My Approach
Life is short and stuff happens. We do our best to live life and adapt while surviving the stuff. Living, adapting and surviving are not easy, and often requires a more planned approach for us to head, at least approximately, in the direction we would like to go.
The stuff that complicates navigating life may lead to us making fear-based decisions at the expense of living, which requires making values-based decisions.
Our brains are resourceful and so we often do a good job developing ways to adapt and survive the stuff, but sometimes we unknowingly do this too well (hyper-adapting). This tends to keep us in survival mode using energy and resources for well-meaning but unhelpful coping behaviours, e.g., urges, avoidance and withdrawal, looking over our shoulder, people-pleasing or perfectionism, with resulting mental health challenges at the expense of living. And then to make matters more challenging, the art of living often requires that we know who we are, where we are going and how to do it.
I see my role as psychologist being that of an assistant navigator - to assist fellow life travelers navigate the unclear, understand how their brains might be working too well to protect thereby contributing to the mental health challenges they may be experiencing and how to manage this. Or fathoming the best way forwards when we feel lost in the fog created by stuff or life happening.
To do this I use the scientist-practitioner approach which relies on using evidence-based tools but tailored to the unique needs of each individual. One size or recipe does not fit all.
These tools include the family of CBT adaptations (e.g. acceptance and commitment therapy, exposure and response prevention, behavioural activation), EMDR, couples therapy, problem-solving therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy, schema work and motivational interviewing.
Other important tools often needed as part of the approach, for which I am not qualified and do not offer, may include medicine, psychiatry, other allied health disciplines and for some, their faith.