East Vancouver Counselling
1750 East 10th Avenue, Suite 505 V5N 5K4 Vancouver, BC, Canada

We’re so happy to announce new beginnings at East Vancouver Counselling! Our move into our new offices in the Il Mercato Building is done. We are thrilled to expand our space and our Team, and to offer a wider range of services to our Community (and beyond!). Some of our new and existing Team members have added shifts, so we’ll be please to accept new clients for both online and in person work. Here are some pics of the new space:

A flock of therapists!

East Vancouver Counselling is growing! As of April 1st we're moving to beautiful new digs in the heart of East Van, and we will have space for more Team members to join us. Our model is collaborative - you rent space regularly or join us as a Virtual team member, and keep your professional identity and brand of your own business. You are a private practitioner, but get the many shared benefits of being a member of our Team. Benefits include collegial support, Counselling-o...riented space, Jane membership (including virtual work), cross referrals, etc. Our profile in the community and team work has brought us great exposure so we tend to get plenty of referrals to share. You commit to renting as little as one 1/2 day shift per week (perfect if you are mainly online but want to have just a little time in the office), or as much as your own full time room that you can set up as you like and get your name on the door, or there is lots of space in between. We can mentor new Counsellors. Our model is fantastic for anyone who wants to have multiple locations, who prefers not to work in an isolated 'silo' of private practice but still wants control over their clients and fees, or who is building a practice alongside other work. Send us a note at [email protected] if you're interested in knowing more! See more

Team member David Minor is running a support program for parents of boys who are struggling with mental health and has a few spots open still. Please share this info if you know anyone who might benefit: https://solidaritycoach.com/solidarity/

We hear that Greenshields is adding to RCC benefits as well, depending on your plan. If you or someone you know is struggling - reach out! Our team can help you.

Are you surviving, struggling, or thriving? Need to talk to someone? Our team can help.

Self-care in pandemic times...

Yesterday I shared about a personal experience with sensory overload, but today I want to talk about how living during a global pandemic can impact sensory over...load. Given the restrictions that have been put in place, the lack of support, and being around our partner + children more than usual, we likely are feeling overstimulated. We may not have access to the same support that we previously had. This can leave us feeling helpless. The truth is, we can still create space to recharge during these times. Our efforts will take creativity. Our efforts will also look different than they did pre-Covid, but they are still worthwhile. I tell parents to do what they need to create room for pause. This may look like: Allowing your kids to use technology while you take quiet time Practicing quiet time as a family in separate spaces (if safe and age-appropriate) Using nap time as a time to recharge rather than finish a chore Setting up a quiet activity for your kids that will allow you to sit down and rest Telling your partner or support person that you would like scheduled time each day to be alone (even if you’re in another room) If you’re up for it, waking up before everyone else Are you struggling with this? How do you take time for pause?

Dear community, We want you to know that we at East Vancouver Counselling and Blooming Brains stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter, Idle No More, and other local and international racial justice movements. We acknowledge that in Canada we are not immune to the problems of systemic racism, white supremacy, historical oppression, and police brutality and we felt it was important that we make a statement about this because we cannot allow silence to imply ambivalence on... this critically important issue. As an organization, we support individuals, couples and families in their mental health and personal growth journeys, and in this way our goals and values are inseparably tied to the rights of all persons to security, health and freedom. We recognize that systemic racism and discrimination is woven into every aspect of society and profoundly impacts our clients’ and community’s mental health, emotional wellbeing, and nervous system health. It is our individual and collective responsibility to ensure that we continue to educate ourselves about the best ways to support people through these challenges and work to eliminate systemic racism in our organization and community. We are aware this work is ongoing. We commit to listening and learning from BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) communities who are the experts in what their communities need. Feedback is key to our ability to recognize and repair our inevitable and often unaware collusion with systemic racism and we welcome and value opportunities to recognize when we have made mistakes. We understand that it is our job to be humble, listen, and do better. In solidarity and with love, The East Vancouver Counselling and Blooming Brains Teams

Good strategies to remain connected & motivated while fighting for social change.

It's time to stop the stigma around couples therapy. #MentalHealthAwareness According to the research, prevention is 3x more effective than intervention. Instea...d, many couples don’t do maintenance on their relationship, waiting an average of six years before seeking help with their relationship problems. Discover some of the misconceptions that are preventing couples from acting sooner as we dispel these common myths and reveal the truths about couples therapy. Find a Certified Gottman Therapist on the Gottman Referral Network: https://bit.ly/3ceMEt3

Thinking of all Mothers today!

When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary. The people we trust with that important talk can help us know that we are not alone. - Mr. Rogers

I’ve been seeing so many friends seriously beating themselves up because they aren’t maximizing their time in quarantine by organizing their closets, repainti...ng, developing a side hustle, becoming a piano virtuoso, exercising themselves into a lucrative career as a swimsuit model, etc. Everybody! Seriously. Stop. And breathe. If you’re feeling adrift, there’s a reason. I’m about to drop some first semester nursing school on y’all. It’s Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Humans have basic requirements (the bottom of the pyramid) like food, water, air, shelter, sleep, etc. The biological basics. If those are met, then the next rung of the ladder is Safety and Security. If we feel safe and secure, then we can climb up and start on our Love and Belonging needs and on up the ladder we go until finally at the very tippy-top is SELF-ACTUALIZATION which would entail all of the cool aforementioned activities. The catch is, you cannot level up until the needs at the current level are fulfilled. If the needs remain unfulfilled, we remain stuck on our current level until the situation changes. Friends, in the midst of a pandemic, we are dwelling in the basement of Maslow’s pyramid. How in the heck do you think you’re going to kick butt at the highest levels when we can’t even find toilet paper for Pete’s sake. You physiologically and psychologically aren’t built to live your best life right now. Your only job is to live a life right now. A luxury that is being denied many which increases the pressure to really make every day count. But listen. Every day you are here counts. Every breath you take counts. Are you eating, drinking water, and sleeping at all these days? If so, that is a triumph right now. Cut yourself ALL THE SLACK. Focus on the bottom level. Are you showering? Eating a vegetable once in a while? Getting some sunshine and fresh air? Keeping some semblance of a sleep schedule? Start there. And be extra gentle and abundantly gracious with yourself. We’ll get through this. And right now, getting through is absolutely enough. I love you all. Hang in there. XXOO, Rachel TL;DR: Be kind to yourself.

We’re all going through a collective grief and a collective trauma right now. Some of that grief is large scale: We’re seeing our fellow humans get sick and die, and we’re watching our health-care workers suffer. And then there’s the other grief over the small losses of everyday life.

Does working with a therapist online seem less ‘personal’? There may be another angle to this that’s worth considering:

Maintaining your mental health during this uncertain time is critically important. As the days wear on, it may be harder for some to manage. If you or someone you know wants to find someone to talk to about what you are going through, our Team are here for you. All of our Counsellors are now working online and by phone. Our Online Counselling services are privacy compliant as per our professional standards, and while it can seem a bit weird or awkward at first to talk to your Counsellor from your home - we can get through that together. There are sliding scale options for those who are struggling financially, and as always you can apply for reimbursement with any Benefits package that accepts RCC’s or RSW’s.

It’s Amanda here. I am sharing these Simple & Powerful Wellness Tools because I want to help during Covid19. I did not come up with them, they have been tried and tested by others, but I use them with clients and personally to get power back from anxiety and stress. I hope they help you too.

How you care for your mental health through this crisis really matters in the long term. Stay connected to your Counsellor and reach out for support, even if it is not as frequently. Our team are equipped to help you remotely. If you know someone who is suffering at home, tell them to get in touch.

The view from our office (June 2019)