MY APPROACH
My approach to counselling is compassionate, client-centered and trauma-informed. I work from a holistic, bio-psycho-social perspective to explore the many different ways that lived experience impacts current functioning.
What to Expect
I offer a warm, welcoming and safe environment to begin exploring some of the struggles and barriers preventing you from you living the life you want to live.
Whether you are looking to understand yourself better, for coping skills, or simply for a non-judgmental perspective, my goal is to help you figure out what strategies, tools and skills work best for you on your journey towards healing and wellness.
Heather mcleod, MSW, RSW
Heather has a Bachelor of Social Work from St. Thomas University and a Master of Social Work from Dalhousie University. She has been a social worker for almost 10 years. In that time, she has worked with children, youth and adults struggling with the effects of relational trauma, including childhood abuse and/or neglect, domestic and sexual violence as well as those struggling with anxiety, depression, disordered eating, addictions, challenging life transitions and LGBTQ+ issues.
Heather's approach includes the use of narrative therapy which explores the stories that we tell about ourselves, with the goal of living out our preferred identities. Her approach is also strongly influenced by the research on the benefits of mindfulness and self-compassion.
Heather practices from a trauma-informed perspective. In her therapeutic work, she explores the ways in which trauma comes to be stored in the mind and body. Her approach includes the use of Internal Family Systems which is a model of psychotherapy that opens up ways to explore and harmonize the different parts of the mind.
Heather is a proud supporter of the body positivity and the Health at Every Size (HAES) movements. She believes that everyone deserves to have a positive body image, and she challenges narrow definitions of health and beauty in her practice. She specializes in exploring the various ways that dominant social and cultural discourses about weight, body size, health and beauty become internalized, often resulting in emotional distress.
