About Your Counsellor
Dan

I‘m Dan, a counsellor who lives, works, and plays on the ancestrial, traditional, and unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan Nation. I have lived in the Okanagan sine 2012, first between Kelowna and Lake Country, and now in Westbank. I love this community and the amazing experiences and moments it has to offer.

I remember the struggle of reaching out to therapy for the first time, having to overcome that internal obstacle and accepting that I needed help to find my inner resonance. But, wow, did it ever help. Sometimes, you just need someone to bring you to the water so you can really look at your reflection. I hope to be that person for you.

For many, however, the idea of going to an office, sitting on a couch, and talking about your thoughts, feelings, and “darkest secrets” is incredibly daunting. Now add in the mix that there’s a total stranger sitting across from you. I get it and have been there. And while I can’t help that we’ll start as strangers, I can offer some thoughts here to make you more comfortable.

Let’s start with what’s easy and set the tone:

Counselling must work for you and your needs.

There, I said it. If the counselling experience doesn’t meet your needs, then why are you doing it? So if the idea of coming to an office causes you anxiety or creates a barrier, let’s work around it together. We can go for a walk initially, or maybe we start with getting get a coffee. Let’s set a low barrier threshold to support you to get into therapy so we can get to know each other. As you become comfortable, we’ll start working towards your goals.

My approach to counselling

I use a bunch of tools and approaches to support your well-being and journey. Here are some of the techniques and interventions I use most often:

  • Client-Centred — You direct our sessions and where you want our conversations to go. I’ll bring in things as I observe them, but you direct which path we take and how long we walk it.

  • Narrative Lens — Too often, we let others become the authors of the stories we live. Whether that’s family, friends, or society, we inadvertently begin living the script others give us instead of becoming our own authors. People are not problems. Problems are problems, and we can change our relationship with them.

  • Strengths-Based — You are your own expert, and I plan to celebrate your expertise every step of our journey together. We can focus your plan around what you’re good at.

  • Solution-Focused — I intend to help you get to a place where you’ve found inner resonance as soon as we can. I don’t believe in dragging out your therapy if that’s not what you’re looking for. I balance the “Here and Now” with our future possibilities.

  • Cognitive-Behavioural — While it can be incredibly helpful to focus on how we’re feeling, often, our emotions are driven by our thoughts. Through CBT, we will focus on the symptoms you’re experiencing and how we can reduce them for you.

QUESTIONS? LET’S CHAT.

HAVE QUESTIONS OR JUST WANT TO CHAT? BOOK A FREE CONSULTATION WITH ME.