WELCOME TO JOURNEY WELL COUNSELLING SERVICES
February 29, 2020
Journey Well Counselling Services started in 2013 on a very part time basis. At the time, I was working full time at the local children’s mental health agency as a crisis and urgent services therapist for children and adolescents. However, one of my passions is working with couples! So, I started my practice to find a better balance in my client work, seeing only adult clients. In late 2014, my first daughter was born and I took a maternity leave from both the agency and my practice. Upon my return to the agency, I joined the management team as the Quality Assurance Manager and enjoyed working on policy, accreditation, legislation compliance, and strategy. But my first love is client work and I continued to work in my practice, seeing 4 clients per week.
In 2016, I took on the Interim Executive Director role at the agency and put my practice on hold to focus on that role. A few months later, I learned I was expecting my second daughter and took a second maternity leave from the organization and my practice. After my leave in 2017-2018, I returned to the children’s mental health agency as a Clinical Supervisor and worked to settle back into an ever changing setting. I also returned to my practice to reestablish my client work.
However, I struggled to find the balance of being a working mom who held multiple roles. My girls are so important and I love my client work and I love my system work at the agency. But looking after the girls and our home, taking on multiple projects in the 2 different work worlds, as well as attempting to engage in a meaningful way in my community meant that I was regularly overextending myself! In November 2019, I made the decision to move into private practice full time, which meant I would be leaving the agency that had been my work home for almost 8 years! This decision was so hard, but it meant I was prioritizing my needs, my families needs, and offering me different opportunities to focus on my passion: Client work!!!
In January 2020, Journey Well Counselling Services began operating full time! I now see clients regularly and engage in psychotherapy related conversations with therapist colleagues in my office. My day to day has changed but my passion for my client work has grown 🙂 I miss the people and the organization that taught me so much over the last 8 years. However, I am so grateful for what I learned as well as for the opportunity to move into the world of private practice full time.
As I move forward on this journey of mine, I invite you to join me! We will explore ideas, strategies, resources, and challenges to support you in your journey. Let’s see where it takes us!