Your lived experience matters
Your body remembers
We will listen to both
ecosystem
living body
Soma
Eco
EcoSoma Counselling
Somatic therapy that supports nervous system regulation and approaches wellbeing holistically.
This work helps you…
Trust your own experience and
listen to your body.
Regulate your nervous system and become less overwhelmed
by emotions.
Understand the root of your
patterns and how to shift them.
Safely process trauma, grief, and stuck emotions or experiences.
Show up authentically in your relationships and be confident in communicating your needs.
This space is for you.
You might be here because you’re navigating anxiety, grief, overwhelm, chronic health challenges, or trauma and want to help your body regulate.
You may be queer, neurodivergent, or a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) and are seeking a therapist who shares these identities.
Or maybe you’re moving through a big transition, want to be more authentic in your relationships, or are ready to get to the root of the patterns that keep repeating.
The folks that I work with are thoughtful, self-aware, and caring. They’ve often tried talk therapy for a period and are ready for something that goes deeper — an approach that helps them get to the core, understand themselves better, integrate what has been stuck, and move beyond trying to “think their way out of it.”
Welcome, I’m Valerie
(she/they)
My approach to therapy is grounded, attuned, and present.
I value authenticity, play, structure (they can go together!), and curiosity. The light and the dark are welcome here, along with all parts of you — especially the ones that you have learned to hide.
As a queer, neurodivergent, and Highly Sensitive Person, I know what it’s like to feel overstimulated in a world that moves too fast, or the ache of not quite fitting in. I support folks to move beyond the question of “what’s wrong with me” to an empowered “this is what I need.”
Rooted in both my background in environmental work and my connection to the natural world, I bring a nature-based, relational, and somatic lens to counselling — helping you slow down to hear what your body and emotions are trying to say, and to find steadiness and connection in the process.
Therapy that makes space for
all of you
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Talk therapy has its limits. Our bodies carry implicit (unconscious recall) memories that don’t always surface through words alone. Trauma memories are often stored in the implicit memory so we need to go deeper than words to help the body move through stuck sensations, emotions, and patterns.
Somatic therapy helps us notice sensations, patterns, and emotions held in the body so we can gently integrate what has gotten stuck inside.
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What is trauma?
Trauma isn’t just what happened, it’s also the imprint of what’s left behind on the body and mind. Trauma experiences can become “stuck” within us and stress and dysregulation can persist even when the threat has passed.How we work with trauma
In sessions, we go slowly. We create space to listen to the body, notice patterns, and gently reconnect with parts of yourself that may have gone offline. The focus is on safety, integration, and nervous system regulation so that what has been stored can be released. -
The quality of the therapeutic relationship is the most important factor in determining movement towards growth.
Why is this?
We are relational beings and our deepest wounding often is rooted in what happened, or didn't happen, within our close relationships.
When we are not supported through intense experiences in childhood, our body stores this as developmental trauma and we develop coping strategies to hold the pain.
Mirror neurons help our nervous systems regulate together. So, exploring the hard together helps with healing and is healing in itself.
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We are whole beings — physical, emotional, spiritual, social. How we feel in the moment is influenced by all these layers, which includes our ancestry and the cultures that we come from.
When emotions aren’t processed, they can show up as stress, tension, or illness in the body. Working holistically means tending to the full picture of your life, not just one piece.
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Your lived experience matters. I don’t come in with a script or assumptions — because you are the expert of your own life.
Our work is guided by your lived experience, your wisdom, your pace, and what feels most supportive for you in the moment.
While I weave in psycho-education where appropriate I know that you have the answers that are right for your life. I help create a container where you have the space to listen to the wisdom held in your body.
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All ways of being are welcome here. When parts of who we are aren’t reflected or celebrated in mainstream culture, it is harder to feel safe to fully show up authentically.
Every part of you is welcome here. The strengths, weaknesses, quirks, and challenges. This is a space where you get to be authentic and we get to be curious about how you can live a life that will best support you — no masking necessary.
Locations
Office
Nature
Online
Testimonials
Finding the right fit is essential for effective therapy.
Book a free 20-minute consultation
so we can see if we’re the right fit.
Social Media:
Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor, 3474
Covered by most third-party insurance
