Registered Counselling Therapist/ Psychotherapist
Certified EMDR practitioner
Certified Somatic Experiencing Practitioner
**Please note: Heather is not accepting new clients at this time
“Heather has a calm, confident presence that puts me at ease right away. I feel safe and supported no matter what issue comes up during our sessions. She has been instrumental in supporting me change my life.” DA
I am a Registered Counselling Therapist – Candidate (RCT-C). Like other licensed mental health professionals in Nova Scotia (such as counselling psychologists and clinical social workers), my profession is regulated provincially by a legislated, professional body. I came to this profession after exploring a number of other creative arenas. I have worked as a federal civil servant, as a graphic designer and illustrator, a tree planter, a potter’s apprentice, and a high school teacher. I have worked as a Canadian volunteer in both the West Indies and Sri Lanka. I am also a parent, and consider myself to be still climbing the learning curve daily in this ever challenging, ever tender profession. I share this about myself as we are not all one thing, ever.
I offer Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) approved by the American Psychological & Psychiatric Associations for treating PTSD. I am a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner in training - a body-oriented approach to trauma developed by Dr. Peter Levine.
I work with all individuals 18 and older, who wish to explore a different way of thinking and behaving.
I have worked with individuals with diagnoses including: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; Major Depressive Disorder; Generalized Anxiety Disorder; Dependent Personality Disorder; Trichillomania; Dermatillomania; Bi-polar Disorder; Borderline Personality Disorder; Substance Use Disorder.
Heather has completed a Master of Education (Counselling) at Acadia University which required the completion of 48-credit hours, and a 500-hour counselling practicum. As a candidate for registry as a Counselling Therapist, Heather worked with a supervisor who mentors my work for 4000 post-graduate hours. She also holds a Nova Scotia teacher’s licence, and is a certified Mental Health First Aid Instructor.
The Nova Scotia College of Counselling Therapists (NSCCT) regulates the practice of Counselling Therapists through established and comprehensive standards of practice, ethical decision making, on-going professional development and licensing. There are three provinces which currently regulate the work of counselling professionals: Québec (Ordre des psychologues du Québec/Ordre des conseillers et conseillères d’orientation du Québec); Ontario (College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario); and Nova Scotia (NSCCT). Nationally, Heather is certified with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association and holds the designation of Canadian Certified Counsellor.
Treatment Approach
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR)
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Clinical Hypnosis
Somatic Experiencing (SE)
Compassion-Focussed Therapy
Heather is bilingual - English and French
“We are complex beings. Each is unique, and that in and of itself, gives each of us inherent value”.
"Until you stop breathing, there's more right with you than wrong with you." Jon Kabat-Zinn