EXPERIENCE
Maureen has a wealth of professional and life experiences that she brings to the field of counselling. This includes teaching children in the public school system, bereavement counselling in a palliative care setting, and individual and couples counselling in a community counselling center. Most recently she worked as a counsellor at a women’s transition house, providing counselling and support to clients who have experienced violence and abuse. Maureen has a strong understanding of the impact of illness, grief and loss on individuals, couples and families.
PHILOSOPHY
Maureen’s belief is that effective psychotherapy occurs when trust, openness and honesty have been established within a safe therapeutic relationship. Her philosophy is that each person has the innate capacity for growth and change and the ability to grow and heal. Her compassionate, non-judgmental and collaborative approach helps clients tap into their inner strengths and abilities, gain insight and awareness into the circumstances of their lives, and find solutions to their problems.
TYPE OF THERAPY
As a counsellor, she applies an integrative approach that draws from a wide spectrum of psychotherapeutic theories, including client-centered, cognitive behavioural, family systems, narrative, and solution-focused models. Maureen recently completed a basic training course in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Current research demonstrates that EMDR is effective in treating Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). She is sensitive to the individual needs of each client and particularly attentive to their sense of safety and readiness for change. She is skilled at developing excellent rapport with her clients.
ETHICAL GUIDELINES
As a Registered Clinical Counsellor, Maureen is bound ethically and legally to the Code of Ethical Conduct and Standards of Clinical Practice as outlined by the BC Association of Registered Clinical Counsellors. She is also a Registered Social Worker and accountable to the standards of practice and codes of ethical conduct required by the BC College of Social Workers. She is conscientious, self-disciplined, and motivated to maintain ongoing professional development.