Breakthrough Counselling Services offers expert support to those ready to thrive through any challenge. From counselling individuals and families to better mental health to directing companies through meaningful and equitable organizational change, weve spent 15 years guiding our clients to powerful breakthroughs.
Breakthrough Counselling Services offers expert support to those ready to thrive through any challenge. From counselling individuals and families to better mental health to directing companies through meaningful and equitable organizational change, weve spent 15 years guiding our clients to powerful breakthroughs.
My name is Paulette Smith and I am a Registered Social Worker with over 20 years of clinical experience working with children, youth and adults. My education and training include Bachelor of Arts (Sociology), Bachelor of Social Work, and Master of Social Work degrees. My practice specializes in:
Anti-Black Racism and Systematic Discrimination are embedded in institutions, policies, and practices which include the dehumanization, indifference to suffering, and limits ones social mobility. Through the use of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion framework you will be provided with strategies of empowerment that garner respect for your skills, talents and abilities.
Bereavement and grief counselling are provided to individuals experiencing grief, loss and trauma. I recognize the process of grief encompasses a number of complicating factors; therefore, I use a variety of therapeutic interventions which includes Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’ Five Stages of Grief, Complicated Grief Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, and Trauma Informed Therapy to help individuals process their grief.
My name is Paulette Smith and I am a Registered Social Worker with over 20 years of clinical experience working with children, youth and adults. My education and training include Bachelor of Arts (Sociology), Bachelor of Social Work, and Master of Social Work degrees. My practice specializes in:
Anti-Black Racism and Systematic Discrimination are embedded in institutions, policies, and practices which include the dehumanization, indifference to suffering, and limits ones social mobility. Through the use of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion framework you will be provided with strategies of empowerment that garner respect for your skills, talents and abilities.
Bereavement and grief counselling are provided to individuals experiencing grief, loss and trauma. I recognize the process of grief encompasses a number of complicating factors; therefore, I use a variety of therapeutic interventions which includes Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’ Five Stages of Grief, Complicated Grief Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, and Trauma Informed Therapy to help individuals process their grief.
Shayla is an interprovincially registered clinical social worker, an Africentric Cultural Safety Consultant and board approved clinical supervisor who offers identity affirming, culturally responsive and decolonial mental health services to Racialized, marginalized and minoritized populations with the ultimate goal of achieving collective liberation, radical healing and equitable co- existence. Shayla is a two times York Univeristy alumna with over 12 years of experience as a regulated social work professional. Her DECOLONIAL lenses have led her to train in EMDR in COLOUR and racial trauma therapy. She is also an Advanced Tree of life practitioner and Somatic Intelligence trained therapist, who believes in de- stigmatizing, de- colonizing and de-pathologizing mental health. All of her work is Sankofa grounded and UBUNTU rooted! Shayla is taking only corporate and community workshops contracts plus clinical supervisees at the moment.
Shayla is an interprovincially registered clinical social worker, an Africentric Cultural Safety Consultant and board approved clinical supervisor who offers identity affirming, culturally responsive and decolonial mental health services to Racialized, marginalized and minoritized populations with the ultimate goal of achieving collective liberation, radical healing and equitable co- existence. Shayla is a two times York Univeristy alumna with over 12 years of experience as a regulated social work professional. Her DECOLONIAL lenses have led her to train in EMDR in COLOUR and racial trauma therapy. She is also an Advanced Tree of life practitioner and Somatic Intelligence trained therapist, who believes in de- stigmatizing, de- colonizing and de-pathologizing mental health. All of her work is Sankofa grounded and UBUNTU rooted! Shayla is taking only corporate and community workshops contracts plus clinical supervisees at the moment.
I am a culturally sensitive Master’s level social worker, and therapist, clinician, mental health specialist who is passionate about working with diverse populations and creating a non-judgmental space where each client feels heard, respected, and understood. My practice is registered to provide virtual and in-person counseling services to residents of Alberta and Ontario. I provide counselling to youth, adults, individuals, couples, and families and I have over 14 years of experience as a clinician on the frontline and in leadership teams across many Canadian social services agencies. I understand that at times, life’s impacts bring stress, worry, frustration, and anxiety. I work to provide clients with the right support, help, and guidance so that they can cope with challenges and re-discover their path to a more fulfilling life.
My professional specialty includes supporting people struggling with addictions, abuse, anxiety, depression, stress, life transitions, chronic health, trauma, grief and loss, relationship concerns, behavioral problems, men’s, women’s, children, and parenting issues. My counselling style is eclectic and rooted in a range of theoretical approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and trauma-informed practice.
As a therapist, I provide cultural safety, create a warm, safe, welcoming and brave space where all voices can be heard, challenges overcome, and lives transformed. My counseling mission to ignite hope, build strengths, empower people, and support individual’s capacity to become more resilient in all aspects of life.
Please reach out to me for a free 15-minute consult session.
I am a culturally sensitive Master’s level social worker, and therapist, clinician, mental health specialist who is passionate about working with diverse populations and creating a non-judgmental space where each client feels heard, respected, and understood. My practice is registered to provide virtual and in-person counseling services to residents of Alberta and Ontario. I provide counselling to youth, adults, individuals, couples, and families and I have over 14 years of experience as a clinician on the frontline and in leadership teams across many Canadian social services agencies. I understand that at times, life’s impacts bring stress, worry, frustration, and anxiety. I work to provide clients with the right support, help, and guidance so that they can cope with challenges and re-discover their path to a more fulfilling life.
My professional specialty includes supporting people struggling with addictions, abuse, anxiety, depression, stress, life transitions, chronic health, trauma, grief and loss, relationship concerns, behavioral problems, men’s, women’s, children, and parenting issues. My counselling style is eclectic and rooted in a range of theoretical approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and trauma-informed practice.
As a therapist, I provide cultural safety, create a warm, safe, welcoming and brave space where all voices can be heard, challenges overcome, and lives transformed. My counseling mission to ignite hope, build strengths, empower people, and support individual’s capacity to become more resilient in all aspects of life.
Please reach out to me for a free 15-minute consult session.
Establishing an environment where clients feel safe to share their story is of paramount importance. My approach to therapy is from a trauma-informed lens, a person-centred approach, and by utilizing evidence based modalities. I have experience journeying with clients from diverse backgrounds and with those who have experienced trauma, complex trauma, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, relationship issues, and with patients and their families in an in-patient setting. I am an integrationist, because I believe that therapy is not a one size fits all approach.
I have a certificate in trauma-informed CBT, Levels 1 & 2 in EMDR, EFT Externship, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP II), Prepare-Enrich, and have utilized other modalities such as Bowenian Family Systems Therapy, Existential Therapy, and DBT in an integrative way. I have also worked with survivors of sex trafficking for over a decade.
Your story is unique. I would be honoured to gently hold your story and journey alongside you, as you navigate through your life’s challenges. Be prepared to be gently challenged, and work on moving you closer to your therapeutic goals through talk therapy and/or experientially through EMDR.
Establishing an environment where clients feel safe to share their story is of paramount importance. My approach to therapy is from a trauma-informed lens, a person-centred approach, and by utilizing evidence based modalities. I have experience journeying with clients from diverse backgrounds and with those who have experienced trauma, complex trauma, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, relationship issues, and with patients and their families in an in-patient setting. I am an integrationist, because I believe that therapy is not a one size fits all approach.
I have a certificate in trauma-informed CBT, Levels 1 & 2 in EMDR, EFT Externship, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP II), Prepare-Enrich, and have utilized other modalities such as Bowenian Family Systems Therapy, Existential Therapy, and DBT in an integrative way. I have also worked with survivors of sex trafficking for over a decade.
Your story is unique. I would be honoured to gently hold your story and journey alongside you, as you navigate through your life’s challenges. Be prepared to be gently challenged, and work on moving you closer to your therapeutic goals through talk therapy and/or experientially through EMDR.
You’ve done everything right. You’ve been kind, reliable, strong.
But something inside still aches.
You’ve tried to fix it through journaling, meditating, staying busy.
You stay close to people who don’t really see you, because being alone feels worse.
Deep down, there’s a pain that won’t go away.
In therapy, we meet that ache together.
We slow down so your body can speak, and your heart can be heard.
You don’t have to face your feelings alone.
When they are met with care, they can begin to soften.
With time, something can take root:
A steadiness in your body
A clear voice that knows what’s true
Boundaries that feel kind and firm
A gentleness toward yourself you can finally believe in.
In addition to working from an emotion-focused and attachment-focused lens, I draw inspiration from my Jamaican (Maroon) roots, honoring intuition, spiritual wisdom, and tuning into the subtle ways life communicates with us. My work is grounded in listening deeply, holding space for the parts of you that have been overlooked, and helping you feel fully seen and understood.
You’ve done everything right. You’ve been kind, reliable, strong.
But something inside still aches.
You’ve tried to fix it through journaling, meditating, staying busy.
You stay close to people who don’t really see you, because being alone feels worse.
Deep down, there’s a pain that won’t go away.
In therapy, we meet that ache together.
We slow down so your body can speak, and your heart can be heard.
You don’t have to face your feelings alone.
When they are met with care, they can begin to soften.
With time, something can take root:
A steadiness in your body
A clear voice that knows what’s true
Boundaries that feel kind and firm
A gentleness toward yourself you can finally believe in.
In addition to working from an emotion-focused and attachment-focused lens, I draw inspiration from my Jamaican (Maroon) roots, honoring intuition, spiritual wisdom, and tuning into the subtle ways life communicates with us. My work is grounded in listening deeply, holding space for the parts of you that have been overlooked, and helping you feel fully seen and understood.
Dr. Lisa is passionate about Black health and improving the health disparities that is caused by racism and trauma. She received her BSc from McGill University, MSc from Dalhousie University and her Doctorate from Boston University. She has a rehabilitation professional background since 1999 working with people of all walks of life dealing with various diagnoses – mental illness, learning/reading difficulties, trauma, concussions, chronic pain, elder care, etc.
She offers Life coaching, health navigation, workshops, and the Black Lives Living Well Learning series in the online environment. She developed the “Black Lives Living Well” resources to empower all Black people to take better care of their mental, physical, and spiritual health as well as helping clients to create a wellness plan in all 8 dimensions of wellness. Workshops include – Know Your Numbers, Managing stress, Master Your Emotions, Sleep Well. She also offers consultant services and workshops on Anti-Black racism skills and Cultural Humility/Competence to organizations and groups.
Dr. Lisa is passionate about Black health and improving the health disparities that is caused by racism and trauma. She received her BSc from McGill University, MSc from Dalhousie University and her Doctorate from Boston University. She has a rehabilitation professional background since 1999 working with people of all walks of life dealing with various diagnoses – mental illness, learning/reading difficulties, trauma, concussions, chronic pain, elder care, etc.
She offers Life coaching, health navigation, workshops, and the Black Lives Living Well Learning series in the online environment. She developed the “Black Lives Living Well” resources to empower all Black people to take better care of their mental, physical, and spiritual health as well as helping clients to create a wellness plan in all 8 dimensions of wellness. Workshops include – Know Your Numbers, Managing stress, Master Your Emotions, Sleep Well. She also offers consultant services and workshops on Anti-Black racism skills and Cultural Humility/Competence to organizations and groups.
Hi there, my name is Eddie, and I am the founder of Sacred Stories Psychotherapy. As an RP (Qualifying), I believe therapy should be collaborative, flexible, and tailored to your needs. My goal is to offer a safe, supportive space where you can explore your experiences and move toward healing and growth at your own pace. With over six years of experience in the mental health field, I’ve had the privilege of supporting individuals from diverse backgrounds, including first responders and members of racialized and marginalized communities
I primarily work with adults navigating challenges related to trauma, substance use, grief, depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, and men’s mental health. My approach is eclectic and grounded in evidence-based practices, drawing from CBT, DBT, Narrative Therapy, and mindfulness-based interventions.
As a person of colour, I bring both professional and lived experience to my work, using a multicultural lens to understand how identity, culture, and systemic stressors can impact mental health. Whether you’re looking for support with a specific issue or are simply feeling stuck, I’m here to walk alongside you on your journey.
Hi there, my name is Eddie, and I am the founder of Sacred Stories Psychotherapy. As an RP (Qualifying), I believe therapy should be collaborative, flexible, and tailored to your needs. My goal is to offer a safe, supportive space where you can explore your experiences and move toward healing and growth at your own pace. With over six years of experience in the mental health field, I’ve had the privilege of supporting individuals from diverse backgrounds, including first responders and members of racialized and marginalized communities
I primarily work with adults navigating challenges related to trauma, substance use, grief, depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, and men’s mental health. My approach is eclectic and grounded in evidence-based practices, drawing from CBT, DBT, Narrative Therapy, and mindfulness-based interventions.
As a person of colour, I bring both professional and lived experience to my work, using a multicultural lens to understand how identity, culture, and systemic stressors can impact mental health. Whether you’re looking for support with a specific issue or are simply feeling stuck, I’m here to walk alongside you on your journey.
If overwhelmed, stressed out, and anxious seem to be your common state of being, or if you are struggling with feelings of guilt, shame, and hopelessness, or if despite all your best efforts you can’t seem to get from where you are to where you want to be, leaving you feeling stuck; then therapy can provide you with a safe space to be seen, heard, and understood. We can uncover the root of why you are stuck and struggling and discover the innate wellness and wisdom that resides within you, which can help create a new way of being in the present, so that your future can look like what you desire.In individual therapy, together by working with your mind and body, we can address thought, feeling, and behaviour patterns that are keeping you stuck. In couple and family therapy, we can work to reduce conflict cycles, harmful communication patters, and discover ways to be with each other’s differences, in order to support change and enhance connection.
My own personal journey alongside my years of experience working with individuals, couples, and families allows me to provide a safe, non-judgemental, and compassionate space for you to explore, uncover, and discover your self, which can allow you to move from where you are to where you want to be. I offer free 15-minute phone consultations.
If overwhelmed, stressed out, and anxious seem to be your common state of being, or if you are struggling with feelings of guilt, shame, and hopelessness, or if despite all your best efforts you can’t seem to get from where you are to where you want to be, leaving you feeling stuck; then therapy can provide you with a safe space to be seen, heard, and understood. We can uncover the root of why you are stuck and struggling and discover the innate wellness and wisdom that resides within you, which can help create a new way of being in the present, so that your future can look like what you desire.In individual therapy, together by working with your mind and body, we can address thought, feeling, and behaviour patterns that are keeping you stuck. In couple and family therapy, we can work to reduce conflict cycles, harmful communication patters, and discover ways to be with each other’s differences, in order to support change and enhance connection.
My own personal journey alongside my years of experience working with individuals, couples, and families allows me to provide a safe, non-judgemental, and compassionate space for you to explore, uncover, and discover your self, which can allow you to move from where you are to where you want to be. I offer free 15-minute phone consultations.
