About Melissa
My journey into the helping field emerged from my own need for healing, purpose, belonging, and a deeper understanding and connection to both myself and the larger world. The unfolding chapters, struggles, and transformation in my own life have directly and indirectly impacted and shaped the ways I show up in the world and the work I do. They have made a huge impact on the therapist I am today.
I once met with a new client who in the first session shared with me, “I was told if you want to do the deep work, go see Melissa.” We chuckled, but I have always remembered this comment with great fondness and deep gratitude that I have earned the trust of others to hold the space for their vulnerability, self-discovery, healing, and growth.
What Therapy With Me Looks Like
The presence I endeavour to bring to the therapy space is one of kindness, warmth, curiosity and acceptance. It’s not uncommon in a session for there to be pauses for deeper contemplation and reflection or to simply be present with the breath, an emotion, sensation, or insight that has arisen. There is always permission and time for tears and many moments of humour and laughter. Creativity, metaphor and story, somatic (movement) practices and other forms of expression are honoured and turned to for those times when there are no words and to tap into all parts of one’s Self.
I am not a blank slate, as therapists were once instructed to be, nor am I an expert on life; I am another human being on this beautifully messy journey, sitting, supporting, guiding, and reflecting with you as you make your way through yours. This human-to-human connection can be a critical part of successful therapy.
Therapeutic Approaches
My approach to therapy is trauma-informed and holistic in nature. This means honouring you as a whole person, including the impact of your past experiences on your present state, and working with not only the mind but the physical, emotional, energetic, and spiritual bodies as well.
My work is informed by evidence-based and traditional wisdom practices. These include:
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
Internal Family Systems
Attachment Theory
Mindfulness & Meditation
Polyvagal Theory
Transpersonal and Depth Psychology
Expressive Arts
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Somatics, body-focused psychotherapy, and movement
Ecopsychology and Ecotherapy (nature-based therapy)
Because of its effectiveness and ability to address the root causes underlying many presenting concerns, my primary modality in therapy is often EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). EMDR can be a stand-alone therapy or used in tandem with other modalities. To learn more about EMDR therapy click the button below.
Education and Training
I graduated from York University in 2007 with an Undergraduate Degree in Psychology and received my Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Toronto in 2011. I am a member of the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Services Workers, The Ontario Association of Social Workers, and The Canadian Association of Social Workers.
I spent the first several chapters of my career working in various non-profit community settings and mental health agencies. I continue to provide trauma-informed and mindfulness-based psychoeducational/therapeutic workshops to organizations to support the awareness, health, and well-being of employers, staff, and communities being served.
Emerging from both my clinical work, as well as my personal meditation practice, in 2019 I embarked on the journey to become a Certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher, training under Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach and certified by the University of California at Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center and the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program, an IMTA accredited two-year training.
I have advanced training in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), IFS (Internal Family Systems), Mindfulness, Polyvagal Theory, CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), Attachment Theory, and Somatic Strategies.
Outside of the Office
When I don’t have my therapist hat on you can most often find me wandering about in nature somewhere or enjoying a good cup of coffee. I am also a very green and budding herbalist (pun 100% intended).
I am an introverted, Highly Sensitive Person (with an ADHD brain to boot), which strongly informs both my personal life and my work with others. I have learned to embrace a more simple yet meaningful life, as well as the superpowers that come with having such a finely-tuned nervous system, a neurodivergent brain, a rich inner world, and a deep level of empathy for the world at large. It’s incredibly important to me that I help others find and live their own unique, authentic, purposeful, and joy-filled life.