Jane Whitlaw

Adult women and men.

Having tried counselling before, with little success, and looking for something different.

People who want to understand deeper or underlying issues, while also building practical skills to manage what is happening in the here and now.

Having a history of trauma, difficult relationships or attachment wounds.

Recognizing unhelpful patterns but unsure of how to change them.

Feeling stuck, tired, stressed, overwhelmed, and uncertain.

Interested in exploring somatic and body-based approaches to healing.

Feeling connected to nature, animals and time outside.

Familiar with anxiety, depression, emotional overwhelm or chronic stress.

Experiencing intense emotions that take over or feel outside of their control.

Having substance use or addiction concerns; their own or those of someone close to them.

Disbelief belief that things could be different but a willingness to try.

Curiosity about the connection between their experiences and what happens with their emotions and in their bodies.

Facing significant life changes, uncertainty, or decision-making.

Persistent, resilient, and thoughtful but often very hard on themselves.

People who have been carrying a lot for a long time!

You want to understand yourself more deeply while also learning practical skills for the challenges you are facing now.

You are ready to be an active participant in your own therapeutic process.

You appreciate a therapist who will meet you where you are, while also gently challenging you when there may be another perspective to consider.

You want someone who can help you notice unhelpful patterns, without judging you for having them.

You are taking your therapeutic work seriously, but appreciate some banter, laughter and the occasional swear word along the way.

You want therapy to be a place where you can be honest, even when what your sharing feels messy, complicated, scary to say out loud, or shameful.

Seen, heard, and valued.

Safe enough to be honest and lean into trying something new.

Gently challenged without being pushed outside of your tolerance for discomfort.

Connected and safe.

Like you have some control over your emotions and how you respond to difficult situations.

Increasingly confident in who you know yourself to be.

Respected and accepted without judgement.

More connected to yourself, your body, and your emotions.

Like you can tolerate the difficult stuff and maybe things could be different.

What is bringing you to counselling now and what you are hoping will be different.

Any questions, concerns or considerations you have about counselling.

What you can expect from the way I generally practice.

Your previous experiences with counselling or other mental health supports, including what has and has not been helpful.

What feels most important to you as a part of your healing journey.

Any current or past concerns that may be relevant to your care, including emotional wellbeing, sleep, medications, substance use, suicidal thoughts or non-suicidal self-injury.

Other factors that may be affecting what you are experiencing, such as physical health or injury, relationships, family circumstances, housing or other environmental stressors.

Whether my approach feels like a good fit for you.

Meet you where you’re at.

Listen carefully and take your experiences seriously.

Recognize your strengths and help you build upon what is already working!

Help you make sense of patterns, emotional responses, relationships, and behaviours that likely developed for very good reasons!

Offer homework and encourage on-going processing and engagement between sessions.

Offer practical tools and skills alongside deeper exploration.

Gently challenge you when it may be useful to consider another perspective.

Adjust our work to your needs, capacity, and life circumstances.

Appreciate you and your unique ways of being!