Why I Became a Therapist in North Vancouver: Helping People Heal from Trauma, Anxiety, and Relationship Pain
Why I Became a Therapist in North Vancouver: Helping People Heal from Trauma, Anxiety, and Relationship Pain
If someone had asked me at 12 years old what I wanted to be when I grew up, my answer would have been immediate: a therapist.
Long before I understood psychology, trauma, or counselling, I knew that I wanted to help people. I wanted to be someone who could sit with others through difficult moments and make them feel less alone.
Today, as a Registered Social Worker providing trauma therapy, anxiety therapy, attachment work and relationship struggles and counselling in North Vancouver and online across British Columbia, that desire has remained at the centre of everything I do through a somatic and relational lens.
The beginning: wanting to help people
I grew up in a family that valued helping others. Volunteering and supporting people in our community was simply part of life. Those experiences taught me that compassion matters and that small acts of care can have a profound impact.
As a young teenager, I became the friend people came to when they were struggling. I made it my mission to be a good listener and a safe person for others. I wanted people to feel heard without judgment.
Looking back, I think I was already drawn to what therapy can offer: a space where someone can tell the truth about what they’re carrying and be met with curiosity rather than criticism.
The experiences that shaped my career
As I got older, my understanding of what it meant to help people became much deeper.
Through traveling and volunteering in other countries, I witnessed the devastating effects of trauma, exploitation, sexual abuse, and sexual exploitation. I saw how profoundly these experiences could shape a person’s sense of safety, identity, and relationships.
Those experiences changed me.
They strengthened my desire to become a social worker and eventually a therapist who could support people who had experienced some of life’s most painful and overwhelming circumstances.
My journey through Social Work
My path led me through several years of education, including a Diploma of Social Work, a Bachelor of Social Work, and a Master of Social Work.
Throughout my career, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside many different populations and in many different settings. I’ve supported:
youth involved with child protection,
outreach and group home programs,
people experiencing homelessness,
youth treatment facilities,
domestic violence shelters,
mental health crisis response alongside police,
and individuals receiving care in a psychiatric hospital unit.
Each of these roles has shaped the therapist I am today.
They have taught me that people are incredibly resilient and that our behaviours, emotions, and protective responses often make sense when we understand the experiences behind them.
Why I’m passionate about trauma therapy
“I am especially passionate about supporting people who have experienced situations where they felt they didn’t have a voice, didn’t have a choice, or lost their sense of power”
One theme has remained consistent throughout my work.
I am especially passionate about supporting people who have experienced situations where they felt they didn’t have a voice, didn’t have a choice, or lost their sense of power.
Trauma can leave us feeling disconnected from ourselves. It can affect our relationships, our boundaries, our nervous system, and our ability to trust ourselves.
Many people come to therapy believing something is wrong with them.
I don’t see it that way.
Over the years, I began to understand that many people are not broken, they are protecting themselves. They’ve learned to stay alert, anticipate conflict, and scan for danger in relationships. This is often a trauma response known as hypervigilance.
I believe that many people are carrying stories, survival strategies, and protective responses that developed for a reason. Therapy is not about fixing you. It is about understanding you.
Watching people come back to themselves
One of the most meaningful parts of my work is witnessing someone begin to reconnect with themselves.
I have the privilege of watching people:
find their voice,
set healthier boundaries,
understand themselves with greater compassion,
reconnect with relationships,
trust their instincts,
and reclaim parts of themselves that trauma had silenced.
Those moments are incredibly powerful.
Healing is rarely about becoming someone new. More often, it is about returning to who you were before fear, shame, trauma, or survival forced you to disconnect from yourself.
What therapy means to me
I believe therapy should be a place where you do not have to perform, explain away your pain, or prove that your experiences were “bad enough.”
It can be a space to slow down.
To become curious about your patterns.
To understand your nervous system.
To explore how past experiences may still be affecting your present.
And to begin building a relationship with yourself that feels grounded, compassionate, and authentic.
My work is rooted in understanding the nervous system because healing isn’t just about changing thoughts, it’s also about helping the body experience safety again. Learning to regulate the nervous system is often a crucial part of recovery from trauma and anxiety.
Why I still love this work
“There is something deeply meaningful about watching someone come back to themselves”
Being a therapist is an incredible privilege.
I feel honoured to sit alongside people during some of the most vulnerable seasons of their lives. Every story I hear reminds me of the courage it takes to ask for help and to begin healing.
After all these years, I still think that 12-year-old version of me was right.
Because there is something deeply meaningful about watching someone come back to themselves.
To find their voice.
To reclaim their power.
To feel grounded in who they are.
To come home to themselves.
That is why I became a therapist.
Looking for trauma therapy in North Vancouver or online in BC?
If you’re looking for trauma-informed counselling in North Vancouver or virtual therapy anywhere in British Columbia, I would be honoured to support you. My approach is warm, collaborative, and grounded in attachment, trauma-informed, and evidence-based therapy.
You do not have to navigate healing alone.