"Knowing what we feel is the first step to knowing why we feel it"

~ Babette Rothschild

My Story

From a young age, I have faced significant personal loss.

Experiencing the loss of loved ones and friends through accidents, illnesses, and suicide has been a difficult journey. My mode of operation oscillated between being completely numb to being complete chaos. I lost relationships, motivation and large chunks of time to be able to cope. It wasn’t until I was able to see I wasn’t ok in others before I could see I wasn’t ok in myself. 

What I’ve come to understand is that attunement is the key to healing. I can trace this back to a high school theatre class where I can remember feeling the most alive. In theatre we learn to watch for subtle cues, to respond with vulnerability, to go deep but also to be present to and truly listen to other people’s depth. When held within these skills, this safety net, this closeness, you can begin to let walls down. You can breathe into discomfort without collapsing. You can be witnessed. We can attune to eachother. And we can feel safe enough to change and heal.

Building on a foundation of compassion, empathy and understanding, I draw on a diverse skill set that interweaves EMDR, IFS, body work and creative arts therapy to tailor treatment to the individual needs of every client.

My Why

Because we are a part of this human experience together and no one should have to suffer in isolation.

My Philosophy

I believe that building a deep, personal connection with my clients is essential to the healing process. While each person's experiences are unique, we all need to be witnessed, heard, and understood. It’s in connection that we find the space to finally let those walls come down. 

My Career

My experiences with loss and healing inspired me to pursue a career therapy. I received my Master in Creative Arts Therapy from Concordia University. I am registered with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario and am a Certified Canadian counsellor.

Since graduating, I continue to deepen my knowledge base, and am trained in Internal Family Systems, EMDR, CBT, Yoga Therapy for Trauma and Addiction, Perinatal and Child Loss, Aboriginal Focusing Oriented Therapy and Complex Trauma.

My Areas of Focus

Anxiety

Depression

PTSD and Complex PTSD

Sexual Abuse

Parenting and Family Concerns

Contact Lyndsay at lyndsay@integrativepsychotherapytoronto.com, or book a complimentary phone consultation

Featured
Conversations with Clients: Invisible Traumas
Conversations with Clients: Invisible Traumas

The first conversation I have with every single client. Why? Because trauma isn’t what a lot of people think it is. And that can lead to invisible traumas - traumas that are left unseen, unacknowledged and untreated.

Deep Dive: EMDR, A Primer for Patients
Deep Dive: EMDR, A Primer for Patients

Imagine our brain as a room with one giant filing cabinet in the centre of it. The filing cabinet is made up of many drawers (representing memory networks), which are filled with many files (representing brain cells). At birth, most of these files are strewn about the room haphazardly, with relatively few being stored in the filing cabinet. During the course of our life, the files in the room are gradually organized into drawers of the filing cabinet.

Stress: The Great Drain on Our Health Account
Stress: The Great Drain on Our Health Account

Our body has two basic operating systems; the “fight or flight” system and the “rest and digest” system.  Both of these systems are vital and we need them both, but we need them in the right balance. And unfortunately, as a society, we are drastically out of balance. Our bodies were never meant to be exposed to a sustained stress response, which is why chronic stress is implicated in obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disease and countless others. 

Deep Dive: Implicit Memories & Our Brain's Automation System
Deep Dive: Implicit Memories & Our Brain's Automation System

Implicit memory governs much of our behaviour. Such memories are like unconscious mental software packages - they quickly compare present events to past experiences, make assessments and predictions about the current situation, and initiate the appropriate reaction. And while for the most part, this is very adaptive, it comes at a cost. 

Shorts: The Window of Tolerance
Shorts: The Window of Tolerance

What makes something traumatic for one person and mildly disturbing for another? Why does the idea of public speaking leave one person exhilarated and another paralyzed with panic? Our nervous system has an ideal climate; a Goldilocks zone in which it operates best. This zone is called the Window of Tolerance, and where we are in relation to it has tremendous impacts on our mood, emotional state, and mental capacity.

The T Word
The T Word

In the realm of mental health, the word “trauma” can invoke a lot of different ideas and associations. There tends to be a general consensus around what is sometime referred to as “Big T” trauma, while there is somewhat less agreement in the realm of “small t” trauma. The difficulty with categorization provides a clue as to how the premise of the question might be flawed.