Education and Work Experience

Nearly forty years ago I began working with children, teens and adults in hospital, school and private practice settings.  For the next two decades, my main clinical work was to provide neuropsychological and educational assessments and short-term counselling to individuals and families. I was also involved in clinical teaching as well as research to assess the psychological impact of a variety of medical conditions and their treatments.

For the past twenty years I have been solely in private practice, my work focusing on psychotherapy and counselling in adults who come from a wide variety of backgrounds and have a range of different concerns and aspirations.

I completed psychology degrees at McGill (M.A., 1973) and McMaster Universities (Ph.D., 1980) and post-doctoral training at the University of  Victoria (1981) with an emphasis on animal and human neuropsychology.

Since 1995 I have been obtaining specific education and training in individual psychotherapy and marital counselling through workshops, courses and individual supervision. My training in individual therapy has followed two principal streams: existential-humanistic psychotherapy (Dr. James Bugental) and traditional cognitive behavioural approaches (Dr. David Burns, Dr. Christine Padesky). I have also received training in more recent forms of cognitive behavioural therapy which integrate mindfulness, experiential and compassion-based approaches. These include Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy and Compassion Focused Therapy.  My couples work is primarily influenced by family systems thinking as well as the work of Drs. John and Julie Gottman, Dr. Terrence Real, and Dr. Susan Johnson. I have had a personal meditation practice and have studied Buddhist philosophy and psychology for 30 years.

In 2005 I was was awarded the Practice of the Profession Award (Parke O. Davidson Award) by the B.C. Psychological Association for my work in child neuropsychology.

I am a member of the Association for Contextual and Behavioral Sciences, the British Columbia Psychological Association and the American Psychological Association. I am a registered psychologist with the College of Psychologists of British Columbia ( Registration No. 862)