Training, Qmunity, 2016
Indigenous Cultural Safety Training, Provincial Health Services Authority, 2015
Contact
Book a free 15 minute consultation to ensure that I am the right fit for you. I usually respond within 1-2 business days.
I am currently offering online and in-person sessions on East Vancouver Counselling, on Commercial Drive. If you are uncertain about online counselling, I really recommend giving it a chance. Video calls can be as worthwhile as in-person counselling is, and often clients even prefer it to in-person meetings.
Book an online consultation here, or email me directly.
If the schedule is full or you can't find a spot that works for you, send me an email!
We'll find a time to schedule you in.