OUR APPROACH

Good counselling is worth doing.

We truly believe that change is always possible, even when it seems out of reach. This belief is what drives our work and underpins our approach to counselling.

Transformation is not magical and it’s usually not fast, but humans are wired to heal, given the right conditions. We remain who we are, but we grow more comfortable with ourselves, more able to be present and grounded, more able to make good choices, and more able to distinguish our own needs from those of other people.

As children, most of us were not taught the skills that are required to navigate the complex waters of our inner worlds. But it is never too late to let go of old unhelpful survival strategies, and learn new ways of being and relating. 

Our therapists are all different, as is every relationship between therapist and client, but in general you will find the counsellors at Bodymind Counselling to be friendly, warm, and nonjudgmental. Our aim is to ensure that you feel safe and understood. While the focus of our sessions is on you, your counsellor will also be an active participant as well.

With all clients, a cornerstone of our approach is to recognize the resilience and adaptiveness in people and how they have responded to their circumstances, rather than looking for what is broken. All our clinicians are trauma-informed and continually working to stay up to date in this rapidly evolving area of study.

We also acknowledge that life is genuinely difficult for many these days, especially those who are marginalized in one or multiple ways. There is always a balance to try to find, in how much we strive to adapt to our circumstances, versus how much we acknowledge injustice and the trauma it causes, and know that it is not always possible or desirable to adapt to it. We will not minimize your lived experiences.

Our sessions involve talking, of course, but are also experiential and “body-centered", which means that from time to time we will likely ask you to reflect on what you notice happening in your body. This may feel strange at first, and may take some practice, but given time and space, the body is a rich source of information, and also the place where our deepest healing happens. Our body can take us past our stories, into direct experience, and into the present moment. This is typically far more powerful than simply talking about feelings and thoughts in a detached way. 

We will work with you to build your own sense of connection to your body, and your experience of it as a resource and a source of insight, rather than something to be feared or avoided or ignored. This can include practicing skills like grounding and breathing, and the simple but profound work of learning to be with yourself in the present moment.

In addition to the body, however, we will also pay attention to your emotions, your thoughts, your beliefs (about yourself, others, and the world), and the bigger context of your life and the world we live in. We bring our experience and training to our sessions, but we deeply respect your wisdom about what you need in a counselling session. 

Sarah Pullman, the founder and clinical director at Bodymind Counselling, is deeply influenced by her background and training in Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP). AEDP is a powerful model for change, growth and healing, that starts with the creation of a strong and trusting relationship between therapist and client. It is a very "present moment" oriented approach to psychotherapy, rooted in attachment theory and current neuroscience, and can bring about change in a way that many traditional “talk therapy" approaches cannot. You can read more on the AEDP Institute website. 

Sarah’s experience and training in AEDP influences her supervision of student therapists; however the other counsellors at Bodymind Counselling also bring other modalities and training to their work. Please feel free to ask your therapist directly about their influences, approaches and beliefs if you are curious!